The lake goes down and...

[Spiel]

The lake goes down and...

US Army Engineers predict rise in L. Huron because of big snowfall

 

March 13, 2008

Jim Moodie / manitoulin.ca

 

 

LAKE HURON-Finally a bit of good news on the water levels front: the wallop of white stuff that hit various corners of the Great Lakes in recent weeks should bring a much-needed infusion of wet stuff come spring.

 

Levels are expected to rise this summer as a result of the snowy deluge, the Detroit Free Press reported on the weekend. And while snowbound residents of southern cities have been complaining about the inconvenience, for boaters and lakeside businesses, this is a welcome turn of events indeed.

 

Last fall, projections were exceedingly dire regarding lake levels. Lake Superior hit record lows in August and September, and as this year began, both Huron and Michigan were hovering near all-time lows. New record lows were anticipated by spring.

 

Then came the snowstorms, one after another, much to the surprise of those who were bracing for an ongoing drought and even higher docks come spring. "We didn't expect this dramatic turnaround," said Scott Thieme, chief hydrologist of the Detroit office of the Army Corps of Engineers, in an interview with the Free Press. "It's a much better picture than it was six months ago. We're just amazed at the weather we've had."

 

Scientists now say that the recent heavy storms, which have pulled in moisture from as far away as the Gulf of Mexico, should go a long way towards slaking the basin's thirst.

 

The type of snow that recently hammered Great Lakes communities is heavy, dense and full of water, according to meteorologists, and owes to a La Nina weather pattern originating in the Pacific. It's not the usual lake-effect precipitation that recycles moisture within the system, sucking up water from the lakes and dropping it back down as snow. It's, in a nutshell, bonus stuff.

 

This imported H20 also bodes well for parched streams, rivers and inland lakes, many of which are also experiencing extremely low levels.

 

If prognostications pan out, the upper Great Lakes could be six to 12 inches higher this summer than they were last summer, according to the Free Press.

 

Manitoulin hasn't experienced the massive dumps of snow experienced elsewhere across the watershed, but parts of the Michigan shore-and Michigan is connected to us-are reporting their snowiest Februarys ever.

 

Water is already rising on Huron-Michigan compared to a month ago, Environment Canada notes in its monthly Level News bulletin. While the level of Superior "fell a bit more than average during February," levels on Lakes Michigan-Huron "experienced a small, but welcome, increase," rising by three centimetres. Historically, the lakes decline by an average of one centimetre over the course of this month.

 

Still, the lakes have a lot of climbing left to do before a typical level is attained. As Environment Canada points out, "the level of Lakes Michigan-Huron remained 53 centimetres below average at the beginning of March and 13 centimetres lower than it was one year ago."