Low Water the 'New Normal' for Great Lakes?

Leader-Telegram photo.

Anglers and recreational boaters were warned in late fall of dangerously reduced water levels in Lakes Michigan, Huron, and Superior, with a likelihood of all three falling to record lows in early 2013.

Michigan and Huron were 11 inches lower than the year before and 2 feet, 4 inches lower than their long-term averages for October. Superior was at its 1925 record-low average for that month.

Mostly, the decline is blamed on a mild winter with little snow followed by a hot summer with little rain, according to Keith Kompoltowicz, a hydrologist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

“We are seeing much lower water levels than we had last year, and that is the case all over the Great Lakes,” he said.

But more and more, attention is turning to what man has been done to alter the water levels and what might be done in the way of mitigation. For example, reversing the Chicago River in 1900 so it flowed out of Lake Michigan instead of into it resulted in a loss of about 2.1 billion gallons a day, which has dropped the long-term average for both Michigan and Huron by two inches.

Key focus, though, is on the St. Clair River, which has been heavily dredged, allowing more water to flow out of Huron and into Erie and, from there, eventually into the Atlantic Ocean. Scientists generally believe this alteration has resulted in a drop of the long-term average for Huron and Michigan by about 16 inches. But a recent joint study by the U.S. and Canada suggests that erosion in the St. Clair might have reduced the long-term average for those two lakes by an additional 3 to 5 inches.

That has prompted a coalition of mayors from 90 cities around the Great Lakes to ask the International Joint Commission, which advises on boundary water issues, to further investigate engineering options to raise lake levels in order “to compensate for human activities, notably dredging in the St. Clair River . . .”

Another group, Save Our Shoreline, wants a mechanism to control water flow in the St. Clair.

“Given the history of consistent water level reductions since 1855, the unmitigated and unplanned increase in conveyance in the St. Clair River since 1962, and the uncertainties presented by climate change, we believe it would be irresponsible not to begin the process toward a regulatory structure now,” it said.

Water levels on the Great Lakes typically fluctuate by inches seasonally and by as much as several feet over a period of years. But, until now, anglers, marina operators, and lakefront property owners felt secure in believing that water levels wouldn’t drop below the 1964 record lows.

(This article appeared originally in B.A.S.S. Times.)

States Lose Latest Battle to Protect Great Lakes from Asian Carp

A federal judge has thrown out a lawsuit by five states that want to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes by forcing closure of the manmade connection between the Mississippi River basin and the Great Lakes.

I can’t say that I’m surprised. Bureaucracy and status quo almost always will trump change, even if that change clearly is in the best interests of those affected.

On the positive side, the judge did say the he is “mindful of, and alarmed by, the potentially devastating ecological, environmental, and economic consequences that may result from the establishment of an Asian carp population in the Great Lakes.”

But he added that the proper way for the states to win approval is through Congress.

Read the full story here.

Asian Carp Pose Threat to All Great Lakes

If they gain entrance, Asian carp could find enough food and breeding areas to infest all five Great Lakes within 20 years, according to a recent risk analysis by scientists from the United States and Canada.

Additionally, authors of the report released by Canada’s Fisheries and Oceans Ministry suggested that just 10 mature females and even fewer males would be enough to establish a population within the Great Lakes. Previously, many theorized that at least hundreds of fish would be required.

“Ever since these non-native fish first escaped and began to breed prolifically in the rivers of the Midwest, the questions everyone has been asking are: ‘Can a breeding population survive in the Great Lakes and would it be a significant problem if they did?” Marcia McNutt, director of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), said in a released statement.

“Now we know the answers and, unfortunately, they are ‘yes’ and ‘yes.’”

No surprisingly, scientists still believe that the manmade connection between Lake Michigan and the Illinois River watershed is the most likely pathway for entry, an electric barrier notwithstanding.

But state and federal researchers recently reported that they have found DNA from Asian carp in Lake Erie,  suggesting that rivers and wetlands connected to that fishery might provide entrance as well.

Four samples from Sandusky Bay in Ohio waters tested positive for bighead carp, while two samples from north Maumee Bay in Michigan waters were positive for silver carp.

“The results from these water samples are certainly concerning, as this marks the first time Asian carp DNA has been detected in water samples from Lake Erie or any of the Michigan waters intensively surveyed for the presence of invasive carp,” said Jim Dexter, fisheries chief for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

“Protecting the Great Lakes from the threat of Asian carp is critical to the health of our sport and commercial fisheries and to the quality of life in Michigan.”

The international analysis, meanwhile, projects carp would find Erie, Huron, and Michigan most to their liking, while infestation of Ontario and Superior would take longer.

(Reprinted from B.A.S.S. Times)

Obama, Romney on Asian Carp

What do the presidential candidates think about the threat posed to the Great Lakes by Asian carp?

President Barack Obama has promised billions more dollars in aid and admonished the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to hasten its study.

Mitt Romney, meanwhile, says the administration is moving too slowly.  According to the Christian Science Monitor, he has suggested that America put a man on the moon in less time than it’s taking to protect the Great Lakes from the exotic fish that have devastated many of the nation’s rivers and now threaten to enter Lake Michigan through a manmade connection.

Read more here.

Lake Erie Also at Risk for Asian Carp Invasion

Environment Report has produced a five-part series on Asian carp.

Part 3 deals with an alternative pathway for Asian carp to enter the Great Lakes. Most concern focuses on the canal connection between the Mississippi River basin and Lake Michigan near Chicago.

But to the east, in Indiana, Lake Erie is vulnerable.

Read about the danger here.