Pollutant Inputs to the Great Lakes

The Great Lakes are subjected to pollutant loadings from a wide variety of sources including direct and indirect municipal and industrial wastewater discharges, combined and storm sewer overflows, runoff from agricultural and other land, and atmospheric deposition. The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreements of 1972 and 1978 committed the Governments of Canada and the United States to develop and implement programs and other measures to control inputs of pollutants from these various sources in order to meet the general and specific objectives of the Agreements.