Water Use in the Great Lakes region

Annual Water Use Report
The Great Lakes Water Use Database Repository, housed at the Great Lakes Commission, provides a centralized source of information on withdrawals, diversions, and consumptive uses of water in the Great Lakes Basin in both United States and Canada.. For more information, contact Tom Crane at tcrane@glc.org

The Value of Great Lakes Water Initiative
The Value of Great Lakes Water initiative will study the pricing of public water in the Great Lakes region and look at ways that pricing can be used as a tool to better manage this precious water resource. The first phase of this initiative engages regional and national experts on water conservation and efficiency. The project will try to answer questions such as: What is the importance of energy costs in a water bill? Does water use reflect the full costs of providing water, including ecological costs? Can water pricing incentivize water conservation in the region? The project will also help inform public water utilities that are looking to implement more sustainable practices in providing water. An end goal of the 18-month planning phase is design of a demonstration pilot where efficiency-oriented public water rate structures could be compared to more traditional rates structures to determine their potential for broader application in the region. For more information, contact Becky Pearson at bpearson@glc.org

Great Lakes Biohydrologic Information System
This project is a feasibility study for the Great Lakes Biohydrologic Information System called for under the John Glenn Great Lakes Basin Program: Section 455 (b) Great Lakes Biohydrologic Information, authorized under the Water Resources Development Act of 1999. It builds upon and complements the Water Resources Management Decision Support System project. For more information, contact Tom Crane at tcrane@glc.org

Developing a Water Conservation "Tool Kit" for the Great Lakes Region
The Great Lakes Commission will prepare a water conservation toolkit to assist public water suppliers and state and provincial agencies in meeting the water conservation requirements to be developed in the system contemplated under the Annex. For more information, contact Tom Crane at tcrane@glc.org

Support for Water Resources Management
The Commission's large-scale, binational collaborative effort will yield, in unprecedented detail, a status assessment of Great Lakes water resources, an inventory of the sources and use of Great Lakes water, and enhanced understanding of the ecological consequences of such use. The Commission is actively involved in research, analysis, policy development, and advocacy associated with issues of water quantity management. For more information, contact Tom Crane at tcrane@glc.org

Water Resources Management Decision Support System for the Great Lakes (WRMDSS)
This large scale binational collaborative effort will yield, in unprecedented detail, a status assessment of Great Lakes water resources, an inventory of the sources and use of Great Lakes water, and enhanced understanding of the ecological consequences of such use. For more information, contact Tom Crane at tcrane@glc.org