Remaining high when they normally drop
Water levels in Lakes Huron and Michigan are bucking the seasonal trend by remaining high when they normally drop.
And there’s a decent chance they might remain at about these levels, something that hasn’t happened in years, until spring rain boosts their volume for next year.
Since record-keeping began a century ago, water levels in Lakes Michigan-Huron have risen in only seven years , said Derrick Beach, hydrology specialist with Environment Canada.
“It’s fairly rare to see that,” he said, noting the decline generally starts in late summer
Only a few years ago, the lakes had lost so much water — less rainfall and more evaporation were among the reasons — that many people worried they were destined to remain low for the long haul.
But above-average rainfall and snowfall have fallen on Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron (Michigan-Huron is considered one lake system) for about a year.
Water is flowing out of Superior into Michigan-Huron at 2,410 cubic metres/second, and that’s also making a big difference to lake levels, Beach said.
A few years ago, many lobbyists, especially hard-hit cottagers on Georgian Bay, said lake levels were so low that “speedbumps” should be built in the St. Clair River to keep water in Lake Huron a little longer during dry spells.
Even today’s higher lake levels suggest the same argument can be made to moderate water flows by building flexible underwater structures and covering the riverbed with rock rubble, said Mary Muter, Ontario Great Lakes section chair of Sierra Club Canada.