Low water levels in the Great Lakes are raising concerns

[Claude]

Water levels in the Great Lakes are nearing record lows this year.

Jim Biddle, the owner of Biddle Marine Services in St. Williams, Ont. told The Star that boaters on Lake Erie were "playing Russian roulette", adding that "boaters are running into rocks a mile off shore."

According to Environment Canada, Lakes Michigan, Huron and Superior were already running below the 100-year average last year, and now all the Great Lakes are running below that average — Lake Erie at 22 cm below average, Lake Ontario at 23 cm below average, Lakes Michigan-Huron at 63 cm below average and Lake Superior at 34 cm below average.

The main reason for the low water levels in the lakes this year is due to the warm winter and dry summer. Last winter was considered to be the warmest in decades according to Environment Canada, producing little to no snow pack around the lakes and the lowest 'total accumulated ice coverage' on the lakes since records began back in 1972-73, and this past summer was extremely dry from coast to coast.

The entire Great Lakes Basin is above sea level, with Lake Superior the highest at 180 metres above sea level, then Lakes Michigan and Huron at 176 m, Lake Erie at 174 m, and Lake Ontario lowest at 74 m above sea level. The St. Lawrence River runs downhill from there to the east coast. Any water in the Great Lakes will generally obey gravity and cascade down through the waterways until it reaches the Atlantic Ocean.

Water that would have normally been stored up in the snow pack and lake ice during the winter, for slow release during the spring melt, was instead free to run its course through the lakes. With very little rainfall making it out of the drought-stricken U.S. this spring and summer to replenish this lost water, levels have dropped to their current state.

There is a human component to this, of course. The lakes have always had a natural way to limit the amount of water that can flow out of it at any time, in the form of the rivers that interconnect the lakes. Dredging of these rivers, to allow for larger commercial vessels to pass through them, have also opened up the way for more water to flow through them, thus depleting the lakes at a faster rate.

The low water levels may have been partially responsible for the mass deaths of thousands of fish in Lake Erie two weeks ago. Examination of the fish found that they died due to natural causes when oxygen levels dropped in the lake. This may have been caused by an algae bloom, or possibly a sudden 'lake inversion', where a cooling of the surface of the lake — by stormy or windy conditions — causes the oxygen-rich upper layer of lake water to exchange with the oxygen-deficit lower layer, suffocating any fish near the surface. In either case, the lower the water levels in the lake, the easier it would be for either of those scenarios to cause the die-off.

[Chas0218]

The questions is what are they going to do about it? I would have liked to see the lake raised this year knowing there wasn't going to be the usual amount of run-off. I have talked to several "old timers" and they said this is the year to put a concrete ramp in because this is the lowest the water has been in 60 years. If we don't get the snow we normally do next year my father-in-laws waterfront will be extended another 10' from what it is now.

[motoman]

History of Water Regulation in the LOSLR Basin

Given the diverse interests and needs along Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River, regulating water levels is a complex task.

In 1909, as part of the Boundary Waters Treaty, the International Joint Commission was established to help manage the shared waters along the Canadian-U.S. border. During the 1950's, the IJC approved the construction and operation of a hydropower project in the international section of the St. Lawrence River for the purpose of producing hydroelectricity, enabling seaway navigation and providing some flood protection to Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River. Flows through the Moses-Saunders Dam would also be regulated so that the lower St. Lawrence River received no less protection than with unregulated flows. Under the treaty, the IJC is tasked with ensuring that all affected interests are considered in decisions that change the levels and flows of boundary waters.

The Lake Ontario St Lawrence River (LOSLR) Watershed

Click to view larger image

In light of record floods in the early 1950's, the governments of Canada and the United States asked the IJC to investigate whether water levels could be regulated for the benefit of property owners on Lake Ontario, while "having regard to all other interests" in the basin and how they would be impacted by such regulation. The IJC found that Lake Ontario could be regulated between a low of 74.15 m in the navigation season and a high of 75.37 m (243.29 and 247.29 feet, respectively) based on water supplies recorded between 1860 and 1954. The governments approved this target range of water levels and the regulation plan recommended by the IJC, called Plan 12-A-9. While this particular regulation plan was never implemented, it was used to calculate river profiles and design channel excavations for safe navigation through the seaway. The target range of Lake Ontario levels, however, was retained in subsequent plan development.

In 1960, the IJC implemented a new water regulation plan known as Plan 1958-A. That plan was soon reevaluated due to problems with low water levels, particularly in the Port of Montreal. As part of that evaluation, the International St. Lawrence River Board of Control (Board) -- which the IJC created to help monitor and manage the basin's water levels -- was given authority to deviate from the regulation plan when relief could be provided to one or more interests without causing undue harm to other interests. In 1962, Plan 1958-C became operational, which provided more stable minimum water levels through reductions in summer flows and minimum winter flows.

In January 1963, the IJC asked the Board to proceed with further studies on ways to improve the regulation plan. The resulting plan, 1958-D, would improve water levels at Montreal Harbor without reducing the minimum winter flows of Plan 1958-C. Plan 1958-D was made operational in October 1963 and has remained the regulation plan for Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River ever since.

In the ensuing decades, shoreline development in the region continued to grow. New homes were built, many residents converted summer cottages to year-round residences, and recreational boating grew to become a significant economic activity. But greater development also meant that greater impacts were felt from fluctuating water levels, particularly on occasions when water supplies were more extreme than Plan 1958-D was designed to handle. By the 1990's, there was growing dissatisfaction with the current regulation plan.

In 2000, the IJC began a new International Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Study with financial support from the two federal governments. The five-year, $20 million study provided new insights into the shortcomings of the current water regulation plan, and outlined how system regulation might be improved.

After the study was released, the IJC proposed implementing a modified version of one of the water regulation plans recommended by the study. After holding extensive public hearings on the issue, the IJC elected to withdraw that proposal due to various concerns that were raised. Yet the underlying problems and challenges with the current regulation plan have remained.

Maybe a plan E ?

[Chas0218]

History of Water Regulation in the LOSLR Basin

Maybe a plan E ?

The current plan doesn't seem to work...I would be willing to bet the lake is well below their "Minium" right now. The water level is stupid low, many ramps are barely usable. Look at the Margaretta ramp in sodus it has been closed half the boating season because of water levels.

This is going to start hurting the local businesses if people stop going to the lake.

[tbulhead]

The only ones happy about the low water are the chronic complainers in the Rochester area that live along the lake shore. They were "smart" enough to build their dream houses next to a Great Lake which has banks which erode when the lake level is high.

[ray koziatek]

GIVE ME 20 MILLION BUCKS . and I'll tell the guy who pushes the buttons for the water flow if it snowed or not..whew that was tuff!!

Oh and for another 5 million ill stick a ruler in the mud to watch the level if it goes down too much ill even call the power athority to tell em to flip the switch thingy that draws power from another source.....Whew nudder tuff job!!!!!

Ok next problem ima ready!!

[PennYan20]

I live in the Town of Greece on Lake Ontario. I have to say,one thing I knew I had to do was to install a breakwall when I moved in. The construction of rebar welded in a grid and filled with stone wasn't cheap. I also know that my taxes reflect a "high" water level, which means even though I now have beach, where water once was....I do not own it. As far as I'm concerned, that "thing" they called The Fast Ferry,caused more erosion and distruction of property, than a normal water leval of 246-247 feet above sea leval. Our ponds down here have become "insect breeding grounds." Our channel to Lake"O" was mostly used for jet skis. I miss the "normal" levals. Our Government seems to go to EXTREMES, instead of leaving Mother Nature alone. A boater and Fisherman....when I can. Steve................

[borderline 350]

Dear Ray K and other Deep Draft boat owners,

Dear Ray,

The guy that pushes the buttons for waterflow and level was probably affected "by the NYS budget problems". You can only react to the present low water levels. I have to believe that come next spring, life could get real miserable for trailer boats & fisherman. My recent observations (Sept. 22) of Pultneyville harbor indicate that any BOAT trying to enter with a North/NE wind and 2 footers will bottom out and sustain hull damage or worse. Yes...Lake Ontario is very lowwww!!! Braddock Bay Channel, Sandy Ponds on the East End etc. will be close to bike paths........if we have another short winter and warm spring.............X-Jet Boat Bill

[ray koziatek]

Ahhh! good point ........ok I'll do it for 1/2 of whAT I quoted.