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More than any previous presidential transition, the 2016 election of Donald Trump gave rise to fears on both sides of the border as to what consequences might follow for the state of the environment. In Canada, by contrast, the 2015 election of a Liberal government was widely expected to produce a significant increase in both environmental spending and regulation. Divergence in the environmental policies of the two countries and friction over transboundary environmental issues appeared likely. Three years after the election of President Trump, the environmental policy conflicts between Canada and the United States are fewer and less fractious than many anticipated. Moreover, the consequences for Canada of the Trump administration's weaker concern for the environment also have been less dire than many predicted. In short, the environmental relationship between Canada and the United States has proved to be more resilient than expected. Two main factors are responsible for blunting the bilateral effects of an undeniable and wide gap between the Trudeau and Trump governments on the environment. One involves the nature of environmental policy, characterized by high levels of technical and scientific complexity, multiple stakeholders, and the important role of subnational governments. The second factor involves governmental structure. In particular, the American system of divided powers makes it more difficult than Canada's more centralized, prime ministerial system of government to change the direction of policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because of significant environmental changes underway in the Arctic region, institutional change for Northwest Passage management is receiving increased attention. Due to the potential environmental and security impacts of regularized ship transits through the Northwest Passage, a number of informed observers have discussed the need for considering alternative means of governing the waterway. This article assesses four approaches to governing the use of the Northwest Passage, including the current institutional arrangement. Following an overview of the environmental change underway in the Arctic region and its impacts on the Northwest Passage, the controversy surrounding the international legal status of the waterway and the possibility that it may in future become a commercial resource are discussed. Advantages and disadvantages of three alternative institutional models of resource governance recommended for application in the Northwest Passage case are presented, along with those surrounding the Arctic Cooperation Agreement, the current institution in use. The analysis suggests maintenance of the status quo institution appears to be the most likely outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In 2010 the US declared the Lake Erie water snake a recovered species, but in Canada the snake is still considered to be an endangered species. After explaining the legal similarities between the Ontario Endangered Species Act and the American Endangered Species Act, this article examines a case study with landowner interviews from one US island and one Canadian island. It is concluded that landowner attitudes toward conservation and private property are very similar. Thus, it is argued that bureaucratic differences, particularly institutional capacity and implementation styles, enabled the US but not Canada to recover the snake. The article concludes with a discussion of the need for better communication between the two countries for the purposes of biodiversity conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A review is presented of the article "A Model Environmental Nation? Canada as a Case Study for Informing U.S. Environmental Policy” by T. Timothy Casey which is in this issue.

The article focuses on environmental issues and policies in Canada from the perspective that the U.S. can learn from the Canadian model. Discussion topics include an overlap of resources and a shared border with similar landscapes between the two countries, the development of natural resources such as oil sands in the western regions of both nations, and a coordination of access to fisheries and sustainability of fish stock in shared coastal waters. Canada's position on climate change and the commercial development of a Northwest Passage across the Arctic region are noted.

This article reports that Canadian-U.S. environmental relations manifest a growing importance of transborder state and provincial cooperation and policy-making. Under the joint Climate Change Action Plan, adopted by the New England Governors and the Eastern Canadian Premiers in August 2001, participating provinces and states commit to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 1990 levels by 2010 and 10 percent below 1990 levels by 2020. The provinces and states moreover pledge to ultimately decrease GHG emissions to levels that do not pose a threat to the climate, which according to an official estimate would require a 75-85 percent reduction from 2001 emission levels.

The article focuses on serious tensions in the Canada-United States relationship in recent years, sparked by both a marked divergence in the domestic and international policy priorities in the two countries. There is a thickening network of relationships at the subnational and cross-border regional level that is changing the very nature of Canada-U.S. environmental relations. The Canadian-American environmental relationship has been driven largely by the need to deal with pressing transjurisdictional pollution problems, to manage shared resources as well as resolve related disputes.

The article analyzes Canada-U.S. environmental relationship as of March 2003. Canada and the United States share a set of ecosystems that span the North American continent and the transboundary nature of environmental problems creates the need for cooperation between the two countries at multiple levels. To grasp the full complexity of the Canada-U.S. environmental relationship, one must employ a multi-faceted framework for analyzing cross-border interactions. To add to the complexity, by the mid-1990s the Canadian-American environmental relationship was increasingly seen as also being anchored in a trilateral framework.

Provides information about the contributions of Manitoba Royal Commission on flood cost benefit. Importance of royal commission for Canadian policy development; Effort of the commission for basic policy on flood mitigation.