For this report, self-supply--hydroelectric (water used in the generation of electricity at plants where turbine generators are driven by falling water) is treated as a withdrawal, even though all water for this purpose is considered to be returned to the basin. Under the 2009 draft water use information reporting protocols that will guide implementation of the new water use information commitments set forth in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Water Resources Compact and Agreement, hydroelectric will not be considered a “withdrawal”, but rather a “use.” In future reports, it will be not aggregated as total withdrawals, but rather aggregated separately.
