1.0 INTRODUCTION 



The Poplar River Bilateral Monitoring Committee was authorized for an initial period of five years 

 by the Governments of Canada and the United States under the Poplar River Cooperative 

 Monitoring Arrangement dated September 23, 1980. A copy of the Arrangement is attached to 

 this report as Annex 1. On March 12, 1987, the Arrangement was extended by the Governments 

 for four years to March 1991. The Arrangement was further extended for another five years to 

 March 1996, following a request from the Committee in 1991. A more detailed account of the 

 historical background of the Monitoring Arrangement is contained in the 1990 Annual Report of 

 the Poplar River Bilateral Monitoring Committee. 



The Committee oversees monitoring programs designed to evaluate the potential for transboundary 

 impacts from SaskPower's (formerly Saskatchewan Power Corporation) coal-fired thermal 

 generating station and ancillary operations near Coronach, Saskatchewan. Monitoring is 

 conducted in Canada and the United States at or near the International Boundary for quantity and 

 quality of surface and ground water and for air quality. Participants from both countries, 

 including Federal, State and Provincial agencies, are involved in monitoring. 



The Committee submits an annual report to Governments which summarizes the monitoring 

 results, evaluates apparent trends, and compares the data to objectives or standards recommended 

 by the International Joint Commission (UC) to Governments, or relevant State, Provincial, or 

 Federal standards. The Committee reports to Governments on a calendar year basis. This report 

 is the fifteenth in the series. The Committee is also responsible for drawing to the attention of 

 Governments definitive changes in monitored parameters which may require immediate attention. 



A responsibility of the Committee is to review the adequacy of the monitormg programs in both 

 countries and make recommendations to Government on the Technical Monitoring Schedules. The 

 Schedules are updated annually for new and discontinued programs and for modifications in 

 sampling frequencies, parameter lists, and analytical techniques of ongoing programs. The 

 Technical Monitoring Schedules listed in the annual report (Annex 2) are given for the 

 forthcoming year. The Committee will continue to review and propose changes to the Technical 

 Monitoring Schedules as information requirements change. 



