With a market net worth of $489 billion, the Great Lakes transit route between the U.S. and Canada plays a major role in Ohio’s economy. Coordinators of the 24th annual Reddin Symposium will address the impact of increasing trade activity and how it affects the water condition of the Great Lakes.
The event, titled The Great Lakes: Resources at Risk, will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday in 101 Olscamp.
In 2008, the Canadian studies department at the University was closed due to budget cuts. But with funding from Wood County judge, Mark Reddin, the symposium has become a community tradition.
Canadian studies professor and event director, Rebecca Mancuso, hopes the symposium will help make others aware of how relevant this issue is to the area.
“Canada is just a short hour and half away from Bowling Green,” Mancuso said. “Their economy plays a major role in our lives. Canada often takes a back seat to a lot of serious issues that need to be discussed.”
The symposium will also address the importance of maintaining the health of the Great Lakes while still keeping a lucrative trade relationship with Canada.
“We want to foster a greater understanding of U.S. and Canadian relations and how essential our partnership is to one another,” Mancuso said. “Canada is Ohio’s largest export market with numbers in the $18 billion range. More than 276,000 Ohio jobs are supported by Canadian and U.S. trade.”
However, possible repercussions may outweigh potential benefits. According to a 2008 document from the Canadian Embassy, 90 percent of the freshwater supply in the U.S. comes from the Great Lakes and provides habitat for hundreds of wildlife.
University biology professor, Robert McKay, worked with the U.S. and Canadian National Guard to discover the affects trade activity has had on the Great Lakes.
“The Great Lakes is deteriorating rapidly,” McKay said. “Levels of oxygen are becoming depleted causing bacteria to spread dramatically. What we see in Lake Erie is a dead zone where water pollution is having a major effect on our ecosystem.”
Admission is free to students, but there is a $10 fee for community members. To register, sign up on the Canadian Studies website.
“If we want to see change, we have to re-address past abuses and enhance awareness of future risk,” McKay said.