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AUTHOR Fortner, Rosanne W., Ed.; Mayer, Victor J., Ed. TITLE The Great Like Erie: A Reference Text for Educators and Communicators. INSTITUTION Ohio State Univ., Columbus. Ohio Sea Grant Program. SPONS AGENCY George Gund Foundation, Cleveland, Ohlo. PUB DATE 93 NOTE 161p. AVAILABLE FROMOhio Sea Grant Publications, The Ohio State University, 1314 Kinnear Road, Columbus, OH 43212-1194 ($8 plus $2 postage and handling). PUB TYPE Books (010) Collected Works General (020) Guides Non-Classroom Use (055)

EDRS PRICE MF01/PC07 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Business; Climate; *Ecology; *Environmental Education; *Geography; *Geology; Plants (Botany); Poisons; Resource Materials; *United States History; Water Pollution; Water Quality; *Water Resources; Weather IDENTIFIERS Coastal Management; Fishing Industry; Government Regulation; Great Lakes; *Lake Erie; Shipping Industry

ABSTRACT This volume of 16 chapters by 15 contributing authors was conceived as a means of drawing together a body of basic information about the Great Lakes that is up to date, based on sound research, and interpreted by experts in the scientific, historical, environmental and political value of the Great Lakes to North America and the world. Chapters include:(1) "These are the Sweetwater Seas" (Lee Botts);(2) "The Geological Setting of the Great Lakes" (Jane L. Forsyth);(3) "Vegetation and Plant Geography of the Lake Erie Basin" (John J. Furlong);(4) "The Effect of Lake Erie on Climate" (Val L. Eichenlaub);(5) "Coastal Processes on the Great Lakes" (Charles H. Carter);(6) "Early Struggles for Peace on Lake Erie" (Gerard T. Altoff);(7) "Opening the Region to Prosperity" (Gerard T. Altoff); (8) "The History of Great Lakes Shipping" (Alexander C. Meakin); (9) "Condition of Shipping on the Great Lakes" (Jeffery A. Bryant); (10) "Lake Erie Coastal Uses" (Richard Bartz); (11) "Water Level Fluctuations on the Great Lakes" (Thomas E. Croley II);(12) "Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie" (Elliot J. Tramer); (13) "History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery" (Andrew M. White); (14) "Recovering from Phosphorus Enrichment" (Charles E. Herdendorf); (15) "Toxics in Lake Eric" (Clayton J. Edwards); and (16) "Governing the Great Lakes Basin" (Kathleen L. Barber). Information about the authors is pl.ovided.(MDH)

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4 11111d OHIO SEA GR ANT COLLEGE PROGRAM INomeol Ohio Sea Grant College Program The Ohio State University 1314 Kinnear Road Columbus, OH 43212-1194 6141292-8949 Dr. Jeffrey M. Reutter, Director

The Great Lake Erie is a result of a grant received from The George Gund Foundation, Cleveland Ohio, by Drs. Rosanne W. Furtner and Victor J. Mayer. The book was reprinted in 1993 by the Ohio Sea Grant College Program as OHSU-EP-079. Copies can be purchased for $10.00 ($8 + $2 for postage and handling) from: Ohio Sea Grant Publications The Ohio State University 1314 Kinnear Road Columbus, OH 43212-1194 614/292-8949

Payment or a purchase order number must be received in advance. Make checks payable to The Ohio State University.

The Ohio Sea Grant College Program is one of 29 state programs nationwide that works toincrease understanding and wise use of the nation's ocean and Great lakes resources for the publicbenefit in partnership with government, academia and industry. Sea Grant fulfills its mission through promoting educational excellence,responsive research and training and broad, prompt dissemination of knowledge and technical information. The Great Lake Erie A Tteference Text for Educators andCommunicators

Edited by Rosanne W. Fortner Victor J. Mayer A volume such as this is not possible without the assistanceof numerous individuals and organizations.In addition to the sponsor, The George Gund Foundationof Cleveland, and The Ohio State University School of Natural Resourcesand College of Education, the following made significant contributions to this publication:

Technical Editors: Marcia L. Seager Marjorie Pless

Layout and Design: Jerri Shafer

Content Reviewers: James P. Barry, The Ohioana Library Sally Cole-Misch, International Joint Commission Frank Quinn, Great Lakes Environmental ResearchLaboratory Fernando Rosa, Canada Centre for Inland Waters S. Yaksich, Dept. of the Army, U.S. Army Engineer

The editors welcome comments and suggestions. Contact them through The Ohio State University, School of Natural Resources, 2021Coffey Road, Columbus, Ohio 43210-1085. Contents

Preface; About the Authors i 1/ These are the Sweetwater Seas 1 Lee Botts 2/ The Geological Setting of the Great Lakes 11 Jane L. Forsyth 3/ Vegetation and Plant Geography of the LakeErie Basin 18 John J. Furlong 4/ The Effect of Lake Erie on Climate 27 Val L. Eichenlaub 5/ Coastal Processes on the Great Lakes 38 Charles H. Carter 6/ Early Struggles for Peace on Lake Erie 46 Gerard T. Altoff 7/ Opening the Region to Prosperity 56 Gerard T. Altoff 8/ The History of Great Lakes Shipping 74 Alexander C. Meakin 9/ Condition of Shipping on the Great Lakes 80 Jeffery A. Bryant 10/ Lake Erie Coastal Uses 87 Richard Bartz 11 / Water Level Fluctuations on the GreatLakes 93 Thomas E. Croley II 12/ Effect of Human Activities on the Ecologyof Lake Erie 103 Elliot J. Trainer 13/ History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery 116 Andrew M. White 14/ Recovering From Phosphorus Enrichment 127 Charles E. Herdendorf 15/ Toxics in Lake Erie 136 Clayton J. Edwards 16/ Governing the Great Lakes Basin 141 Kathleen L. Barber

C Preface

The Great Lake Erie was conceived as a meansof drawing together for a single purposeinformation from a group of experts in areas thatcharacterize the importance of the Great Lakes.Thus the scientists, historians, resource managers and policyanalysts represented by this group reflect thescientific, historical, environmental and political value of theGreat Lakes to North America and the world. The purpose of this volume is to present abody of basic information about the GreatLakes that is research, and interpreted by experts in thesubjects involved.Such informa- up to date, based on sound decipher and tion is frequently difficult to locate, especiallyall in one reference, and equally difficult to evaluate. Educators and media communicators as aresult may avoid Great Lakes topics. needs, has a We believe that information in hand,especially if well presented and applied to real selected not only for strong potential for use incommunication and education. The chapter authors were their subject matter expertise but for theirability to communicate to the public as well.With the vitality arid interest apparent in this work, theyhave provided a substantial informationbase about where the Great Lakes have been and what their future maybe.This volume is a beginning set of answersfor about what we hope will be a growing interest amongeducators and communicators to learn and tell more thc Great Lakes. There is a great deal more to tell than this.The story of the importance of the GreatLakes does who share in the not end at the back cover of thebook. Itis a personal story, not only for those immediate grandeur of the lakes, but for everyworld citizen who shares the freshwaterbirthright.As stewards of the world of water, we can do noless than stand in awe of the resourceportrayed here and pledge ourselves to its wise management indecades to come.

Rosanne W. Fortner Victor!. Mayer About the Authors

Lee Botts is an environmental consultant in Chicago. Among hercurrent projects arc analyzing how Chicago deals with the environment, working with the Chicago City Councilon Energy and the Environ- ment, consulting with the National Geographic on its 1987 Great Lakes article, and helpingwith Citizen's Review for a Great Lakes Water Agreement.In 1978 President Carter appointed heras Chairperson of thc Great Lakes Basin Commission. From 1981 to 1986 Ms. Bottswas a research assistant on Great Lakes issues for the Center for Urban Affairs and Policy Researchat Northwestern University, a position from which she is currently on leave.

Jane L. Forsyth is Professor of Geology at Bowling Green State University andis a well-known lecturer on the getlogy of Ohio.In addition to her teaching, lecturing and research in geology, she served on both the Ohio Geological Survey andas Editor-in-Chicf of The Ohio Journal of Science for 10 years, has twice been vice-president for Geology in the Ohio Academy of Science, andwas selected by two Ohio governors to serve on the state's Natural Areas Council.She is active in the Ohio Chapter of The Nature Conbervancy.

John J. Fur low is Curator of The Ohio State University Herbariumin the Department of Botany, where he has been since 1980. He is currently writing Volume 2 of theVascular Flora of Ohio.Before coming to Ohio State he was a Professor of Biology at Capital University,Columbus, Ohio. He has also taught high school biology.Fur low's research specialty is the evolution and systematics of the Birch Family.

Val L. Eichenlaub is Professor of Geography at Western MichiganUniversity, Kalamazoo, and author of Weather and Climate in the Great Lakes.His articles on lake effect snow appear in meteorological journals, and he is currently involved in research relatedo climate change and changes in relative per- centages of sunshine and cloudiness in Michigan.Eichenl; alb editor of the forthcoming Atlas of Michi- gan Climate.

Charles II. Carter worked as a scientist for the Ohio GeologicalSurvey for ten years. He has been a Professor of Geology at the University of Akron since 1982.Dr. Carter's specialties arc coastal geology, sedimentology and stratigraphy.He takes a special interest in the historic changes that the Lake Erie coastline has undergone.

Gerard T. Altoff is the Historian and Chief Ranger for the National ParkService at Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial on South Bass Island, Lake Erie.He joined the National Park Service in 1972 after completing four years in the United States CoastGuard, including a tour of duty in Viet Nam. For the past six years he has conducted researchon the Battle of Lake Erie, particularly on previously unknown stories of the men who volunteered toserve on the American fleet during the War of 1812.Altoff has published several articleson the naval aspects of the War of 1812 in newspapers and military periodicals. Church in Cleveland.For Alexander C. Meakin is retired pastorof the Parma-South Presbyterian Society, and he is currentlyChairman thirteen years he served as Presidentof the Great Lakes Historical Dr. Meakin is a writer andlecturer on Great Lakes history,and author of of its Board of Trustees. He is currently completing abook several books on the the corporatehistories of steamship companies. about the Wilson Marine TransitCompany. Port Authority.His res- Jeffery A. Bryant is the marketingspecialist for the Toledo-Lucas County Authority's maritime and aviationdivisions. ponsibilities include marketing andspecial projects for the Port Bryant holds a Master ofDivinity degree in practicaltheology He also edits the Port of ToledoNews. after serving Cincinnati Christian Seminary. Hejoined the Port Authority in 1985 and journalism from the Bryant's work has cditor at the Freeport Journal-Standardin Freeport, Illinois. as the regional sports Toledo Metropolitan Magazine,and appeared in national and regionalpublications including Reader's Dkest, various newspapers. for Lake Eric in the Divisionof Water, Ohio Departmentof Natural Richard Bartz is Special Assistant dredging advisor to the Grcat LakesCommission, coordinator on harbor Resources. He also serves as an He Engineers, and advocate for coastalmanagement in thc Department. with the U.S. Army Corps of Great Lakes Governors thatdeveloped the served on the Water DiversionTask Force to the Council of Lakes issues since 1974. Great Lakes Charter. He has beenworking on Lake Eric and Great Hydrologist with the Great LakesEnvironmental Research Labora- Thomas E. Croley 11 is a Research systcms problems for nine years as aprofes- tory in Ann Arbor,Michigan. He worked on water resources Institute of Hydraulic Research,including work in sor and researchengineer at the University of Iowa's runoff kinematics at tL Universityof Canterbury and Lincolncollege.In 1980, New Zealand on surface models for each of the GreatLake basins. he joined GLERL's HydrologyGroup to develop rainfall-runoff completed near real-time lakelevel forecast package usedboth for These models are part of his recently Lakes as well as other large research simulations and operationalforecasting on the Laurentian Great lakes systems. Toledo, was born in Clevelandand has Elliot J. Trainer, Professor ofBiology at the University of Dr. Tramer is the authorof 40 papers on a variety of spent most of his life onthe shores of Lakc Erie. biol- diversity and distribution, successionin plant communities, and the ecological topics, including avian the effects of dredge His recent Lake Erie relatedresearch includes studies of ogy of stream fishes. in a Ring-billed gull colony,both spoil disposal on aquatic birdlife and patterns of reproductive success in the Toledo harbor. of Biology at John CarrollUniversity. He has been active inFish- Andrew M. White is a Professor environmental effects on fish, his re- since 1970.Interested in habitat and eries Research in Lake Erie Pennsylvania, Mich- states, including Ohio,Indiana, Illinois, New York, search has been conducted in many fish for the Army Corps Past projects address suchtopics as dredging and its effects on igan and Texas. Dr. White is currentlyresearching the of Engineers and the causesof fish mortality at powerplants. the Cleveland MetropolitanArea, he is causes of wintermortality in fish.Author of the book, Fishes of also President of the OhioAcademy of Science. Professor of Geology andZoology at The Ohio StateUniversity. Charles E. Herdendorf is a former Research (CLEAR), also served as Director of theCenter for Lake Erie Area During his years at OSU he Laboratory, the University'sbiological field the Ohio Sea Grant Program,and the Franz Theodore Stone of Geologist and Lake Erie SectionHead for the Ohio Department station on Lake Erie. He served as 25 years of Geological Survey from 1960 to1971.Dr. Herdendorf has over Natural Resources, Divison of the Board of Directors ofthe International research experience on the GreatLakes. He has served on for Old Woman Creek NationalEstuarine Sanc- Association of Great LakesResearch, the Advisory Council International Joint Commission. tuary, and severalcommittees and task forces of the Clayton J. Edwards has been a Fisheries Biologist forthe International Joint Commission since 1980. His previous work includes positions with the FederalEnergy Regulatory Commission and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.Much of his work focuseson the effects of physical and chemical degradation on Great Lakes aquatic ecology.Dr. Edwards is Secretary to the Great Lakes Science AdvisoryBoard and to the Lake Superior and Lake Eric Task Forces, Divisionsof the Grcat Lakes Water Quality Board.

Kathleen L. Barber is Professor of Political Scienceat John Carroll University.She is a member of the Board of Trustees of Ohio Environmental Council,Center for the Great Lakes, The George Gund Foundation, and the Barnett R. Brickner MemorialFoundation.She is also Chairperson of the Board of Cleveland Public Radio (WCPN-FM, 90.3).Dr. Barber is a former member of Shaker Heights City Council and Vice Mayor of the City of Shaker Heights.

iv 0 The Great Lake Erie, Editors

Rosanne W. Fortner is an Associate Professor of Natural Resourcesand Science Education at The Ohio State University, where she is responsible for instruction andresearch in Environmental Communica- tions.Since 1978 she has been involved as a curriculum developer andteacher educator in the Ohio Sea Grant Education Program. Her other activities include consultingeditorships for The Journal of Environ- mental Education, The Ohio Journal of Science and Science Activities, aswell as editorship of The Bios- phere, newsletter of the International Society for EnvironmentalEducation.Dr. Fortner is President-elect of the National Marine Educators Association.

Victor J. Mayer is Professor of Science Education, Geology andMineralogy, and Natural Resources at The Ohio State University. He has been involved in curriculum developmentin earth science through the Crustal Evolution Education Project, and aquatic sciences throughOceanic Education Activities for Great Lakes Schools, an Ohio Sea Grant projcct. He is a recognized leaderin science education internationally, Dr. Mayer is a candidate for president-elect of the National ScienceTeachers Association and has served as Regional Director of NSTA, as well asbeing President of the Science Education Council of Ohio and Executive Dircctor of the Consortium of Aquatic and Marine Educators of Ohio(CAMEO).

Marcia L. Seager is a Research Associate in the School of NaturalResources at The Ohio State University where she is pursuing a Mastcr of Science degree with a specializationin Environmental Com- munications.Her research focuses on teacher knowledge and attitudes aboutfreshwater topics in Ohio elementary and secondary school curricula.She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Education from Cornell University and is presently working as an assistantcurriculum developer and editor for the Ohio Sea Grant Education Program.

Marjorie Pless received the degree of Master of Science in Natural Resourcesfrom The Ohio State University in 1986 with a specialization in Environmental Education.Her research for the thesis dealt with the knowledge and attitude impact of displays in the visitor center atOld Woman Creek National Estuarine Research Reserve in Huron, Ohio, Ms. Pless has extensiveexperience in public education programs for marine facilities. She is currently a SeaGrant Intern in the U.S. House of Representatives.

I-r 4 1These are the Sweetwater Seas

by Lee Botts

When Jacques Cousteau callsthe Great River to the cast coast end reaches the same Lakes the cradle of the ocean, he acknowledges distance into the stratosphere to hold the water that the Great Lakes are the largest freshwater from just this one Great Lake. system on the globe.Each of the five separate All the Great Lakes arc huge storage reser- but connected individual lakes is so large that voirs of fresh water, with narrow connecting together they are known as inland seas.Like channels and only a small outlet to the ocean. the oceans, the Grcat Lakes are an international Each year only about one percent of the water resource, dividing Canada and theUnited States in the lakes flows out the St. Lawrence to the aspoliticaljurisdictionsbutuniting themin Atlantic.Appreciation of thc Great Lakes re- joint resource management. quires understanding of how the size and the One-fifththepopulationof theUnited closed nature of the system have madc these States and three-fifths of Canada's livein the sweetwater seas especially vulnerable to environ- Great Lakes region.The lakes supply drinking mental damage and how the damage has occurred. water to about 25 million people, as well as Inadditiontocontributingtonational water for power production, recreation and man- wealth, the Great Lakes have provided an early ufacturingineightstates and two provinces. warning system for global environmental problems They are the reason North America is the only and an unmatched example of success in resource continent with ocean portsa thousand miles management across an international border. The inland. lessons cover eutrophication, atmospheric trans- The lakes opened the interior of the con- port of pollutants and bioaccumulation oftoxic tinent to Europeans for trade and later for per- chemicals in the food chain. Today the binational manent settlement. As both countries developed, community committed to protection of the lakes lumber, sandstone and steel from Great Lakes is working to apply the concept of an ecosystem shores helped buildcities, and fish from the approach to management. lakes helped feed their inhabitants.The lakes The classic definition of an ecosystem is a are also the reason the GreatLakes region has complex of physicalresources and theliving so many great cities of its ownand such a large organismsthat depend on them. Ecosystem part of the industrial capacity andagricultural stability depends on evolution of a balance be- production of North America.And they are tween physical resources and the biological com- beautiful, with a majesty no other body of water munity. The community maintainsitselfby achieves. adapting tothe constraints and opportunities Collectively the Great Lakes contain one- provided by available space, energy and food. fifth of the world supply of fresh surface water, The ecosystem approach assumes that humans are so much that the quantity isusually expressed in part of and must adapt to the limitsof the cubic miles.Lake Michigan alone holds over ecosystem in which they live. 1,100 cubic miles (4,900 cubic kilometers) of In the past 200 years human activities have water. It would require a square tank that caused fundamental change in the Great Lakes covers the United States fromthe Mississippi ecosystem that evolved during the 10,000 years 2 / These are the Sweetwater Seas

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after glaciers left the lakes behind.The forces In the cerliral lowlands to the south, thick, that shaped the Great Lakes region began eons fertilesoils are layered over limestone in the before the glaciers arrived. lower Great Lakes region around Ontario, Erie and southei rt Lake Michigan. The lowlands have broad flood plains. The original hardwood forests How the Lakes Were Formed dominated by oak, maple and beech mixed with white pine have generally been replaced by agri- In the Precambrian era about four billion culture, industry and urban development.The years ago, geologic forces laid down the bedrock third regionis the wide flat valley of the St. of the Great Lakes watershed in three distinct Lawrence River that is the outlet of the Great regions. To the northisthe Canadian, or Lakes to the Atlantic. Laurentian, shield, where mostly thin soils lay At least four times glaciers advanced south over granite. Evergreen and conifer forests dom- over North America and retreated, the last one inate the Upper Great Lakes region around Lake only about 10,000 years ago.Each time melting Superior, Huron and northern Lake Michigan. filled deep basins gouged out by the glaciers.

.1 3 These are the Sweetwater Seas / 3

The Great Lakes watershed was finally formed as 581 feet (177 m), and because they are connected wc know it today only about 2,000 years ago.In through the broad Straits of Mackinac. Huron is some places the land is still reboundingfrom the the second largest of the five lakes, and is up of 194 weight of ice. to 750 feet (225 m) deep with an average The region has thousands of smaller lakes feet (59 m).The retention time for Huron is in addition to the Great Lakes. Although about only 22 years because ofitsrelativelylarge two-thirds of the original wetlands have been outlet into the St. Clair River toward Lake Eric. drained or filled, many marshes, bogs and fens Lake Michigan is thc third largest and the stillcharacterize the watcr-rich land.One of only Great Lake entirely within the United States. the influences on the Great Lakes is that thcy It is up to 925 feet (282 m) deep, with an aver- arc fed by hundreds of smalltributaries that age of 279 feet (85 m).Lake Michigan has a flow through many diffcrcnt kinds of soils and slow flushing time of 100 years because itis a land uses. cul de sac, receiving and discharging watcr to thc system through the same outlet in the north. Like Superior, Michigan is more vulnerable to The Great Lakes Hydrologic System pollution because of its size and long retention time.Its problems are compounded by the largest The most distinctive feature of the Great concentration of industry and cities in the region Lakes watershed is the high proportion of water- around its southern end in the Milwaukee-Chica- covered areas to land.Thc Great Lakes water- go-Gary metropolitan area. shed contains about 295,000 square miles (764,051 Lake Eric is the shallowest of the lakes sq km), with about one-third or95,000 square and holds the least water.Its fast flow-through miles (246,000 sq km) covered by the Great Lakes time of only three to five years makes it seem themselves. like just a wide place in the Great Lakes river The long shoreline of the Great Lakes to the sea. Because of its small sizeand because enhances the influence of land over the lakes. of the concentration of row crop agriculture and The 9,400 miles (15,150 km) of shoreline is longer numerous cities on its shores, LakeErie was the than the United States coastline on the Atlantic first Great Lake to be affected overall by pollu- and the Gulf of Mexico combined. tion.Yet Erie's fast flushing time assisted its dramatic response to cleanup of conventional pollution, and its short water column makes it Hydrologic traits less vulnerable to toxic contamination. Below Niagara Falls, Lake Ontario is down- Ali of the Great Lakes are part of a single stream from all the other lakes and thusreceives hydrologic system but each one is different. The pollutabts from upstream as well asits own system begins in Lake Superior, given its name watershed. Itreceives large loadings of con- by the French because itis the highest above taminants from the Niagara River, which is bor- sea level, about 602 feet (180 m),with the refer- dered by numerous hazardous waste landfills for ence point at Father Point, Quebec.Superior is the chemical industry that is dependent upon the Ontario allsuperlatives, the largestin every way. It hydropower of the falls for electricity. could hold as much water as all the rest of the is smaller in area but much deeper than Erie, lakes combined plus three more Lake Eries.It is 282 feet (86 rn) on the average and up to 804 the coldest and the deepest, up to 1,333 feet feet (245 m).The flow-through time is only six (399 m) with an average depth of about 500 feet years because it has the largestoutlet of all the (150 m) over all.Superior has the longest reten- lakesthe St. Lawrence River. tion time for watcr, about 200 ycars.This lake also remains the cleanest, though its size and slow flushing time make it most vulnerable to Climate impacts permanent pollution. Lake Huron and Lake Michigan share the The lakes are so large that they modify the same hydrologic system becausetheir surfaces climate. They store heat as well as watcr. Both arc at the same height above sealevel, about moisture in the air above the lakes and the heat 4 / These are the Sweetwater Seas

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Figure 1.2. Lake Erie drainage detail.(U.S. Army Corps. of Engineers, 1983) they exchange with the atmosphere affect the the wetter, colder periods when lake levels rise. climate.It is cooler in summer and warmer in While changes inlakelevelsaffectshoreline winter nearaGreat Lake.Retention of heat development severely, the fluctuations of several lengthens the frost-free season and is the reason feet are small in relation to the volume of water. fruit is grown near Lakes Michigan, Ontario and Erie. In winter and summer, the weather is more Changes in the Great Lakes changeable because cold fronts from the Arctic Ecosystem and warm fronts from the Pacific and the Gulf confront each other often in the moisture-laden When the first European explorers found atmosphere over the lakes. The moisture in the the lakes in the 16th century,itis estimated atmosphere provides many humid days in summer that about 120 thousand people livedin the and heavy snowfalls in the lee of the lakes. watershed that is now home to more than 40 The long term average annual precipitation million Canadians and Americans. Many of the is about 31 inches (77 cm.), less at the western native peoples depended on hunting and fishing. edge of the basin and more on the east.Varia- Those who planted crops moved on to a new tionsin precipitation and temperature are the location every few years,leaving the land to chief reasons for fluctuations in lake levels, with recover and waterways unchanged. more water supply and less evaporation during These are the Sweetwater Seas / 5

Most of the region was heavily forested, splake, or the Pacific salmon now so prized by with deep grasslands in the few open areas, and sports fishermen, the coho andchinook. Nor least not above travelwasverydifficultexceptbywater. was there any sea lamprey, at Streams ran clear and cold year round and seldom Niagara Falls.None of these fish so common flooded because wetlands filtered the nutrients in today are native to the lakes, while a numberof slow runoff from the wooded land. Elk were the native species, like the blue pike and the long- largest mammals, with bear, deer, wolves, beaver jawed cisco, are extinct. and large members of the cat family common The lamprey and the alewife, a small ocean throughout the region. herring, are believed to have invaded the lakes There were several hundred species of birds from the Atlantic through canals. The smelt and in great abundance. The Great Lakes, especially pink salmon accidentally reached the lakes after the north/south shores of Lake Michigan, are a being stocked elsewhere.The others, including introduced. continentalflywayformigratorybirds,with carp, were deliberately wetlands providing essential habitat for many species of waterfowl. The Europeans also made little difference Human impacts on the fishery for the lakes in the fust 200 years after their The temperature was raised and the charac- arrival.They lived in small settlements around the forts that protected the fur trade, andthe ter of streams changed as forests wereremoved voyageur traders traveled mainly onthe natural from the banks and flows were slowed by dams. thatthe warmer waterways. Permanent changes began firstin Fisherybiologistsspeculate the east in the 18th Century with removal of the water gave an advantage over nativespecies to forests for settlement and fields and dammingof the parasitic sea lamprey in streams where they large fish by attach- the streams to power grist mills. spawn. The lamprey attacks ing itself by its large mouth ringed with sharp teeth and feeding on the body fluids. The Great Lakes fishery After the "orthwest Ordinance opened the Great Lakes regionto permanent settlement Radisson, LaSalle and other early French following the Revolutionary War, canals were explorers wcre amazed by the size, abundance buiit to improve transportation into theinterior and number of species of fish in the GreatLakes. of the continent.It is believed the alewife and the It is thought there were about 180 nativespecies lamprey entered the Great Lakes through through of fish, some now extinct, and many subspecies Erie Canal and reached the upper lakes Nia- adapted to particular locations.Still, the lakes the Welland Canal that was built to bypass were relatively unproductivefor their size, be- gara Falls for navigation. nutrients in the water, Both were present in Lake Erie by the mid- cause of the low level of threat and the fishery was quite different thanitis 19th century but were not recognized as a until much later. The Great Lakes fishery was a now. is believed there were many fewer in- major foodsourceforthe expandingcities It Little notice was taken dividual fishin the lakes but that the average through the century. individual fish probably weighed 4 or 5 pounds initiallyof fluctuating catches and declineof other desirable species (1.7 to 2.2 kg).Radisson marveled at six foot some species, because always seemed to be available. long pike.Century-old sturgeon that weighed up kg) may explain The peak commercial fishing years onthe to 400 or 500 pounds (171 to 227 of the old drawings of so-called sea monstersin the Great Lakes were from the 1860s to the turn aslack of regulation,increasing lakes. Several kinds of herring, whitefish and thecentury Yellow markets and more efficientfishing equipment lake trout were abundant in open waters. Sturgeon had perch were found mainly in shallow bayswhere encouraged heedless harvesting. who nutrient levels were higher. become rare by 1900 because fishermen, brown or disliked the way the sturgeon's bony snouts tore But there were no carp, smelt, burned rainbow trout, white perch, alewives, pink salmon, their nets, piled them up like logs and 6 / These are the Sweetwater Seas them. By the time the value of sturgeon caviar around the lake unusable all summer. The smell was recognized, it was too late.Today, sturgeon will never be forgotten.Public horror increased in the lakes are rare and small. because of massive waterbird dieoff at the same Commercial fishing remained a major Great time. The birds had contracted botulism by Lakes industry through World War II, but by the eating the rotting fish. 1950s the lamprey had almost destroyed the lake The depredations of even the tiny smelt trout in Michigan and Huron, and other catches were first recognized by commercial fishermen had declined drastically.Now the largest com- who observed that the smelt eat eggs and fry of mercial catch in Lake Michigan is alewives for othcr, more desirable fish. Debate continues animal and chicken feed.Itis difficult to weigh over the relationship between species changes the relative role of several factors in the decline and degradation of water quality as factors in of the value of the commercial fishery.In the ecosystem change. Sport fishermen do not ques- United States, some species cannot be sold in tion the value of the deliberate introduction of interstate commerce because the concentrations salmon fromthePacific Northwest intothe of PCBs and certain other chemicals exceed Great Lakes. levels considered safe by the Food and Drug Administration. The populations of other species are too small and increasingly state governments Promoting desirable species favor sport fishing over commercial fishing because they believe the economic return is higher. The coho and chinook salmon were introduced in the mid-1960s by fishery experts who reasoned that the alewife population could be Controlling invading species reduced by new predators and the lake trout restored as the lamprey declined.The salmon In1955, Canada and the United States thrived so well that by 1970 the enthusiasm felt established the Great Lakes Fishery Commission by fishermen for the big fish was called coho to find a way to control the lamprey.Since the fever.With return of the walleye to Lake Erie early 1960s, two chemicals have been used to kill and salmon stocking in all the othcr lakes, sport lamprey spawn in streams. The lamprey popula- fishing has developed as a major new industry in tion has been rcduced up to 90 per cent, but a region that has been losing others. total eradicationisunlikely. One concern is The State of Michigan officially promotes that the lamprey may be developing resistance to sport fishing over commercial fishing. Other the lampricides. states seek to promote both, but competition Another is that deliberate introduction of between sport and commercial fishing interests is chemicals into the aquatic ecosystem should not growing. Some sport fishing organizations are be continued. A third is that, ironically, pollu- usingtheirpoliticalpower toadvocatethat tion control has extended the lamprey's intrusion efforts to restore the native lake trout be aban- into cleaned up rivers.The sea lampreys need doned so that more money can be devoted to clear water for spawning.Since water quality stocking the exotic salmon.With new apprecia- improved in the St. Louis River near Duluth in tion for the many ways the Great Lakes eco- the 1970s, the walleye have returned but the system has been disturbed,biologists consider dreaded lamprey has also begun spawning there the future of all Great Lakes fisheries to be in the farthest reach of the Great Lakes system. uncertain. The intrusion of the alewife and smelt also Although massive stocking of the lake trout contributed to permanent change. The alewife is has continued sincethe mid-1960s, thetrout not well adapted to the Great Lakes and dies off does not yet reproduce enough to sustain itsclf in the spring.In Lake Michigan, the alewife except in Lake Superior.The problem may be population gyew as the lamprey destroyed the top partly genetic, since many subspecies adapted to predator, the lake trout, leading to one of the specific locations were lost.Research has shown best-remembered Great Lakes disasters. In 1967, that both reproduction and survival are affected thousands of tons of dead alewives clogged Chica- by the presence of toxic contaminants such as go's drinking water intakes and made beaches all PCBs and toxaphene.In any case, bioconcentra-

7 These are the Sweetwater Seas / 7 tion of persistent organic hydrocarbons makes 1899 Refuse Act to stop discharge of industrial the trout, as well as the large salmon, unsafe wastes but vigorous enforcement of this law did for human consumption in most places. not begin until 1969 and localized pollution con- Furthermore, the alewife population has tinued to grow in the Great Lakes. now been reduced so muck: thatit no longer provides a sufficient forage base for the Pacific salmon, which, to the dismay of sport fishermen, Eutrophication and the are not growing as large now as they did in the Great Lakes early 1970s. Now the salmon seem to be turning to the smelt and to native herring and perch for The trophic status of a lake is a measure food. Fishery management agencies are being ofitsbiologicalproductivity. Nutrients and urged to limit commercial fishing of native species light are necessary to sustain lifein water as to protect a forage base for the put-and-take they are for growth on land.Eutrophic waters, salmon fishery.Lake Michigan, the sixth largest those receiving a large amount of nutrients, are lake in the world, is so dependent on stocking most productive, and oligotrophic, those receiving thatitiscalled the world's largest fishbowl. few nutrients, least productive, with mesotrophic Public health advisories against consumption of somewhere between.Accelerated eutrophication various species are issued by every state and in Lake Erie actually meant more life rather province. Toxic contamination is now considered than less, with more pollution-tolerant species a potential threat to future use of the lakes for becoming dominant. dr king water as well as for the Great Lakes The most obvious signs to the public were fishery. fewer walleye and many more yellow perch, and turbid or cloudy water.Excessive growth of the green algae, Cladophora, overshaded other plants Great Lakes water quality: and became exceeding unpleasant for beach rec- Degradation and Remediation reationists. The Great Lakes agreement stressed reduction of phosphorus loadings and called for a The first pollution problems in the lakes binational cleanup process to be carried out were also observed by 1900, but they seemed to through the new Great Lakes Regional Office of be localized and caused no general concern. As the IJC, located in Windsor, Ontario, just across lumbering spread across the Great Lakes region, the river from Detroit.Scientists agreed that sawdust clogged the mouths of tributaries, des- phosphorus is the limiting nutrient for the Great troying habitat and increabing biochemical oxygen Lakes; thatis,if phosphorus loadings into the demand (BOD) as it decomposed. Increased soil lakes were controlled, decreased algal growth erosion and runoff, as the land was stripped of would result. vegetation and plowed, added silt to the pollution loadthattributariesdeliveredtothclakes. Today, agricultural runoff isa source of pes- The Boundary Waters Treaty ticides as well as nutrients. of 1909 and the IJC Near the rapidly growing cities, industrial wastes and untreated sewage caused fouled har- In 1909 Canada and the United States nego- bors and nearshore waters, adding disease-causing tiated the Boundary Waters Treaty to provide a bacteria to high BOD problems. Chicago was the peaceful system for resolving disputes and for first city to act to protect its Great Lake water making cooperative decisions for all the water- supply.After an estimated 15 per cent of the ways that cross their common border. The treaty city's population died in epidemics of cholera and established the International Joint Commission typhoid from 1885 to 1887, the flow of the Chica- (IX) as a uniquely independent agency that go River was reversed to carry sewage effluent advises the governments. away from Lake Michigan into the Illinois and Three members of the IJC are appointed for Mississippi rivers. The action protected the lake each side and they are directed to carry out but was an early example of displacement rather theirduties asindividuals without regardfor than elimination of wastes.Congress passed the national concerns. The duties of the IJC include 8 / These are the Sweetwater Seas studies on problems by reference, or request, countability by making annual reports tothe from the governments. The UC also informs the UC on progress toward meeting agreement objec- governments about problems that need attention, tives. butit has limited authority to initiate a study The agreement recognizes differences in the on its own.Nor can the 1.1C initiate actions to two countries by allowing remedial programs to solve problems unless directed to do so by the be carried out under their own laws. In Canada, governments. theprovincehasprimaryresponsibilityfor By 1919, the IX reported to the govern- environmental management. Thus thereisa ments that serious degradation of water quality Canada-Ontario Agreement that the province uses was occurring in more and more locations in the to apply the Great Lakes water quality objectives Great Lakes but no action was taken. By 1929, in its pollution control programs.In the United the firstscientific report was made that decay States,thefederal government set minimum of massive algae growths was causing depletion national standards under the Clean Water Act, of oxygen in the western basin of Lake Erie. and the Environmental Protection Agency has the Over the next decades oxygen depletion was lead responsibility for meeting Great Lakes water observed in a larger area in Lake Erie every quality objectives. summer. About 1960, scientists reported that for Both countries established new Great Lakes the first time accelerated eutrophication threat- research programs to meet commitments under ened the future of a whole Great Lake. A repor- the agreement. Canada has its Centre of Inland ter'sinterpretationthat"Lake Erieisdying" Waters and the United States has special Great alarmed a public that was growing increasingly Lakes programs and laboratories under EPA, the concerned about air and water pollution. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admiristration The public concern provoked both govern- (NOAA), and the Army Corps of Engineers, with ments to sign the Great Lakes Water Quality other agencies participating as needed. A refer- Agreement in1972, with the IJC directed to ence from the governments called for a coopera- overseeitsimplementation. Initially,the tive Pollution from Land Use Activities Reference binational Great Lakes agreement emphasized Group study (PLUARG) as the first major effort. reductionof phosphorusloadingstocontrol The study conducted from 1973 to 1976 was eutrophication. designed to answer three questions: How much Great Lakes pollution is caused by land runoff? Where isit occurring?What should be done The Great Lakes Water about it? The PLUARG report identified agricul- Quality Agreement tural runoff as the source for about half the phosphorus loading of Lake Erie and led to dem- In the Great Lakes agreement, the govern- onstrationprojectsforconservationtillage. ments of Canada and the United States agreed to What is now a national movement for conservation work together and separately to achieve specified tillage to reduce soil erosion was begun to im- water quality objectives. The aim is to clean up prove Great Lakes water quality. The study also existingpollutionandtopreventcontinuing identified the atmosphere as another major diffuse degradation. The process established by the source of pollutionto thelakes,particularly agreement calls for remedial programs, research toxic substances. and monitoring.It also provides for accoun- tability and flexibility to modify the objectives as conditions change or as new information is Toxic contamination developed. Two binationalboardsofexperts were By 1976, the monitoring reports and results established, the Water Quality Board and the of research had confirmed high levels of many Science Advisory Board. Members of the Water toxic chemicals and heavy metals in the lakes as Quality Board represent environmental manage- well as long range transport through the atmos- ment agencies while members of the Science phere. Great Lakes states had banned DDT after Advisory Board include academic experts as well scientists demonstrated in 1968 how the pesticide as staff of research agencies.Both assist ac- bioaccumulated in the food chain of Lake Michi- These are the Sweetwater Seas / 9

thosechemicalswhich, when gan.In 1971, fishery biologists who were moni- substancesas toring decline of DDT levels in fish discovered released into the environment, or if changedby processes high levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), a chemical,physicaland biochemical discovery that led to a ban on manufactureof afterrelease, could be detrimental to natural Many such PCBs in the Toxic Substances Control Act.In ecosystems or to human health. of 1975, high concentrations of PCBs werefound in substances are considered hazardous because lake trout in a small lake on Isle Royale, a bioconcentration, the process by which contami- wilderness national park in northern Lake Super- nants present in very low levels inthe water affect ior far from any possible direct source. bioaccumulate to d mgerous levels that When results of the 1972 agreement were both life in the lake and other organisms,includ- reviewed after five years by the governments, a ing humans, at the top of the food chain. second agreement was developed and signedin To date, over 1,000 chemicals and heavy The new agreement added a call for an metals have been identified in the Great Lakes 1978. in fish. ecosystem approach to managementand a virtual ecosystem, in the water, in sediments, or zero discharge of toxic substances asobjectives. Persistent organic chemicals such as PCBs can For phosphorus, the 1978 agreement intro- concentrate up to levels a million times greater duced the concept of mass balance as a basisfor in large salmon and trout than in the water. control by calling for individual target loadings High rates of tumors in fish and birth defectsin The target loading isset to herring gulls and cormorants demonstrate conse- for each lake. Long term reverse eutrophication.Today, reduced algae quences of toxic contamination. high growths in most Great Lakes locations and return epidemiologicalstudiesof humans with of the walleye to Lake Erie, to the St.Louis levels of PCBs in their bodies bec, ise they eat River near Duluth and to the Fox River that Great Lakes fish are showing potential conse- flows into Green Bay, are considered by many to quences for human exposure.Babies born to and be signs of reduced eutrophication.The signs breast fed by mothers with high concentrations continue to improve in the lakes themselves. of PCBs in their fat and blood are smaller on Comparable progress has not been made in the average at birth and show subtle neurological control of toxic contamination, but experience signs of developmental disturbance. with the Great Lakes is again showing the way We now know that sources of toxic con- for addressing a serious, complex and mostdif- taminants into the lakes include the atmosphere ficultenvironmental problem. The National and sediments as well as direct discharges and Academy of Sciences in the United States and land runoff.Four-fifths of the loading of toxic the Royal Academy of Canada recentlyendorsed substances to Lake Superior and half to Lake the need for an ecosystem approach to manage- Michigan is by atmospheric deposition.Sources ment in their joint review of progresstoward to the atmosphere includeincineration,evap- meeting the objectives of the 1978 GreatLakes oration from industrial and sewage treatment agricultural opera- agreement.Better understanding of the sources systems, and evaporation from and fates of toxic contaminants in the Great tions. In recent years scientists have learned Lakes has set the stage for an ecosystem ap- that PCBs and other volatile organic chemicals and are proachinremedial programs, withecological evaporate from the surface of the water passed through the water column back into the integrityratherthanonly reducedle elsof specific pollutants as the goal. atmosphere in gases excreted by bottom feeding organisms. Chemicals are reaching the lakes through A new Great Lakes strategy groundwater from hazardous waste landfills in connecting channels such as the Niagara and St. The new strategy for control of toxic con- Clair rivers. They do not permanently remain in tamination that is emerging for the Great Lakes bottom sediments but can be resuspended by is based on a mass balance approach, which wave action due to passing ships or storms, or seeks to identify all sources of toxic substances, by ingestion and excretion. The size and closed control and prevent them from entering the nature of the Great Lakes snake them asink for Great Lakes systems. The IJC defines toxic toxic substances.The lesson of the Lakes is 10 / These are the Sweetwater Seas

that, if it is happening in the Great Lakes, it is happening in the biosphere.

Conclusion

The story of the Great Lakes is complex. In this general discns-ion, many details of how the Great Lakes community is learning to apply an ecosystem approach to management of this huge resource have been omitted.Whether we will succeedas well with the more difficult problem of toxic contamination as we have with eutrophication remains to be seen. Still,scientistsobservethattheGreat Lakes achievement with phosphorus control in such a large system in so many jurisdictions by so many different measures is unmatched anywhere in the world.Surely we should learn from this success and continue the Great Lakes Water Quality Agyeement to carry out remedial programs, research and monitoring bilaterally. Scientistsagreethatrestorationtothe conditions that existed before the landscain and the lakes were changed by settlement and industrialization would be impossible.Yet protection of the integrity of the ecosystem for the future requires attention to how much rehabilita- tion and restoration can be accomplished and to whether there is agreement on what would be desirable. With sufficient understanding, the public willsupport whateverisnecessary for control of toxic contamination.We look to educators and communicators to join in fostering the understanding on which the future of the sweetwater seas, and the biosphere, depends.

References

Botts, L. and B. Krushelnicki.1987.The Great Lakes. An environmental atlas and resource book. Chicago and Toronto: USEPA and Environment Canada. 44 pp. LesStrang, J. (ed.)1985.The Great LakesSt. Lawrence System.Boyne City, MI: Harbor House Publishers. Rousmaniere, J. (ed.)1979. The enduring Great Lakes. New York: W.W. Norton.

2 2/ The Geological Setting of the Great Lakes

by Jane L. Forsyth

In largest the bedrock in which these basins occur. The Great Lakes are some of the sedimentary rock of inthe most cases this bedrock is and most beautiful freshwater bodies million years They are also scientifically very interest- Paleozoic age (roughly 200 to 600 world. Superior, the ing, and geologically very young, forthey did old), but the rock surrounding Lake preglacial time, a million northernmost and deepest of the GrcatLakes, is not even exist during rock, Pre- The foundations for the lakes were much older igneous and metamorphic years ago. old). being prepared, however, almost from thebegin- Cambrian in age (one to two billion years These very old rocks actually occurdown below nings of our planet earth. rock in the During the many hundreds of millionsof the younger, Paleozoic sedimentary Pleistocene Ice Ages, the south, forming the so-called Pre-Cambrian"base- years that preceded the Northwards they rise nearer present locations of the lakes wereoccupied by ment" rocks there. they occuratthesurface, a major river system,the Laurentian River, that thesurfaceuntil tributary in forming a broad PreCambrian uplandaround the drained toward the northeast, with a much of each of what would become one ofthe Great Lake Superior basin and throughout has Canada, called the "Canadian Shield." Lakes.In the Lake Erie basin this tributary rocks were been called the Erigan River.These rivers fol- These igneous and metamorphic by eroding formed by mountain-makingprocessesvolcanoes, lowed low valleys they had made active deeply down into belts of weaker rocks.When intrusions and metamorphismthat were southward out through much of Pre-Cambrian time.Ancient the Pleistocene glaciers advanced sediments and of Canada, they blocked anddestroyed these sediments, buried by younger valleys deeper subjected to intense mountain-making pressures, ancient rivers, and gouged their while molten and wider, thus creating the basins ofthe modern became the metamorphic rocks, material in deep batholithic intrusivesand in Great Lakes.The ice cut deepest where it was As a result, the volcanoes at the surface contributed magmaand thickest, farther to the north. rock. Great basins of the northern Great Lakes areespecially lava that hardened into igneous modern sea flows of basalt also emanated fromgiant rifts in deep, with their bottoms far below the land, ac- level, while the southernmostlake, Lake Erie, the earth's crust and spread over feet deep overall, and cumulating to a thickness of as much as40,000 averages only about 100 Subsequently,forces less than 30 feet deep in its shallowsouthwestern feetof hardened lava. within the earth bent all of theserocks in the basin. Lake Superior region down into agiant syncline which, though the rocks have sincebeen greatly Lake Super- Bedrock eroded, still exists to help create the ior basin. Igneous and metamorphic rocks arcthe Pre-Cambrian formations most resistant rocks of allin the Great Lakes Lake Superior setting of these lake/river region, so the land around the The geologic hilly.Even so, some basins began far earlier, withthe formation of basin is especially high and 12 7he Geological Setting of the Great Lakes

C CO

co Os Sn

DMs r** /Ms Ms \-S 1 e 4.4ite/r4 Alikwirkz, qt.\- ILLINOIS BASIN

Nci 0 2 4 6 o\ciso 1 I t.. km

Figure 2.1.Geologic formations of the Great Lakes Basin of these rocks are somewhat less resistant, allow- Lake Superior region. These Paleozoic sediments ing erosion, first by streams and later by glaciers, began with a deposit of sand, weathered from to cut alittle deeper where they occur, also the older igneous and metamorphic rocks and helping to create the basin of the largest of the washed into the shallow intermittent sea that Great Lakes. had spread across the entire lower Great Lakes and midwestern region.This sand became the Mt. Simon Sandstone, "the "basal sandstone" of Paleozoic sedimentation the Cambrian (lowermost Paleozoic).Limy sediments precipitated next from clear sea water, Following the long Pre-Cambrian history and the lime was subsequently recrystallized into came the accumulation of extensive Paleozoic layers of limestone and dolomite (the magnesium- sediments that developed into the bedrocksur- bearing form of limestone). rounding the other Great Lakes, sediments that During Silurian time, while the limestone never covered the Pre-Cambrian rock in the (dolomite) was being deposited in the shallow The Geological Setting of the Great Lakes / 13 open ocean, great reefs or other shallowmarine east culminated in the formation of theoriginal bars developed, cutting off broad segments of Appalachian Mountains, which towered impres- the sea and allowing very little inflow of new sively high like the modern Himalayas. The sea water.In these closed basins, intense evap- present Appalachians are just the eroded roots oration took place, causing precipitation of salts, of those ancient mountains! mostly lime (both CaCO3 and (CaMg)CO3), but also gypsum (CaSO4.nH20) and salt(NaC1). These precipitates, mined near Lake Eric, arc Preglacial rivers important natural resources today.The gypsum is used to make Plaster of Paris and wallboard As the mountains rose, many rivers devel- for building construction.The salt is used pri- oped on their slopes.Of these rivers, the main marily as road salt in winter and in the chemical one flowing westward was the Tcays,which industry, though some also reaches the table. followeda northwestward course across West The limestone is used for flux in blast furnaces, Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois to join a very forconcrete construction and foragricultural small preglacial Mississippi River.Though this lin.e.Oil and natural gas are also obtained from river no longer exists, and its valleys are now rocksofthisage,aswellasfromolder deeply buried by glacialdeposits everywhere (Ordovician and Cambrian) limestones, where north of the glacial boundary, the locations of these rocks lie deeply buried. these valleys can be determined from well rccords About midway through the Paleozoic Era, so that, together with the abandonedvalleys still the nature of the sediments changed. Mud, and visible south of the glacial limit, a good picture later sand, began washing into the sea. The mud of that ancient drainage system can be drawn. represented line-grained sediments eroded from a Contemporary drainage also came southeastward rising land mass on the eastern shore of this from some moderately high land to the northwest, ocean, and thc change from mud to sandreflected drainage in the form of the Laurcntian/Erigan theincreaseinheight and steepness of this Riversystem, whosevalleysrepresentedthe rising land. These muds formed the rocks known lowlands destined to become the basins of the as the Ohio (or Cleveland) Shale,of Devonian future Great Lakes.Together the erosion of age, and the sands formed the Bereaand Black these preglacial rivers formed the modern bedrock Hand Sandstones of Mississippian age.Evidence landscape of this entire area. for the location of this rising land east of the Great Lakes is the increasing coarseness of all marinc sediments in that direction.

Uplift and erosion \ GEO OIAN BAY L AUR I H TI AN RIVER --- As uplift of this land mass continued,it apparently also raised up adjacent lands, including Ohio and its neighboring states and provinces, LAKE LAKE HUR6NIATT allowing the sea waters to drain away. River MICHIQAPI RIVER LASE _ sands replaced the marine deposits, and fallen T CLAin trees and other organic materials accumulatedin low swampyareas,depositswhichchangcd through time into sandstone and coal. This 0 2 4 6 sandstone and coal,together with shales and L.-La-4J clays, created an alternating pattern of sediments km called thc Coal Measures, found in Ohio's Pen- Figure 21.Preglacial river systems in the Great nsylvaniancoaldeposits. Ultimatelyallthe Lakes region adjacent land was raised above sealevel, so sediments were no longer deposited and erosion Extensive patterns of ridges and lowlands dominated everywhere.The rising land to the were formed by the erosion of these streams, 14 / The Geological Setting of the Great Lakes because the sedimentary rocks here were not is a Silurian dolomite of Niagaran agc (about 400 entirely flat-lying.They had been bent into a million years old) called the Lockport Dolomite. series of very shallow, broad structural basins Itisthisresistantrockthatcreates Niagara separated by very low, elongate structural arches Falls in New York, the Bruce Peninsula and line (notethatthese terms,"basins" and "arches" of rocky islands separating Georgian Bay from (anticlines)relatetointernalpatterns of the Lake Huron, an east-west ridge on the Upper rock layers and not to landscape features).The Peninsula of Michigan, and the Garden and Door- main structural basins in this area are the Michi- Green Bay Peninsulas on the west side of Lake gan Basin (which created circular patterns of Michigan. eroded bedrock in lower Michigan), the (southern) Other somewhat less resistant rock layers IllinoisBasin, and the Appalachian Basin (in in Ohio, the later Silurian Put-in-Bay Dolomite southeasternOhio,westernPennsylvaniaand and thc Devonian Columbus Limestone, form very West Virginia).In these areas where the rock low,asymmetricalridges(or"cuestas")that layers were bent gently downward, erosion cut extend out into Lake Eric and form belts of much less deeply down through the sequence of islands and peninsulas there, the Bass and Sister Paleozoic rock layers, so that the youngcr, coal- Islands and Catawba peninsula on the Put-in-Bay bearing Pennsylvanian rocks were generally pre- Dolomite, and Kelleys, Middle and Pelee Islands served at the surface in the central parts of the and Marblehead and Pelee Point peninsulas on basins. the Columbus Limestone. Farther south in Ohio, In contrast, the low arches bent the rock Pennsylvania and Ncw York, the very resistant layers upwards (though very gently, with slopes Mississippian sandstones form the high impressive of less than one degree), so that erosion cut edge of the Appalachian Plateau. deeper into the sequence of rock layers, com- Lowlands on either side of the Niagaran pletely removing the younger layers and exposing Dolomite ridge were created by the deeper erosion the older (Ordovician and Silurian) rocks.The ofadjacentnonresistantsedimentaryrocks. main arch here is the Cincinnati Arch, with a Most extensive of these lowlands are those that crestextendingnorth-northeastwardthrough were occupied by the Laurentian/Erigan River Cincinnati. Inwest-centralOhiothisarch system, lowlands cut generally into weak Devonian divides, forming the northeast-trending Findlay shales and destined to become, following glacial Arch in northern Ohio and the northwest-trending erosion, the basins of some of the Great Lakes. Kankakee Arch in northcrn Indiana and Illinois. Lowlands also occur along the outcrops of weak Ordovician shales,lowlands that now contain Lake Ontario, Georgian Bay, Green Bay, and the Areas of resistance bay west of the Door Peninsula (Big Bay de Noc).

The depth of the erosion accomplished by the Teays and Laurentian/Erigan River systems Glaciation was affected not only by the location of the rocksrelativetothesestructuralbasins and With the advance of the earliest of the arches, but also by the erodibility of the rocks several Pleistocene glaciers, about a million years themselves. Some of the sedimentary rocks, like ago, the preglacialriversinthe Great Lakes sandstone or solid limestone or dolomite, are area were blocked by the ice and in many cases more resistant to erosion than other rocks, and were destroyed.Glacial erosion widened and when erosion takes place they tend to make deepened their valleys, with the deepest erosion ridges or hills.Where weak, nonresistant rocks done by the last (Wiscom;inan) glacier because of like shale occur atthe surface, on the othcr its greater thickness in basins already deepened hand, lowlands are created, such as the low river by earlier advances.The ice of all the glacial valleys that would ultimately become the basins advances was of course thinner, and therefore of the Great Lakes. did less erosion, farther south, where the shal- Most famousof theresistantPaleozoic lowest of the Grcat Lakes, Lake Eric, occurs. sedimentary rocks in the lower Great Lakes area The Geological Setting of the Great Lakes - 15

STAGES IN THE EVOLUTION OF THE GREAT LAKES SCALE 1: 20 000 000

NOTE 13 200 YEARS BP Ice The maps on 'ell are -snap&holss ot a Ice Front fonlinuously changing situation donne the Advancing Ice retreat ol the Wry onsin iceshePt Ihoy Fresh Water not be viewed as a sIrriple sequence. since many Salt Water intermediate clages are emitted The letters BP Present Coastline denote before present

Ice-dammed lakes r \' UAW; BP As the ice retreated back toward the north, a whole series of ice-dammed lakes was formed in each of the Great Lakes basins.Each lake left deposits: sand beaches and sand bars along the old shorelines, clay settled out on the deeper lake bottoms and deltas wherever major rivers entered these lakes. Sandy beach ridges dramatically mark the shorelines of each ancient lake in the Great Lakes region.In prehistoric and early historic times, the ridges served as animal paths 11 B00 'YEARS BP and Indiantrails, and today they provide the location of many modern highways. Composed of well-drained sand, the ridges also support orchards and vineyards along the Lake Erie shore. Like all lakes, it was the elevation of the outlet that controlled the level of each of the ice-datnmed lakes. As the retreating ice exposed new, lower outlets, water levels dropped abruptly to new lower levels. If the ice readvanced, water levels rose to the elevation of the next higher ice-free outlets.Glacial retreat was more common than advance, so generally lake levels in 10 000 YEARS BP each of the Great Lakes basins lowered through time. The history of the lake levels in each of the Great Lakes basins is different, because each basin lay in a different position relative to the irregular retreating ice edge and to the available drainage systems. As a result, both the sequence of lake levels in each basin and the interrelation- ships of all these different lakes are most complex and have been a subject of study for many years.These histories are summarized here in Figure 23.Formation of the Great Lakes. (from only the most general way.(For more detailed Botts and Krushelnicki, 1987, p. 6) interpretations see Karrow and Calkin, 1985.)

RM COPY AVM! ARLE 16 / The Geological Setting of the Great Lakes

Formation of Lake Erie

Initially only the southernmost tips of the Erie and Michigan basins were ice-free, though the early lake histories in these two basins went on almost independently.Most complicated of the histories was that of the Erie basin, where more than a dozen differentlakelevelsare recognized. There were three major levels, each marked by well-developed sand i.:.aches. Highest bilitfc:2Art , was Lake Maumee at an elevatiot of 780', which 111' drained westward by Fort Wayne, Indiana. Next - was Lake Whittleseyat735',draining north F P across the "thumb" of Michigan into a small ice- dammed lake in Saginaw Bay, which in turn drained westward across Michigan via the Grand Figure 2.4.Niagara Falls outlet of Lake Erie. River. The third lake was Lake Warren at eleva- tions varying from 690' to 675' as its outlet was lowered by erosion.Lake Warren flooded into Formation of the other Great Lakes the southern end of the Huron basin and around the "thumb" of Michigan, forming a single exten- Similar complex histories are known for the sivelakethatalsodrained westwardacross ice-dammed lakes occurring in the other Great central Michigan. Lakes basins.The sequence of lakes in the All these Erie-basin lakes drained westward. Huron basin began slightly later than that in the When the glacier finally retreated far enough Erie basin, but was closely related to it.Huron north to allow the impounded waters from the began with a small ice-dammed lake that drained Erie basin to flow eastward through a much westward across Michigan and later, with con- lower outlet near Buffalo, a tremendous flood tinued ice retreat, merged with the waters of resulted.The Buffalo outlet was especially low the Erie basin into a larger lake that drained then, because it had been weighted down more first westward and then eastward.Lakes in the than 150 feet by the heavy glacial ice, so that Ontario basin also started later, beginning with Lake Erie, which today averages only about 150 Lake Iroquois, which drained eastward down the feet deep, was almost entirely drained away in Mohawk valley,attimes also by catastrophic what must have been a truly catastrophic flood. floods, and then Lake Belleville, which drained The lower end of the Mohawk valley is filled northeastward through the St. Lawrence valley, with the kind of thick,coarse, poorly sorted followed by a low-level Early Lake Ontario.In deposits that such floods would generate. the Michigan basin, there was one main ice- With the lake water virtually gone, rivers dammed lake, called Lake Chicago, which occurred became extended out onto the exposed lake bot- atdifferentlevelsasitsoutlettothe west tom.Only a few small ponds were left in the became lowered by erosion and inflow from the deep eastern part of the lake and upstream of Erie and Huron basins varied. The Lake Superior several end moraines that cut across the lake basin,the northernmost of the Great Lakes bottom, ponds collectively called"Early Lake basins, remained ice-covered the longest, then Erie." As the Buffalo outlet subsequently raised ultimately contained several different lakes lo- slowly back up, rebounding isostatically from the cated in both the western (Lake Duluth) and weight of the glaciers, the level of Lake Erie eastern (Lake Minong) ends of the basin. rose too.The lake attained itspresent level Once the glacial margin had retreated north only very recently. High lakelevelsinthe of the tip of Michigan's lower peninsula, waters 1980s are a result of increased precipitation and from the Michigan and Huron (and briefly the reduced evaporation, not the ancient process of Superior) basins merged into one single broad, isostatic rebound. extensive lake, Lake Algonquin, with an outlet The Geological Setting of the Great Lakes / 17 eastward across central Ontario, which had not Hough, J.L.1958.Geology of the Great Lakes. yet rebounded from the weight of theglacier. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. 313 pp. Drainage from this large lake therefore completely Karrow, P.F. and P.E. Calkin, eds. 1985. Quater- bypassed the Erie basin. Continued ice recession nary evolution of the Great Lakes.Geologi- opened up astilllower(isostatically)outlet cal Association of Canada, Special Paper 30. across northern Ontario and Quebec,creating 258 pp. Lake Nipissing. With full recession of the glacier Kelley, R.W. and W.R. Farrand. 1967. The glacial from the Great Lakes area, the isostatically low lakes around Michigan. Michigan Geological land in Ontario rose,tilting the old shoreline Society Bulletin 4. 21 pp. beaches around almost all the Great Lakes basins King, P.B. and H.M. Beikman. 1974. Geological upward to the north.This isostatic uplift of map of the United States.U.S. Geological landin Canada also raised the Ontario and Survey. Quebec outlets so high that both became abandoned,shiftingthe drainage from the upper lakes back southward through theErie and Ontario basins and creating the modern Great Lakes. Thus the Great Lakes are seen to be recent additions to the landscape of middle America, but with their origins going far back to the Pre- Cambrian and Paleozoic, when the rocks making up their landscape wereformed, and to the subsequent erosion, by rivers and by glaciers, that molded that landscape.Without this long and complicated geologic history, we would not have our economically important, recreationally enjoyable and aesthetically satisfying Great Lakes of today.

References

Carman, J.E.1946.The geologic interpretation of scenic features in Ohio. Ohio Journal of Science. 46:241-283. Dorr, J.A., Jr., and D.F. Eschman. 1970. Geology of Michigan. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. 476 pp. Flint, R.F., R.B. Colton, R.P. Goldthwait, and H.B. Willman.1959.Glacial map of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains. Geological Society of America. Forsyth, J.L.1959. The beach ridges of northern Ohio.Ohio Geological Survey Information Circular #25. 10 pp. Forsyth, J.L.1965.The Teays, Ohio's greatest river. Ohio ConservationBulletin, May. PP. 5-7. Forsyth, J.L.1973.Late-glacial and postglacial history of western Lake Erie. The Compass of Sigma Gamma Epsilon. 51(1, Fall):16-26. 3/ Vegetation and Plant Geography of Lake Erie

by John J. Fur low

The traveler is impressed by the dramatic of reds, yellows, oranges and brown, a phenome- contrasts of the landscape around Lake Erie. non which does not occur in most other decidu- Stretching along great lengths of its shores are ous forests of the world. some of the largest urban areas of the upper Around Lake Erie, including the islands, Midwest.And yet, within a few miles of these shores, and surrounding forests, about thirty-five teeming population and industrial centers are percent of the plant species are trees and shrubs, lands so wild that America's rarest living things sixty percent are perennial herbs, and five per- continue to thrive there.The Lake Erie region cent are annuals that complete their life cycles abounds with wild plant and animal life in an in one season.The flora of the shoreline and extraordinarily diverse natural setting.Such a islands alone consists of over 1,000 species, and wide variety of communities exists here because there are many more than this when adjacent this region is a great meeting place for several areas are included.However, because of widely distinct physiographic, climatic, vegetational and varyingclimatic,substrate,andtopographic floristic elements. To the southeast rise the features, the plantlifeisfar from uniformly Appalachian Highlands; to the west stretch the distributed.Maps showing the general distribu- vast plains of the continental interior.Not far tion of the vegetation types in the Great Lakes north is the boreal forest, and just to the east, region have been prepared for the United States via Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River, is and for Canada, and a detailed map, based on the the Atlantic Coastal Plain.Each of these places "bearing" or "witness" trees of the original land has its own unique plant forms, and here the surveys, plus information taken from published edges of the ranges of these plants come together accounts, old photographs, and other sources, has in the varied habitats provided. been drawn up for Ohio.At least six major vegetation types may be identified on the lands surroundingthelake,andseveraladditional The flora and vegetation types occur sporadically throughout the region. of the Lake Erie basin Within these "formations" are found plants related to the floras of the boreal region to the Lake Erie lies within the deciduous forest north, the prairies to the west, the Appalachian biome of eastern North America.The most Mountains and the Atlantic Coastal Plain to the obvious component of this vegetation consists of east, and the Gulf Coastal Plain to the south. broadleafed trees and shrubs. Some conifers are Although it has often been suggested that the also present, but the great majority are flower- members of each of these floras entered the ingplants. With few exceptions, the woody region as a unit following the Pleistocene glacia- plants lose their leaves during the cold winter tions,thisview probably represents an over- season.The leaves become brightly-colored just simplification in many cases. before falling, painting the forest in a patchwork I Oak-Ilickory PrairieGrassland I MapleBeech-Sugac Forest Elm-AshForest Swamp Fresh-water III.11 MixedIlardwoods Conifer ForestOak Openings MarshandSand Plains Dunes Figure 3.1. MixedFuret Oak Map of original natural vegetation patterns around Lake Erie. (John J. Fudow) Savanna 20 / Vegetation and Plant Geography of Lake Erie

The paleoecology of Lake Erie valley,and othersmigrating northward along plant communities river systems in the Mississippi Embayment region. The conclusion of a number of authors on The region today occupied by Lake Erie has the subject is that the pre-Pleistocene vegetation been vegetated by deciduous forest at least since of northeastern North America, including the the Eocene Epoch (60 million years ago), but it Great Lakes, did not survive intact throughout has undergone considerable climatic alteration the glacial period.The present vegetation and since then, both in terms of temperature and florainstead represent a mixtureof species, moisture. The vegetation has continually changed assembled following the glacialretreat, which in response to the constantly varying climate. was capable of surviving in the local conditions. The most drastic of these changes inrecent geologicaltimewere thePleistoceneglacial advances, beginning about one million years ago. Shoreline vegetation Since then, there have been four major ice advances lasting from 3,000 to 10,000 years each Sand beaches and dunes occur along exten- and separated by interglacial periods which lasted sive parts of the Lake Erie shoreline, depending between 25,000 and 200,000 years.It is possible on lake currents and wind patterns.In general, that we are now in one of these interglacial the northern shoreis much sandier than the periods. southern, with extensive sand plains occurring During each of the Pleistocene glacial peri- near the mouths of old rivers. However, beaches ods, the Lake Erie basin was completely covered and dunes, sometimes of considerable magnitude, by a thick cap of ice.Thus all of the plant and also occur at Cedar Point, Ashtabula, Presque animal life of the region, as well as the physical Isle and other isolated sites along the southern lake itself, is of relatively recent origin.It has shore. The dunes and their communities are been shown by analysis of fossil pollen samples similarto those of the southern and eastern taken from cores drilled into the bottoms of old shores of Lake Michigan, although they are much lake beds that revegetation following the most more limited in size.The most extensive dunes recentglaciation passed through a series of of Lake Erie have developed along the north stages. The first vegetation to appear resembled shore of the eastern section of the lake in res- arctic tundra in species composition, then this ponse to currents and prevailing southwesterly was replaced by a type dominated by spruce, and winds.These are found near Long Point and finallyby deciduousforestvegetation of the Point Albino on the Ontario shom general kind seen today.(For general reviews of this work, see Watts, 1979, 1980; Whitehead, 1973; and Wright, 1970). The revegetation process appears to have occurred very rapidly,indicatingthatatleast some of the species involved survived the most hoLikaaddaiu, recent (Wisconsin) glacial advances not far south of the ice.By 11,000 years ago, deciduous trees, including ashes, oaks and hickories began to move back into the lower Great Lakes area from areas to the south.Certain tree species, including chestnut and American beech, migrated north following the Wisconsin glacial period from sites along the southern Atlantic Coastal Plain, while others, including hickories, re-entered thearea from a southwesterly direction. A similar pattern Figure 3.2. Sand dune plant community. (John apparently occurredfortheaquaticvascular J. Furlow) plants of the Great Lakes, certain species migrat- ing northward along the Atlantic Coastal Plain The vegetation of the sandy areas is very and then westward through theSt. Lawrence distinctive, and it contains many interesting and Vegetation and Plant Geography of Lake Erie / 21 unusual plants.These plants are adapted by The adjacent forests means of water-retaining tissues, waxycoatings or layers of hairs over theleaves, and extensive The land surrounding Lake Eric itself was root systems to surviveinvery dry soil and completely tree-covered in pre-settlement times, where the ground isnot very stable. Some althoughlittleofthisforestremains today, examples include sand cherry, spreading juniper especially on level areas.The flat glacialtill and prickly pear cactus.Many of the dune plains to the north and southeast were covered plants, such as white pine, are characteristic of with a moist forest dominated primarily by Amer- East of Cedar northernregions. Others,including marram ican beech and sugar maple. grass, an importantsand-stabilizing plant, and Point, this beech-maple forest continued along a bayberry are Atlantic Coastal species, which arc narrow strip of low-lying landwhich follows thc thought to have migrated westward along the southern margins of both Lake Eric and Lake Saint Lawrence river system.Still others, includ- Ontario.To the south of this strip rises the ing blazing star, false indigo and many grasscs hilly (and still mostly forested) country of the are prairie "outliers."Also present are species Allegheny Plateau.Here the vegetation consists found only in the Great Lakes region, including mainly of a mixed conifer-hardwoods (sometimes lake iris and Pitcher's thistle. called hemlock-white pine-northern hardwoods) Along thesouthwesternquarterof the forest, the characteristic vegetation of the north- shore of the lake, especially near the mouthsof ern Appalachians andadjacent northeastern Can- the Ottawa, Maumee and Portage Rivers,lie ada.In northeastern Ohio, at the western edge conifer- extensivefreshwaterwetlands,includingvast of the Allegheny Plateau, the mixed cattail and reed marshes, dense shrub thickets, hardwoods vegetation meets and intermingles shady swamp forest remnants and widc expanses with the mixed oak forest of the central and southern Appalachians, forming a mosaic of veg- of open water.The vegetation here is of many types. Some common plants in the openmarshes, etation types, the mixed oak association often besides cattails and reeds, include bluejoint grass, occurring near the tops of ridges and the mixed cord grass, curly pondweed, pickerel weed, arrow- conifer-hardwoods type being more restricted to head, swamp mallow, white water lily and Amer- the cooler, moister ravines and gorges. ican (yellow) lotus.Formerly present were such The beech-sugar maple forests, which today currently rare forms as wildrice,theflexed occur as isolated patches onthe rich, moist soils naiad, and water marigold, species which require of the glaciated till plains, have dense canopies clear, well-oxygenated water. and produce deep shade in the summer, allowing very little ground cover todevelop.However, in the spring before the canopy closes, a profusion ofherbaceouswildflowerscoverstheforest floor.Familiar examples include spring beauty, te mayapple and wild ginger.The woody species present, in addition to beech and sugarmaple trees, include tulip tree, white oak,black cherry and white ash. Themixedconifer-hardwoodsforestis similar to the beech-maple in its dominant tree species composition, but it also includes hemlock and/or white pine, plus yellow birch.This vege- tationismostly restricted to regions of cool climate.South of Lake Erie near its southern limit,it mostly occurs in the moist regions of the Allegheny Plateau. A large number of herbs of northern affinity are present, including wild wintergreenand Figure 3.3. A wetland plant community. (phao calla,northernmonkshood, by Siobhan Fennessy) bunchberry. 22 / Vegetation and Plant Geography of Lake Erie

'tft with other common trees,including American basswood, red elm, green ash and black cherry. The vegetation north of Lake Erie, in On- r tario's Niagara Peninsula,isprimarily of the beech-sugar maple type. Here both the dominant tree species and the florain general have a decidedly southern character in comparisonto the forests southeast of the lake.The trees include not only beech and sugar maple, but also tulip tree, cucumber tree,pawpaw, black gum, sassafras, Kentucky coffeetree and other species characteristic of the Appalachian and interior forests far to the south.The herbaceous flora, as well as the trees of this region, contains an Figure 3.4. A beecb-maple forest community. extensive"Carolinian"element, and one finds (John J. Furlow) such plants as wild senna, trumpetcreeper, wild indigo, and twinleaf. Today most of these plants The mixed-oakforest,thecharacteristic are rare in Ontario, although most are fairly vegetation of the southern Appalachians,also common in the central eastern United States. occurs in the Allegheny Plateau, but in much drier and lessfertile habitats than the mixed conifer hardwood forest.It is characterized by Other communities a more open canopy, which permits the existence of many summer-blooming understoryplants, The area west and south of the western including partridgeberry and foamflower.Here end of the lake, cast to about Cedar Point, is of the dominant trees are various species of oaks, very flat topography marked by occasional scat- with hickories and, formerly, American chestnut tered sand ridges and weathered dunes, remnants being frequent associates. of the shorelines of several older lakes which Along the floodplains of the larger streams preceded Lake Erie during interglacial periods occurs a somewhat different forest type, made up prior to the Wisconsin ice advance. Thevegeta- primarily of ashes, elms, silver maple, willows, tion of this region is diverse in nature and origin, box elder and sycamore.Here the environment and itincludes the largest array of rare plants differs dramatically from that of upland sites in in Ohio. The original forests were primarily relief,climate, soil characteristics and periodic swamp forests dominated by American elm, white flooding. The plants which grow here must and black ash and red maple, althoughon higher tolerate the extreme shifts in soil moisture which and sandier sites, they were of a mixed oak occur seasonally.The understory is frequently forest, and where more fertile soils existed,a "brushy" and includes plants suchas spicebush, forest dominated by oak and sugar maple. honeysuckle, wild grapes and poison ivy. Common Before 1900, this region, which stretched understory herbs include the familiar touch-me- over 100 miles from the present western end of not and stinging nettle. the lake across northern Ohio and southeastern The major islands of the 22-island Lake Michigan to Fort Wayne, Indiana, and covered Erie Archipelago have mostly rocky or cliffbound about 1,500 square miles, was an impenetrable shores and thinsoils. These islands have a tangle known as the Great Black Swamp.For generally warmer and drier climate than that of nearly one hundred years, the swamp presenteda the adjacent mainland.The vegetation of the great obstacle to transportation and development upland areas of the islands consists ofa forest in northwestern Ohio, but during the late 1800s, similar to the mixed conifer-hardwoods type, but it was gradually drained and cleared. Today only itis distinctive in that it lacks beech andcon- small portions of the original vegetation remain, ifers and contains very few oaks probably mostly the area being one of the most fertile farming due to the lack of suitable soils.The dominant areas in Ohio and southeastern Michigan.A species consist of sugar maple and hackberry remnant of the original forest may be seen at Vegetation and Plant Geography of Lake Erie/ 23

include Go II Woods State Nature Preservein Fulton black spruce and balsam fir. The shrubs Some County, Ohio. blueberries, cranberries and leatherleaf. Of special interest in this region, in Lucas common herbs in thesehabitats are northern and Fulton Counties of Ohio, arc large tractsof pitcher plant, roundleaf sundcw, moccasinflower, oak savanna known as "Oak Openings."Here cotton sedge and buckbean. The fens,in contrast springs of flowing low, eroded sand dunes, formed on the southern to thc bogs, are found around Lake water, which isalkaline.There are frequently shore of the glacial lakes which preceded rich in Erie, stand out from the surrounding flat country- extensive deposits of marl (crumbly soil side. These sand hills are covered withscattered calcium carbonate) around these springs, and one Open areas are vegetated with such finds such calcium dependent plants as shrubby oak trees. lady plants as bracken fern and lowbushblueberry, cinquefoil, spreading globe flower and royal plus numerous prairie species, including big blue- slipper. stem grass, blazing star and yellowfringed orchid. The swales and hollows lying between theridges contain swamp forest remnants of pin oak,red Lake Erie's wildlife maple, black gum and ash. South of the western end of the lake, and Wild animals arc always closely associated provides south of Cedar Point, are extensive areasformerly with the vegetation of a region, which and vegetatedbytallgrassprairie. Thesetracts them with the necessities of food, shelter, represent vestiges of a large easternlobe of the breeding grounds.The freshwater marshes and estuaries of Lake Erie provide important spawning prairiesof the northern mid-Continent which of fish, extended eastward across Indiana and Ohiofol- and nursery grounds for many species white lowing the Wisconsin ice retreat.This "Prairie including yellow perch, smallmouth and Peninsula" extends into western New York state, bass, channel catfish and smelt.These marshes by species such as hutthefrequencyof occurrencesofprairie were also formerly inhabited of. central Ohio. lake sturgeon,cisco,whitefish, blue pike and species diminishes rapidly east long Controversy has long surrounded the originof walleye, though these largely disappeared the prairie peninsula, but the predominantview ago. Nevertheless, the Lake Erie commercial has been that the element entered the Great fishery remains ahead of that of all the other harvest, Lakes region during a dry (Xerothermic)period Great Lakes combined in terms of its fish which occurred between 3,000 and 5,000 years largely as a result of the higher nutrientlevel and warmer temperatures of its waters. ago. Others have maintained that the prairie species present are in reality as much eastern as Perhaps thc most spectacular animal resource western in nature, and that these haveexisted in of the Lake Erie region isits bird population. it was revegetated just On the islands are important rookeriesfor great the forest region since herons, several after the Wisconsin glacial retreat. egrets, great blue and green prairie may species of gulls, common terns and cormorants. Over 300 separate patches of variety of have existedin northern Ohio beforeitwas But the marshes contain the widest Today thisprairie vegetation occurs birds.Here are found the nesting sites of many settled. eagle. mostly along roadsides, on railroad embankments, unusual types, including the northern bald Can- in old cemeteries, and in a few preserves.The Also found are bitterns, coots, rails, terns, remnants include big and little bluestem grasses, ada geese and many species of ducks,including and prairie dock, purple coneflower, royalcatchfly, mallards, black ducks, redheads, canvasbacks of birds have been blazing star and many other species. mergansers. Over 300 species scattered throughout theflattill identifiedinthe western Lake Erie marshes, Finally, Mississippi plains surrounding the lake are numerousisolated which lie within branches of both the In the forested and agri- bogs and fens, these populated largelyby species and Atlantic flyways. cultural region around the lake are seenthe affinity. The acid bogs, usually of northern North America. formed in Pleistocene "kettlehole" lakes,contain common birds of northeastern The mammals of the area are also the ones mats of sphagnum moss,often floating on the The dominant trees of familiar throughout the deciduous forestregion surface of open water. rabbit, these bogs include tamarack and, tothe north, and include the whitetail deer, cottontail 24 / Vegetation and Plant Geography of Lake Erie

woodchuck, racoon, opossum, skunk, fox squirrel, it has also significantly changed in composition. and various mice, voles and shrews. In the A growing number of plant species have been marshes of western Lake Erie, the muskrat isa eliminatedaltogether,and hundreds of alien common and economically important resident, species have been introduced and become natural- providing fur trappers with an income ofover ized.Virtually all of the important weeds of the $1.5 million per year.Only a few mammals live Great Lakes region,including giant ragweed, on the islands because of the limited habitats Canadathistle,bullthistle,burdock, jimson there. Carnivores, other than the red andgray weed, pigweed,velvetleaf,foxtailgrass,wild foxes, arc largely absent today, except in the carrot, chicory, buckhorn plantain, lamb'squar- adjacent mountainous regions of western New ters,corn cockle and dandelion faintothis York and northwestern Pennsylvania, where black category.It has been estimated that one fourth bears remain.These have recently been noted of thc flora around Buffalo, New York, is intro- to be moving into northeastern Ohio from Pen- duced, while about one third of the wild plants nsylvania.In other areas around the lake, ani- growing in Ohio arc naturalized aliens. Many of mals such as bears, wildcats and wolveswere these species are of serious economic significance eliminated long ago. to agriculture, and a number (such as purple loosestrife) have been shown to havea very negative effect on the natural vegetation,outcom- The human impact peting and eliminating the natural species in some cases. The present plant life of the lower Great The invading aliens are not restrictedto Lakes region does not closely resemble that of herbaceous weeds.Many trees and shrubs of presettlement timcs.Nearly three hundred years European origin have also become quite widely of clearing, draining and leveling,as well as distributedinthe wild areas of northeastern extensive residential, commercial and industrial North America.These include white willow, development, have created a landscape radically Chinese elm, black alder, trce of heaven and different from that which the original settlers buckthorn. These species have sometimes become saw.Today, natural plant communities existon parts of the permanent forest vegetation itself, a small percentage of the land, mostly in areas changingitscomposition and overall ecology. of secondary value for agriculturalor industrial And at the same time, the forests have changed purposes.The maximum clearing of the land in response to other factors.For example, the occurred before 1900.Since then, in response to mixed conifer-hardwoods forest of western New technological advances and changing demographic York State, northwestern Pennsylvania and north- patterns, much of the formerly cleared land has western Ohio today varies in composition from been abandoned for agricultural purposes and that known to have existedinpresettlement allowed to return to a forested condition. How- times. This may be a result of changing climates, ever, the demand for space has increased greatly atmospheric pollution, the nearly completere- since 1950.If current urbanization trendscon- moval of the forests in the 1800s,or other fac- tinue at their present rate, there will bealmost tors. no wild land left in another hundred years. A series of studies by Stuckey has demon- Most oftheremaining vegetatedareas strated a way some weedy aquatic plants have consistof farm woodlots, forested ravinesor migrated into the Lake Erie basin.In these streambanks, regions of relativelysevere relief, studies, the earliest knownoccurrence in a par- and park land. On the flat, fertile plains border- ticularcounty of aplantspecieshas been ing the northern and southwestern shores of the mapped, based on existing specimens in major lake,virtuallynothing of theoriginalforest herbarium collections.The resulting maps show remains, all of it having been convertedto farm- that within the past 20e years, these species land.In densely populated urban areas, suchas have migrated from the Atlantic Coast westward Cleveland, Detroit and Buffalo, suburban growth through the Great Lakes along human transporta- is rapidly depleting thousands of additionalacres. tion routes, especially railways and canals. The natural vegetation has not only been However, at the same time the vegetation is greatly diminished in size in the Lake Erie region; becoming increasingly scarce and changing drama- Vegetation and Plant Geography of Lake Erie / 25 ticallyincharacter,therehas developed an Braun, E.L.1950.Deciduous forests of eastern intense and widespread effort to identify, monitor, North America.Philadelphia: The Blakiston and preserve the best of the remaining wild Company. areas, as well as to increase the general aware- Campbell, L.W. 1979.Lake Plain.In Ohio's ness of and appreciation for wild plantsin gener- Natural Heritage,ed. M.B. Lafferty,pp. al.All of the statcs and provinces surrounding 236-251.Columbus: The Ohio Academy of Lake Erie have recently undertaken surveys of Science. their rare and endangered plant species.All of Cooperrider, T.S. (ed.). 1982.Endangered and the states and provinces are also currently in- Threatened Plants of Ohio.Columbus: The volvedin producing up-to-date comprehensive Ohio Biological Survey.Biological Notes floras of their regions, and many have developed No. 16, permanent Natural Heritage Programs or other- Cushing, E.J.1965. Problems in the Quaternary wise increased their efforts to enlarge and im- phytogeography of the Great Lakes region. prove their systems of natural parksand nature In The Quaternary of theUnited States, preserves, both to save unique geologicaland eds. H.E. Wright, Jr. and D.G. Frey, pp. scenic fcatures and to preserve essential habitats 403-416. Princeton: Princeton University needed by rare plant and animal species to sur- Press. vive. Davis, M.B.1976.Pleistocene biogeography of Whether the extraordinary diversity of wild temperate deciduous forests. Geoscience plants and animals seen today around Lake Erie and Man. 13:13-26. will continue to exist in the future, only time Gcnoways, H.H. and F.J. Brenner.1985. Species will tell.Thc present efforts to conserve these of Special Concern in Pennsylvania.Pitts- striking and important features of our environ- burgh: Carnegie Museum of Natural History. ment represent a good beginning. Hopefully, Gordon, R.B.1969.The Natural Vegetation of today's conservation programs will be continued Ohio in pioneer days.Bulletin of the Ohio and expanded in the years ahead, and new ones Biological Survey. 3(2):1-109. will be instituted where they are needed. Without Herdendorf, C.E. and R.L. Stuckey.1979.Lake such a concerted effort, future generations will Erie and the Islands.In Ohio's Natural be denied a remarkable and important part of Heritage,ed. M.B. Lafferty, pp. 214-215. their heritage. Columbus: The Ohio Academy of Science. Hosie, R.C. 1973. Native Trees of Canada. Seventh Edition.Ottawa: Canada Forestry Selected References Service, Department of the Environment. Kuchler, A.W. 1964.Potential Natural Vegeta- Argus, (1W. and D.J. White.1977.The rare tionof theConterminousUnited States. plants of Ontario. Syllogeus. 14:1-63. New York: American Geographical Society. Beaman, J.H., EA. Bourdo, F.W. Case, S.R. McCance, R.M., Jr. and J.F. Burns (eds.).1984. Crispin,D. Henson, R.W. Pippen, A.A. Ohio Endangered and Threatened Vascular Reznicek, E.G. Voss, and P.W. Thompson. Plants:Abstracts ofState-listedTara. 1985.Endangered and threatened vascular Columbus: Division of Natural Areas and plantsinMichigan. II. Third biennial Preserves,Ohio DepartmentofNatural review: proposed list. Michigan Botanist. Resources. 24:99-116. Miller, N.G. 1973.Late-glacial and Postglacial Bernabo, J.C. and T. Webb, III.1977. Changing vegetationchangeinsouthwesternNew patterns in the Holocene pollen record of York State.New York State Museum Bul- northeastern North America: A mapped letin. 420:1-102. summary. Quaternary Research. 8:64-96. Mitchell, R.S. and C.J. Sheviak. 1981. Rare Boerner, R.E.J.1984. Forest composition on the plants of New York State. New York State Lake Erie islands.American Midland Na- Museum Bulletin. 445:1-96. turalist. 111:173-184. 26 / Vegetation and Plant Geography oflake Ene

Rowe, J.S. 1972. Forest Regions of Canada. Ottawa: Canada Forestry Service, Dcpai 1- ment of the Environment. Schaffner, J.H. 1932. Revised catalog of Ohio vascular plants.Bulletin of the Ohio Biolo- gical Survey. 36:87-215. Scoggan,11.J. 1878. The Flora of Canada. Ottawa: National Museum of Natural Sci- ence, National Museums of Canada. Sears, P.D.1942.Xerothermic theory.Botani- cal Review. 8:708-736. Soper, J.H. 1955. Some families of restricted range inthe Carolinian flora of Canada. Transactions of the Royal Canadian Institute. 30:69-90. Soper, J.H. and M.L. Heimburger.1982.Shnths of Ontario.Toronto: Royal Ontario Museum. 495 pp. Stuckey, R.L. 1970.The migration and establishment of Juncus gerardii (Juncaceae) in the interior of North America. Sida. 8:334- 347. Stuckey, R.L. 1980a. Distributional history of Lythrumsalicaria(purplelooscstrife)in North America.Bartonia.47:3-20. Stuckey, R.L. 1980b. Distributional history of Epilobiwnhirsutum(greathairywillow- herb) in North America. Rhodora. 72:164- 18I. Stuckey, R.L. and G.L. Denny. 1981. Prairie fens and bog fens in Ohio: Floristic similar- ities, differences, and geographical affinities. InGeobotany II,ed. R.C. Romans.New York: Plenum Publishing Corp. Thompson, I. 1950. Geographical affinities of the flora of Ohio. American Midland Natur- alist. 21:730-751. Transcau, E.N. 1935. Thc prairie peninsula. Ecology.16:423-437. Vesper, S.J. and R.L. Stuckey.1977. The return of aquatic vascular plants into the Great Lakes region after Late-Wisconsin glaciation.InGeobotany,cd. R.C. Romans, pp. 283-299. New York: Plenum Publishing Corp. Wagner, W.H., E.G. Voss, J.I4. Beaman, E.A. Bourdo, F.W. Case, J.A. Churchill, and P.W. Thompson.1977.Endangered, threatened, and rare vascular plants in Michigan.Mich- igan Botanist.16:99-110. 4/ The Effect of Lake Erie onClimate

by Val L. Eichenlaub

Introduction General climatic controls of the Great Lakes Basin The Great Lakes modify the climates of thcir surrounding shores and cause some twists Locational controls of weatherthatoccurinfew otherplaces. About 40 million people live in the Great Lakes The Great Lakes are located halfway be- This is basin and experience,invarying degrees, an tween the equator and the North Pole. array of weather quirks knowncollectively as the most important locational control of climate. "lake effects:.Lake effects occur around all of The Lakes' middle latitude location insures large the Great Lakes, but each of the lakes affects seasonal differencesinthc amount of energy climate and weather somewhat differently. received from the sun. These differences in Lake Erie is no exception.It shares most energy account for the great seasonal temperature of the lake effects common to the other lakes variations that occur in the region (Figure 4.1). but also createsits own individual imprint on The Lakes' location near the center of the climate.This is because Lake Eric differs from North American continent complements the lati- the other lakes in size, shape, depth, alignment, tudinal control described above by minimizing the latitude and in the topography of its bordering tempering effects of the oceans.Thus the fact land arca. that large land areas rather than oceans arc the Obviously, not all of the climatic features primary influence on the area's climate (an effect of the areas around Lake Erie and the other called continentality) is also a key to the nature Great Lakes are directly caused by theLakes of the climate of the Great Lakes Basin.This responds quickly themselves.Many are due to broad-scale loca- means that the basin as a whole tional and atmospheric controls and would occur to increasing amounts of solar energyin the whether or not the Lakes were present. An spring and warms up rather rapidly.This occurs example is thc fact that the Lakes are situated because land areas heat up quickly as compared in the belt of the westerly winds and are located to water areas.In thefall, when th.,daily isdecreasing, inland,many milesfromthenearestocean. amount of solar energy received These provide major controls on climate.The the cooling in temperature is also rapid. Marked Lakes modify these controls in various waysand seasonal temperature differences because of the amplified that is what creates the lake effects. area's middle latitude location are thus This chapter overviews the locational and by its continentality, and the region experiences atmospheric controls which establish thebroad warm summers and cold winters.Actually, be- framework of Great Lakes' climate. Itthen cause or continentality, for muchof the year the reviews thc processes by which the Great Lakes Great Lakes regioniscolder than other areas modify these controls and, consequently, change located at its same latitude. Only in the summer the weather and climate of theirsurrounding months are parts of the region warmer than shores. Within this context then the specific other areas at its latitude. lake effects themselves are explained. 28 / The Effect of Lake Erieon Climate

Thcrc are, of course, differences in latitude Location also determines the majorsource and continentality within the GreatLakes Basin of moisture for the area, which is the itself. Gulf of The latitudinalspread of theLakes, Mexico. The eastern portion of the nearly 7 1/2 degrees, is substantial Great Lakes and insures is more easily accessible to moisturebearing that contrasts in solarenergy reception will be winds from the Gulf. Consequently, precipitation sufficientto cause significant temperature dif- totals are larger and more evenly distributed ferences.In the winter there is a rapid dccrcasc there than in the west. in mean temperature from southto north. Thus, winters are considerably colder in thenorthern portions o: thc basin than the southernportions Atmospheric controls (Figure 4.1).In the summer, northernareas arc cooler than southern areas, but thetemperature The locational factors described above inter- differences are not as extreme. actwithcertainatmosphericcontrolswhich Continentality also varies because of the prevail over the area.The major atmospheric great east to west extent of the Lakes. A gen- control is the westerlies which blowacross the eral pattern of increasing contincntalityoccurs Great Lakes. These winds prevail at the surface, toward the west,nearer the heartof North althoughthere can be considerable variation America. This pattern, however,ismodified from day to day.Aloft, the westerlies are much along the immediate shores of the Lakesbecause more persistent, and it is unusual for the winds of the effect of the large bodies ofwater, which atthe higher levels to blow other than from produce a semi-marine climate. The lakeeffects southwest to northeast. arc the result of this modification of continen- With westerly winds at tality. the surface and aloft, most weather systemsmove west to cast MONTHLY MEANS OF TEMPERATURE 194I1970 through the Great Lakes.Thus thc weather of today in Milwaukee may be tomorrow's weather in ,,oloprOal . C4eve,and Oho 0- Buffalo. In addition, with westerly winds, the 80 modifications imposed by the lakes '0 0+ are likely to 60 be more strongly felt on the eastern shores of 52 't-J00:AATUAE+0 thc lakes and the temperature differencescaused 30 \as-sso 20 by the lakes are more prominent at theireastern N, ends. 0 F S Yyk hi 3 3 0 S 0 st uy4fl The middle latitude location of the Lakes also means that the polar jet stream isa weather factor during much of the year.This is a high altitude current of airflowing generally from

MONTHLY MEANS OF PRECIPITATION 1941-1970 west to east, with velocities whichmay reach 150 knots during the winter. Themean location Thonder Bay 0^:af o CLaselym 2..0 oy of thc polar jet stream insummer is north of the Lakes, in Canada. At that time ofyear thc 513 2 50,...... velocities are generally wcak. In winter, the 0qE:PIATICN21 polar jet intensifies and shifts cquatorward. *uNCHES i 5 N....,, Its mean position by late winterissouth of the 0 5 Lakes, and velocities are normally much higher. 1

F 0 A 1.4 j 1 6 S D ND Although these winds occurfiveorsix YACHT), miles above the surface, theymay have an in- direct but very important effecton the surface Figure 4.1. Temperature and precipitation dif- weather. As the polar jet separateswarm tropi- ferenceswithintheGreat Lakes cal air from cold polar air, its position in relation Basin. (Data sources: Otitario At- to the Great Lakes may determine the occurrence mospheric Erwirorunent Service and of the warm and cold "spells."With the polar NOAA Environmental Data and In- jet north of thc Great Lakes warm air is drawn formation Service) northward and a spell of warm weathermay occur. When the jct alignment changes, and the

40 The Effect of Lake Erie on Climate / 29 core of the jet moves southof the Great Lakes, time.Figure 4.3 shows the three air mass types cold air from Canada spills across the border and which affect the Great Lakes, along with their the region may experience a cold spell. source regions. The jet stream also controls the formation, movement and dissipation of the large low pressure areas (extratropicalcyclones) which are so common in this region duringthe winter. These weather systems are instrumental in causing day- to-day variations in weather.Normally clouds and precipitation are associated with themwhile clear weather is associated with their counter- parts, the anticyclones or high pressure systems. Notethatthe mean tracksof cyclones moving through the United States and southern Canada seem to coalesce over the GreatLakes Basin (Figure 4.2).This insures much vigorous weather activity within the area with abundant clouds and precipitation.As cyclones are frequently accompanied by sharply definedfronts along which quick changes of temperature occur, unstable weather with sudden changes of temperature are not uncommon, particularlyin winter when cyclonic activity is more frequent. Figure 43.Air masses affecting the Great Lakes: cP = continental polar; mT = maritime tropical air; mP = maritime polar. (From Val L Eichenlaub, Weather and climate of the Great Lakes. University of Notre Dame Press, 1979)

The source region for continental polarair masses (cP) lies north of the GreatLakes over the vast northern expanse of Canada.In winter, this source region is very cold and snow covered, and the air mass which forms within maybe very cold and dry.It may then be referred to as "arctic"air. Itwill move southward very It Figure 4.2.Main tracksof cyclonesinthe rapidly forming the famous Siberian Express. United States (Redrawn from Glenn may cause cold, clearweather over the Great arrives in the form of a polar T. Trewariha, An introductionto Lakes when it climate, Fig. 6.23, p. 219. New York: anticyclone, but also may be sharply modified by McGraw-Hill, 1968.) the Lakes.In summer, the air mass brings de- lightfully cool, clear weather with low humidities, Locational factors also determine the types and is less modified by passage over the Lakes. of air masses which the Great Lakesregion Far to the south of the Great Lakes, over isthe source region of experiences. These arelarger homogeneous the Gulf of Mexico, portions of the atmosphere which form Over maritime tropical air (mT). This air mass,form- certain parts of the earth's surface called source ing over a warm water surface,is warm and regions by meteorologists.The air masses are humid.It seldom moves into the Great Lakes guided into the Great Lakes by the locationand region in winter but it may cause winter thaws movement of the jet stream aloft.They can on the rare occasions thatit does.In summer, dominate the weather for days and weeks at a the mT air mass is much more common. It causes 30 / The Effect of Lake Erie on Climate

the hot and sticky weather which is inevitable in In addition some of the energy received from the the southern part of thc basin, but occurs less sun is used to evaporate the water and thus it is frequently in the northern part. stored in the atmosphere as latent heat. Air masses of Pacific origin dominate the More importantly, the heat capacity and weather in the winter, when they occur over 75% thermal conductivity of water differ from those of the time. These air masses arc called maritime of land surface materials.The hcat capacity is polar (mP) and are usually highly modified by a measure of the amount of energy a substnice thc timc they reach the Great Lakes.In the can absorb. Itis expressed as the number of winter they are warmer and more humid than the calories of energy needed to increase the temper- cP or arctic air masscs and in summer are cooler ature of one cubic centimeter of the substance and drier than the mT air mass. They occur less by one degree Celsius.The heat capacity of frequently in the summer, but when they do they water is greater than that of land and conse- give welcome relief from the heat and humidity quently, with equal amounts of energy absorbed, of the maritime tropical air. land heats more rapidly than water. The thermal conductivity of a substance is its ability to trans- mit energy. Itis very small for land surface Modifications by the materials, where the downward transfer of energy Great Lakes occurs only by condgetion, but very large for stirredwater, where downwardtransfercan Essentially all of thc climatic modifications occur by mixing. Consequently, water bodies imposed by thc Great Lakes arise from three heat more slowly than land surfaces because of fundamentaldifferences betweenthcsurfaces water'shighheatcapacity and highrateof formed by the atmosphere and the Lakes and thermal conductivity. those formed by the atmosphere and the land In addition, density differences within the surrounding the Lakes: 1) the "lag of the changes lakes due to temperature stratificationplay a in watcr temperature of the Lakes behind that of rolcin slowing the spring warm-up of water the surrounding land as the seasonal change of bodies. Water ismost dense at4°Celsius temperature occurs; 2) the greater amount of (39.2°F).In winter, the Great Lakes cool below watcr available to be evaporated into theair this temperature in their upper portions.Thus, from the Lakes as compared to the land, and 3) as spring warming occurs in the upper layers, thc smoother surfaces of the Lakes compared to the density of the water increases and the colder, those of thc surrounding land. less dense waters from below rise to replace Inc warmed surface waters.The entire column of water must be warmed to the temperature at The thermal lag of the Lakes which maximum density occurs (39.2°F) before further warming can continue. The Great Lakes, including Lake Erie, warm In the fall, as the lakes cool, the surface more slowly than the surrounding land in the water becomes more dense, sinks and is replaced spring and cool more slowly in the fall.This by warmer, less dense water from below.This "lag" in temperature change means that average retards the cooling of surface waters and the water temperatures may be significantly different temperatures of the Lakes lag behind (arc warmer than those of the nearby land area atcertain than) those of the land. The immense storage of times of the year. With individual weather situa- heat by lakes compared to land keeps the water tions these thermal contrasts can be very large. warmer than the land for many months during the In the spring, when land surfaces begin to autumn and winter. warm rather rapidly, the lake temperatures warm The lag of temperatures of water compared much more slowly.There are a number of rea- to the land is accentuated if the lake is large and sons forthis. First, the solar energy received deep. Thus thc mean water temperature of Lake on a water surface can penetrate to a consider- Superior, with a surface area of 31,700 square able depth.Consequently, warming is not con- miles, an average depth of 489 feet, and a volume fined to the surface, asisthe case with the of 2,935 cubic miles, exhibits a marked thermal land, which is opaque to incoming solar energy. lag compared to surrounding shore areas (Figure The Effect of Lake Erie on Climate / 31

4.4).Lake Erie, on the other hand, has a surface Lakes are higher. In addition, winds may change area of only 9,910 square miles, an averagedepth direction as they blow from the Lakes to the of 62 feet, and a volume of 116 sqare miles. land or vice versa.This is because wind direc- Thus thcsurface temperatures of Lake Eric tion is in part controlled by the Coriolis Effect, respond more quickly to seasonal energy fluctua- a deflection of the path of thewind to the right tions, and the lag behind the change of surround- in the Northern Hemisphere because of the rota- ing land temperature is smaller.Nevertheless, tion of the earth. The amount of deflection will substantial differences between mean water and be greater the higher the velocity of the wind. land temperatures can occur at times, particularly This change in amount of deflection may be As in the spring and fall. experienced as a change in wind direction. The shallowness of Lake Erie compared to the wind moves from the rougher land surface to the other Great Lakes lessens the thermal lag the smooth surface of the lake, its velocity will because of another rather surprising fact. In increase.The wind will spread out or diverge spite of its southerly location, large portions, if and sink.As a result there will be little cloud not all, of Lake Eric are likely to be covered formation or precipitation. This helps to account withiceduring normal winters (Figure4.5). for the relatively dry climate of the Lake Erie Other Great Lakes, larger and/or deeper (as is islands for example, all of which are found in the case of Lake Ontario) remain ice free over the western end of the Lake. When the wind is large portions of their surfaces, at least during blowing from the lake to the land, the wind normal winters. Once an ice cover forms, a lake becomes more concentratcd (converges) and rises behaves much like a land surface. as its speed decreases onencountering the rougher land surface.This increases the likelihood of cloud development and precipitation, and helps Moisture exchange from the to account for the higher levels of precipitation Great Lakes at Buffalo. When the temperatures of the open water surfaces of the Great Lakes are very different The climate of Lake Erie than those of the land surfaces of surrounding areas, evaporation from the lakes maybe large Thermal modificationsseasonal relative to that occurring from the land.The temperatures Great Lakes have large fall and winter evaporation rates and may become important sources of When water temperatures differ markedly moisture during those months.In the spring, from land temperatures, the Great Lakes have a when the lakes arc cooler than the land, evapor- great impact on temperatures of the surrounding ation rates are low.In fact condensation will land (thermal modifications).The area of land often occur over the Lakes instead of evapora- affectedislargestinthe winter,lessinthe tion.Over Lake Erie, evaporation ratcs rcach a summer, and may be least at the timeof the peak in October and November, when the Lake is equinoxes, when there is little difference between warm relative to the air. lake and air temperatures. The mean daily range of temperatures over the lakes and on surrounding shoresisreduced throughout the year, while Alterations of wind fields by the Lakes mean daily temperatures are increasedduring the cool season and decreased during the warm sea- The surfaces of the Lakes arc smoother than son. In summer, the thermal effects have the the surrounding landareas. The amount of most influence on the daily maximum tempera- turbulence in the lower layers of the atmosphere, tures, while in the winter the effect is strongest which is caused by air moving over rough sur- on the daily minimum temperatures.Fall modifi- faces, is lessened when the air passes from over cations include increases of minimum tempera- the land to over the water surface of a lake. tures, while in spring, large decreases of maximum This turbulence, when present, slows down the temperature due to the influence of the lakes wind. Consequently, wind velocities over thc occur with little effect on minimum temperatures.

4 32 / The Effect of Lake Erie on Climate

Lake Superior Lake Erie

70 80

60 ct) 70

50 ecl GO c.) 40 E- 50 30 40 20 c.)

10 30

I I I I I I I 0 1111 II 20 ' III!!! Q." c.; *.c'Z' 4,1) 6,; oj,0 c; ,z)0 c.,§) cr, Month Month

Water Land

Figure 4.4.Mean water and land perimeter temperatures: Comparison of Lakes Erie and Superior. (from NOAA Technical Report ERL 342-GLERL3, 1985, and Journal of Great Lakes Research. 4(3-4):291, December 1978)

and fall months of January, April, July and Octo- ber.During all months the daily temperature range is reduced more on the southern and eastern shores than on the northern and western shores. jilt rur ICE covrfl lEGEND Ocon VigNe In January, the role of Lake Erie in suppressing El rock the daily temperature range is small compared to 101 le 0. coNN.r) CnnuMmerI rock that of the other Lakes because of the build-up (No coon mr1 of ice cover on Lake Erie. Figure 4.5.Normal winter maximum ice cover, The effect of the lake is more noticeable in Feb. 20-28.(Redrawn from Donald April and October, and greatest in July.During R. Rondy, Great Lakes Ice Atlas. these months, Lake Erie's effect on daily temper- NOAA TechnicalMemorandum ature range is comparable to that of the other LSCR 1, Sept, 1971, Plate 26.) Great Lakes. The effect on mean daily temperature (Figure 4.7) is small in January and nearly The thermal modifications exhibited by Lake absent in July.During these peak winter and Erie are less marked than those of the other Great summer months, Lake Eric's effect is less than Lakes because of the shallowness of Lake Eric that of the other Great Lakes.This is duc to and its relatively small size and volume.Never- the icc build-up in January, and thc more rapid theless, at times they arc well-defined.Figure spring warm-up of Lake Erie's surface waters 4.6 shows the mean daily temperature range over due to its shallowness.Its effec)n mean daily the Lake Eric basin for the winter, spring, summer temperature, however, is substantial from April The Efect of Lake Erie on Climate / 33

26 JULY

20 22

APRIL OCTOBER

Figure 4.6.Mean daily range of temperature (°F).(Redrawn from D.W. Phillips and 11,4-.W McCulloch, The climate of the Great Lakes basin.Environment Canada, Atmospheric Environnwnt Clima- tological Studies No. 2( 1972) through the summer and comparable to that of northeasternOhio,northwesternPennsylvania the other lakes.By October itseffect once and southwestern New York, the growing season again is rather small. is less than 140 days (Figure 4.8).

Thermal modificationsgrowing Effects of Lake Erie on season precipitation

The frost-free season is also extended along The effect of the Great Lakes on precipita- the shores of the Great Lakes, especially on tionistoincrease,ingeneral, the amounts This downwind sides.This is chiefly due to the delay occurring on the downwind or lee shores. in the occurrence of the first autumn frost be- occurs primarily because oflarge increases of cause of the thermal effectsof the lake water. winter snowfall in the form of lake effect snow The earlier occurrences of the last spring frosts, which results from moisture added to air masses however, also have an influence.In northern as they pass over the Lake.Around Lake Erie portions of the Great Lakes Basin, the difference mean annual precipitation exceeds 40inches at in the frost-free season between interior andlake the eastern end of the fakeinthe highland shore areas may be as much as two orthree areas of northwesternPennsylvania and southwestern New York (Figure 4.9),whereas at the months. The frost-free season is extended to over western end of Lake Erie, mean annualprecipita- two hundred days on the south and eastshores of tion is less than 32 inches. Lake Erie.This constitutes the longest growing While the effects of the Great Lakes and season within the Great LakesBasin.Within Lake Erie arc fairly straight-forward in regard to about 50 miles of thc shoreline, in thehills of snowfall, thc modifications imposed on rainfall 34 / The Effect Qf Lake Erie on Climate

28 26 68 '70 74 JANUARY 72 JULY L-74

APRIL

Figure 4.7.Mean daily temperature (°F). (Redrawn from Phillips and McCulloch,Charts 7-10)

180 lee 160 34

4 2 -3E

- 38 r -40 40 38 38 36 36

Figure 4.9.Mean annual precipitation tinchesi. (Redrawn fromPhillipsand Mc Figure 4.8.Mean annual frost-free period (days). Culloch, Chart 21) (Redrawn fromPhillipsand Mc Culloch, Chan 19) An analsis of the precipitation climatology of the Lake Michigan Basin indicated that the over the lake arc more subtle and complicated. annual precipitation over the lake was 6r:less Consequently an appraisal of the lake's effect on than iwer the land portion of the basin and that total precipitation over its entire basin must be the Like suppressed thunderstorm activity bv 20'; approached with some caution.In addition. r,..- in summer (sinceitscolder waters curtailth,: gional differences within the basinoccur. with upward movement of air), while in the fall thun- eastern portions in general receiving more preci- derstorms were increased by Slf-;.Lake effects pitation than western portions. were found to cause 25'to lt-Mr; more snowfall The Effect of Lake Erie on Climate / along the eastern shore of Lake Michigan than inches can occur with some snowbursts, while in on the western shore.Overall Lake Michigan areas 10 or 15 miles away verylittle snow will fall. had 4% more precipitation in winter, 75% lessin These storms normally extend only 20-30 of spring and 14% less in summer than the surround- miles inland but may account for from 30-50% ing land areas. Amounts were equal in fall. the seasonal snowfall in snowbelts. These regions Lacking detailed studies for the Lake Erie experience larger annual totals, more snowfall basin, it is difficult to determine the role of the days, larger frequencies of heavy snows, greater lake in terms of its effect on total precipitation, snowdepths and a longer duration of snowcover although it is likely that the lake, as does Lake than inland or upwind areas. The economic Michigan, has a net effect of suppressing preci- consequences of the heavier snowwithin snow- Heavy snow in New pitation over its surface. belts can be considerable. York state snowbelts can be either an economic gain or loss.They are welcomed by ski resort Effect on snowfalllake owners. However, lost work days,transportation effect snow tic-ups, business closings and school closings may all occur more often in snowbelt areas. On There arelargedifferencesinsnowfall January 26-31, 1977, a series of lake effect snowwithin the Lake Erie Basin.Snowbelts occur on storms paralyzed Buffalo, NY, and caused econom- the lee shores of the Lakes (Figure 4.10) and a ic losses of over $150 million. well defined snowbelt exists on the eastern and southeastern shores of Lake Erie and within adjacent upland areas of northwestern Pennsyl- vania and southwestern New York State. Amounts of snowfall in the heart of the Lake Erie snowbelt range upwards of 100 inches, while totals at the western end of the basin are less than 40 inches. Comparing two large citics on the shore of Lake Erie, snowfall at Buffalo at the eastern end averages 93 inches seasonally, while amounts at Toledo at the western end averageonly 39 inches.Amounts in the eastern part of the lake basin along the Ontario shore arc less than half In 0 100 200Mi of those across thc lake on the south shore. )- addition to increased snowfall, the duration of 050 100 150Km snow cover inthe snowbelt areas of eastern Lake Erie is twice that of the western Lake Erie (Re- Basin. Figure 4.10.Snowbelts of the Great Lakes. This large difference in snowfall is probably drawn from Eichenlaub, p. 165) the most prominent modification exerted by Lake Eric on thc climate of its surrounding shores.It There are a number of variables that determine whether lake effect storms will form, where isthe result of lake effect snowfall, a familiar phenomenon to allresidents residing along the they willstrike, and how intense they will be. downwind (usually east)shores of the Great Basically,the larger the temperature contrast Lakes. Lake effect snowfall occurs when cold between the air passing over the water and the Arctic air flowing across the lakes acquires heat water itself,the greater the potential for lake and moisture from the warmer lake waters. Lake effect snow.Lake effect snowfall diminishes in effect snows may occur when weather maps show late winter as lake temperatures cool and ice no apparent cause forsnowfall. They may be becomes more extensive.Lake Erie lake effect extremely heavy, and often are highly localized, snows are much more commonin the late fall escaping detection by conventional data gathering and early winter before the lake is covered with networks.The snowfall pattern from individual ice. By late winter, with much icc and with storms may be extremely erratic. Asmuch as 40 water temperatures ata yearly minimum, the 36 / The Effect of Lake Eric on Climate dynamic interactions between warm watcr and moving from the higher pressure of the lake to cold overpassing air arc weaker and the lake the lower pressure of thc land. True lake breezes effect snow mechanisms are suppressed. blow in opposition to the regional winds. Thc fetch, or length of travel of air over The occurrence of a lake breeze is depen- thelakesurface,isalso extremely important. dent on temperature contrasts between lake and Here the east-west alignment of the long axis of land and the regional weather pattern. As Lake Lake Eric makes the fetch greatest with west or Erie warms more rapidly than other Great Lakes west-southwest winds and small with north or because of its shallowness, temperature contrasts northwest winds.Lake effect snowstorms over between lake and land are less marked during Lake Eric usually occur in bands.These can the summer and lake breezes may be less frequent form over the lakes or along the shorelines. than around the other Lakes.However, in the The "ovcrlake" bands may be 2-20 miles wide and spring, temperature contrasts between Lake Erie 50-100 miles long and may form when the winds and surrounding land are larger and lake breezes parallel the long axis of the lake (winds from more common. southwest or west).The "shoreline" bands form along the downwind shore and extend inland as narrow, short bands 1-5 miles wide and 25-50 Sunshine and cloudiness miles long. The heaviest lake effect snowstorms to the The Great Lakes exhibit contrasts in sun- lee of Lake Eric arc associated with southwest shine and cloudiness on upwind and downwind to west winds and a single intense overlake shores during thefall and wintcr. Increased snowband. This assures a lengthy fetch over winter cloudiness on downwind shores occurs Lake Erie.A secondary role is played by the because of acquisition of heat and moisture when higherterraintothesouth and eastof the cold airflows over warmer water. Increased eastern end of Lake Erie, which causes the winds wintercloudinessisnotconfinedtonarrow to rise.Thus the air which has accumulated shoreline zones, but can extend far inland. moisture over thc long fetch cools and releases During the warm season, the lakes tend to this moisture in the form of snow. suppress the development of clouds.Air rising above the warmer land carries with it moisture. As the air reaches a certain elevation it is cooled Other climatic effects of sufficiently for the moisture to condense, forming Lake Erielake breezes clouds. Over the lake, however, the surface is cooler,thusthereislessof thisconvective Lake breezes arc warm season phenomena, activity.The immediate shore areas, therefore, occurring when lake waters are cold relative to enjoy slightly more sunshine in the summer, a thc land.Thcy arc breezes which flow from factormaking them moreattractiveforthc lake to land, penetrating anywhere from several summer visitor.This added sunshine is also one blocks to as much as 40 km inland.They bring of the factors that make the downwind shores cooler temperatures to the surrounding shores, favorable locations for orchards and vinyards. and higher humidities.Thcy are daily features, beginning some hours after sunrise and dissipating in late afternoon or early evening.The leading Fogs edge of the lake breeze is called thc "lake breeze front" and isoften marked by increased cloud Fogs may form over the lakes when warm build-up. airischilled causing condensation. Fogs are Lake breezesarccaused bydifferential most common during spring and summer, particu- pressures over thelakerelativeto theland. larly in May and June when lake-land temper- During thc day, when land surfaces warm, air ature contrasts arelarge. Lake breezes may over the lakes remains cold due to lower watcr move the fogs onshore a short distance before temperatures.As cold airis more dense than the increasing warmth of the land surface causes warm air, the pressure over the lake becomes them to dissipate. slightly higher. TI,e airis thus sctin motion The Effect of Lake Erie on Climate / 37

During the cool season, the lakes tend to References decrease the occurrence of fog on their downwind 1972. shores. However, when strong incursions of Changnon, S.A., Jr., D.M.A. and Jones. Arctic air cross much warmer surface waters of Review of the influences of the Great Lakes the lakes, "steam fog" may result because of on weather. Water Resources Research. rapid evaporation from the warm lake into the 8(2):360-371. overpassing cold air.This fog is likely to dis- Cole, Henry S. and Walter A. Lyons.1972. The sipate downwind, giving way to cloudiness and impact of the Great Lakes on air quality of snow shower activity. urban shoreline areas.In Proceedings, Fic teenth Conference on Great Lakes Research, pp. 436-63.International Association for Summary Great Lakes Research, Ann Arbor. Eichenlaub, Val L.1970.Lake-effect snowfall The Great Lakes are weatherfactories to the lee of the Great Lakes--Its rolein producing a surprisingly broad spectrum of wea- Michigan.Bulletin American Meteorological ther effects.Some of these (lake effect snow, Society. 51(5 May):403-412. for example) occur in few other areas of the Eichenlaub, Val L.1979.Weather and climate world. The weather modifications caused by the of the Great Lakes region.University of lakes are superimposed on the regional climatic Notre Dame Press, 335 pp. patern, sometimes in dramatic ways, butoften in McVehil, G.E. and R.L. Peace, Jr.1965. Some very subtle ways. studies of lake effect snowfall from Lake Temperature differences between lake and Erie.In Proceedings, Eighth Conference on land are most important in causing lake effects, Great Lakes Research, pp. 262-272.Great and the magnitude of lake-caused modifications Lakes Research Dvision, Institute of Science waxes and wanes seasonally asthe water temper- and Technology,University of Michigan, atures "lag' behind those of surroundingshores. Ann Arbor. From about September until March, the Muller, Robert A. 1966. Snowbelts of the Great Lakes are generally warmer than the land, and Lakes. Weatherw&e. 19(6 December): are then a source of heat andmoisture, warming 248-255. the surrounding land, forming clouds over the Phillips, D.W. and JAW. McCulloch. 1972. The Lakes and on the downwind shores, and causing climate of the Great Lakes Basin.Climato- lake effect snows. logical Studies No. 20, Environment Canada, From March through August, the Lakes play Atmospheric Environment, Toronto, 40 pp., the opposite role. Lake temperatures are gener- 57 charts. ally cooler than the land, and the surrounding Rondy, Donald R.1971.Great Lakes ice atlas. shores are chilled.Clouds and precipitation are NOAA Technical Memorandum LSCR 1, suppressed and lake breezes and fogs occur. Department of Commerce, NOAA Lake Sur- The climaticpatterns within the Great vey Center, Detroit (September)9 pp.35 Lakes basin reflect the individual impact of each Plates. lake. Lake Erie, the shallowest and most southerly of the Great Lakes, generally has a smaller impact on climate than the other Lakes.Never- theless,theeffectsare prominentatcertain times of the year and play an important rolein the life styles of those individuals livingalong the lake and utilizing its resources.Sometimes dangerous, but often benign, the lakeeffects afford a continuing challenge for the forecaster and researcher. 5/ Coastal Processeson the Great Lakes

by Charles Carter

The coastal zone, on both the Great Lakes Lake Huron, and at the west end of Lake Eric. and the oceans, is the dynamic interface between The wetlands may be associated with narrow the waves and the land.On the Great Lakes strips of sand known as barrier beaches.The this is the zone that can change from tranquil relief (the elevation of the shore deposits above to turbulent in a matter of hours (if not minutes), the lake) of the lakeshore ranges from essentially and the zone for which major historic changes zero along the wetland shores to nearly 800 feet can be documented.Moreover this is a zone of along Lake Superior's north shore. crucial importance to electrical powcr, commercial Thc beaches, which are so important as a navigation, recreation, shoreline development and barrier to wave erosion, arc as variable as the environmental interests.Almost without excep- relief and the nature of the shore deposits.For tion, the naturally occurring physical processes example, wide, sandy beaches characterize the that take placein this zone have a profound eastern shore of Lake Michigan; narrow, discon- effect on these activities and systems. tinuous beaches characterize the south shore of Lake Eric; and pocket, cobble beaches characterize thc north shore of Lake Superior. In Physical setting general,the nearshore slopes (the submerged surface lakeward of the beaches) are gentle with The lakeshore deposits consistlargely of slopes of no more than a fcw degrees. rock, clay, sand, and wetlands (Figure 5.1). The rock is exposed along the north shores of Lake Superior and Lake Huron (Georgian Bay and Physical processes North Channel) and at scattered locations on the other lakes. The rock along Superior and Huron Water levels ispart of a vast complex of erosion-resistant igneous and metamorphic rocks known as the Water levels are of singular importance on Canadian shield, whereas the rocks exposed along the Great Lakes for almostallcoastal zone Lakes Eric and Ontario to the south consist of processes. However,incontrasttooceanic less resistant Paleozoic sedimentary rocks. water levels, the mean annual levels (long term Theclay,withinterveningstretchesof fluctuations) of the lakes show marked fluctua- rock, sand, and wetlands, is exposed along most tionsthathave major effects on thecoastal of the remainder of the shore.For the most zone and on coastal zone interests and environ- partit was deposited by or in association with ments.Moreover, in contrast to oceanic coasts thePleistoceneglaciersandglacier-dammed that commonly experience predictable daily tides lakes. The rockismost resistant to erosion, of a few feet in amplitude, the long term fluctua- followed by clay and thcn sand as thcleast tions on thc Great Lakes take place over a period resistant. of a few to several years.These fluctuations The wetlands occur commonly along Green are no morec predictable than the weather which Bay off Lake Michigan, along Saginaw Bay off causes them.In addition to the long term flue-

5 J Coastal Processes on the Great Lakes/ 39

GREAT LAKES BASIN

SHORE DEPOSITS

Eal Rock 0.. ri-rm ^ 0 Clay it.' n Sand

Wetlands

Tr., 144 1.. L 14.p4114ong -4 1. ---- Net Longshore o - o '.> * ° `) '''''', ----Q- ....C4. '° 0 0 - Transport 7 ''ll'', *--:71-AN-49°.

Ci" -..4. 0.., .., ..-- ,11,.. . az.4.i., . SILemverce - ,:6- ,- 4.

1 ) .7! 0 z O' r.

s, CC--; s E

Re a RC. 100 Pon

10,1 WOO. SO

(Bird Figure 5.1.The Great Lakes Basin, with lakeshoredeposits and net longshore transport directions. and Schwart4 1985) of the tuations arc thc seasonal fluctuations thathave constitutes a sciche, a free oscillation a yearly range of about onefoot, and the short lake's surface.Storm surges arc much greater that can cause a on Lake Eric in comparison tothe other lakes term, storm related fluctuations and shallow rise in lake level of a few feet in several hours. because of Lake Erie's orientation subsequent Long term and seasonal variations inlake depth. A Lake Erie storm surge and levels are discussed more thoroughly inThomas seiche arc shown in Figure 5.2. Croley's chapter.The short term fluctuations are due to storm surges,atmospheric pressure changes ("jumps"), and seiches.Surges are the Waves and sediment transport most significant in termsof coastal processes because of thcir height, duration, andassociation Wind-driven waves, not to be confused with In essence, wind the swell, characteristic of certain ocean coasts, with large, wind-driven waves. Lakes stress across the lake surface causes masstrans- provide the dynamic clement to Great coasts.The winds are generated by both high port of the lake water; this transport causes a the Great rise in lake level along the lake shore.The lake and low pressure systems traversing direction. level rise is eventually compensated by a return Lakes region in a roughly west to east flow to the other side of the lakebasin that Deep water waves on thelakes have been

t.) 40 / Coastal Processes on the Great Lakes

8.0

7.0

2.0

oII 52 i o 1.1 g g g g j2 6 2 g

Figure 5.2.Lake Erie storm surge and subsequent seiche from the 13-14 November 1972 storm, recorded at Toledo, OH. (from C. Carter, Ohio Geological Survey Information Circular 39) estimated to reach about 20 feet high. However, Naturally the sandisnot in continual motion once these waves reach the shallow coastal slopes because winds are not constantly blowing onshore; their energy is lost to friction and breaking, and nor is the sand moved in just one direction, for the most part the storm waves that reach because the winds blow onshore from different the shore are no more than three to six feet directions.For example, on Lake Erie, even at high.Fortunately for the people that live along exposed locations such as Cleveland, and Eric, the shore most of the Great Lakes wind storms Pennsylvania, the lake surfaceischaracterized occur frot.a the late fall to the early spring when by calm conditions or by waves less than a half lake levels arc lowest and when lake and/or a foot high about 80% of the time. shore fast icc (ice in contact with the beach and Nonetheless, thereisusually a preferred nearshore) arc present to restrict the formation (net) direction toward which sand is episodically of waves or keep the waves from reaching the moved.For example, along the south shore of shore (Figure 5.3). Lake Erie the net sand transport direction is to The waves, aside from shore erosion, trans- the east on the east side of Cleveland, and to port appreciable quantities of sand along the the west, west of Cleveland (Figure 5.1).In this shore. Sand accumulation measurements made at case thc more frequent and stronger winds from harbor jetties indicate up to 100,000 cubic yards the west are the principal cause of the dominant of sand per year can be transported and deposited west to cast transport of sand. Furthermore, adjacent to harbor structures on thc Grcat Lakes. because sandisimportantasarecreational Coastal Processes on the Great Lakes / 41

Monthly moan lak level 1300

1100

900

700

500

300

100 Wave energy, by month

Aar May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov

Figure 53. Wave energy, lake level and ice on LakeErie,(Carter, et al, 1987) resource and as a buffer betweenlake waves and brokenrock. Clay-richglacialdrift(debris the land, a knowledge of the direction and quan- transported by or away from a glacier) onthe tity of sand being transported (longshoredrift) other hand usually erodes at 2-3 ft/yr but may is essential. erode much more rapidly. This is happening along the north central shore of LakeErie where erosion rates are as high as 18 ft/yr.Sand is Unlike rock or Shore erosion the least resistant to erosion. glacial drift, sand can also accumulate andbuild The waves that reach the shore erode the out from the shore. Thiscircumstance is unusual major sand spits such as shore, The higher the lake level, the closer on Lake Erie, where waves break to the shore, andthe greater the Point Pelee, Long Point and Presque Isle areall amount of wave energy that reachesthe shore eroding because of the high lake level and scar- (Figure 5.4).Naturally, the greater the wave city of sand. energy reaching the shore,the greater the shore Erosion rates on the Great Lakes are deci- Although the nature of the erosion. dedly nonuniform. Waves erode the shore in different ways. shore material is constant, the amount of wave They erode by the force created by impact, by energy reaching the shoreis quite variable be- the force created by the compression of air cause of fluctuations inlake level and in the and/or water into cavities and fractures, and by frequency and intensity or the storms that create simply abrading (sand blasting) the shore with the waves. For example, at a low lake level sand picked up by the waves on the beach. there may be little if any shore erosion because The nature of the shore material, like the the storm waves break far offshore.Whatever amount of wave cnergy reaching theshore, has a wave energy is availableis easily damped before major effect on erosion. Rock for the most part it reaches the shore.On the other hand, at a is quite resistant to erosion and usually erodes high lake level even small waves can reach a at less than one foot per year.However, if the shore with a narrow (probably submerged)beach. be several rockishighly fracturedit may erode at 2-3 At high lake levels erosion rates can ft/yr because the waves can easily quarrythe times the long term rate; in fact, there may well 42 / Coastal Processes on the Great Lakes

Thc base of the lakeshore slope or bluff plays a major role in the erosion process.The crucial nature of this area can be illustrated in terms of an erosion cycle that is generally ap- plicabletothe Great Lakes shores with the exception of the shore made up of barrier islands and wetlands (Figure 5.6).The cycle can take place in a year or over a period of several years. The principle is this: (1) during a high lake level waves erode the base creating an unstable slope (this process may take place over a few weeks); (2) slope failure (mass wasting) occurs in the form of rock/clay falls, slumps, slides, or debris flows, and (3) subsequent erosion (usually at a high lake level) of the base of the slope allows the waves once again to create another unstable slope.

Figure 5.4.Effect of lake level on wave erosion. Wave energy lost to the beach at a low lake level (A), and wave energy expended on the shore at a high lake level (B).

A 11111111.11t

11,i111111,111illalii I Ii1 F1511.11.111111-5

111111 I ii I 11111111!

Figure 5.5.Effect of a beach on wave erosion. Wave energyislostto the wide beach that protects the shore (A) whereasatthe same lakelevel, wave energy reaches the shore be- 1 11 cause of the lack of a wide beach (11). Figure 5.6.The erosional cycle.(A) Erosion at the slope toe during high lake level. be a threshold level at which erosion will take (13)Slope failure.(C) Erosion of place practically everywhere along a lakeshore if the debris deposited by slope failure there is insufficient beach width to protect the and renewed erosion at the slope shore from waves (Figure 5.5). toe. Coastal Processes on the Great Lakes / 43

...4111.-NET LONGSHORE TRANSPORTDIRECTION

LAKE ERIE

Shorelines 1975 1937 Downdrift 1876 Shore 1826 Structure Updrift Shore /

600 meters

Figure 5.7.The Fairport Harbor (Grand River) area with shore-linesand harbor structures (Carter, et al., 1981) Lakes shores, the slope never reaches equilibrium NUY4011C1010111t TIMMIIOONT INORCTION and erosion persists. LAKE In human terms the overall shore erosion problem is harder to comprehend because of the long term fluctuations in lake level. For example, a person may buy a house alongthe lakeshore at a low lake level, i.e. at a timewhen there is a relatively wide beach and when mass wasted 1876 010/111n debris commonly covered by vegetation has ac- 1937 Blu Min* cumulated at the base of the slope, giving a _ 1973 Olu But with the return of a Groins 400 It. semblance of stability. high lake level, the beach ispartially(if not Figure 5.8.Accelerated erosion atPainesville- wholly) submerged and waves then erode the on-the-Lake east of the Fairport mass wasted debris to the surpriseof the shore- Harbor jetties. Local erosion caused land owner. by groinsisgreatly amplified by sand trapped at Fairport Harbor. Human impacts The erosion cycle illustrates the significance of lakelevel(or on the oceanic coasts, sea People, as they have done in so many other level)to shore erosion.If the mass wastcd natural systems, have had a major impact on debris at the base of the slope were allowed to shoreprocesses,particularlyshoreerosion. accumulate, the slope would eventually reach a Human effects on erosion along the Great Lakes stable angle of repose.Downslope movement shorc are caused in two ways: by harbor struc- would then be restricted to the relatively slow tures, and by shore protection structurcs.The slope process of creep. However, if there is harbor structures that have had the most effect wave erosion of the mass wasteddebris by high are the jetties that were built tokeep the river lake levels, as there is along much of the Great mouth harbors free of sediment. These structures 44 / Coastal Processes on the Great Lakes

NET LONGSHORE TRANSPORT NET LONGSHORE TRANSPORT

nearshore

urrrurillm shore AERIAL VIEW

water Ilea&

CROSS.SECTIONAL VIEW

Figure 5.9.Changes caused by a groin.(from Carter and Guy, Ohio Geological Survey Report Inv. 115)

(and thus a less protected shore) along the downdrift shore. Unfortunately the length of shore affected weer level by the loss of sand is generally several times the r-- length of the shore affected by the gain of sand. The Fairport Harbor area (Grand River) along After seawall the south shore of Lake Erieis an excellent example of the effect of the harbor structures. Figure 5.10. Changes caused by a seawall. The jettiesthat were firstconstructed inthe mid-1820s, and subsequently lengthened,have block and/or divert the longshore transport of trapped appreciable quantities of sand from the sand and in so doing usually deprive the down- net westtoeast longshoretransportsystem. drift beach of sand.Naturally, this leads to a This has resulted in a build-up of sand into thc wider beach (and thus more protected shore) lake adjaccnt to the west jetties of more than along the updrift shore, but a narrower beach 2000 feet and shore protection in the form of a Coastal Processes on the Great Lakes / 45 wide beach for about one mile to the west (Fig- moved by longshore currents. However, if struc- ure 5.7).On the other hand, there has been a tures are built along the shore there will be less tremendous loss of sand in the beaches at least sand entering the system from erosion and the for 4 miles to the east of the jetties that has beaches will narrow. led to accelerated erosion along this shore (Figure 5.8). Naturally if the setting and processes are References different, the effects will be different.Overall, however, the jetties have had a major effect on Carter, C.H. and W.S. Haras. 1985. Great Lakes. sand transport and thus on the distribution of In: E.C. Bird and M.L. Schwarz, eds., The sand along the Great Lakes shores, thereby a world's coastline. New York: Van Nostrand major effect on erosion rates. Reinhold. The shore protection structures that have Carter, C.H., D.E. Guy, Jr.,and JA. Fuller. had the most effect are groins and seawalls. 1981. Coastal geomorphology and geology Groins act as small jetties in that they block of the Ohio shore of Lake Erie: Geological and/or divert the longshore transport of sand. Society of America Guidebook, Annual Meet- In so doing they lead to the formation of a ing Field Trip, Cincinnati. wider beach on one side of the structure, which Chapman, Li. and D.F. Putnam. 1984. The is the basic purpose of a groin, but again, a physiography of Southern Ontario.Toronto: narrower beach on the other side of the structure Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. (Figure 5.9).Frequently, the apparent necessity Environment Canada and the Ontario Ministry of forthe construction of the groins has been Natural Resources.1975.Canada/Ontario created by the jetties built updrift.These have Great Lakes shore damage survey. Author. contributed to narrower beaches and thus the Hough, J.L.1958.Geology of the Great Lakes. need for shore protection. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. Seawalls, on the other hand, armor the shore Sly, P.G. and C.F.M. Lewis. 1972.The Great and thus make it more resistant to wave attack. Lakes of CanadaQuaternary geology and However, erosion takes place at the base of the limnology. Montreal: 22nd International structures by the downward deflection of wave Geological Congress. energy. This leads to greater energy reaching U.S. Army Engineer Division, North Central. the shore (deeper water) as well as accelerated 1971.National shoreline study, Great Lakes sand transport along the shore (Figure 5.10). Region inventory report. U.S. 93rd Con- And, by armoring the shore and reducing erosion gress, 1st Session, House Document 93-121, rates, seawalls also reduce the amount of sand Vol V, 1-221. entering the system.This is probably the most important effect of seawalls, because the shore is the principal source of beach sand.This leads to narrower beaches and consequently higher erosion rates.Moreover, with both groins and seawalls the distribution of sand along the shore is becoming increasingly nonuniform, and with larger numbers of structures the distribution will become even more sporadic. What about the future of the Great Lakes coastal zones in terms of human development? The stretches fronted mostly by shore protection structures will lose their beaches, as a diminished sand supply coupled with accelerated longshore sand transport will erode sand.On the other hand, the stretches that lack such structures will continue to have beaches, as shore erosion will provide sand to replenish what is 6/ Early Struggles for Peace on Lake Erie

by Gerard Altoff

Intravelingtotheirdestinationsithas always been the tendency of creatures to choose the easiest path.The human need to explore epitomized this precept, and it was early discovered that travel across water proved one of the easiest modes of transit from one location to another.Thus it was when North America was discoveredthe waterways yielded easy access to theinterior. Near the center of the North American continent lies a series of these waterways traversing almost forty percent of its width. The five Great Lakes and the St. Lawrencc River conferred upon early travelers a natural route for exploration, settlement, and exploitation of Figure 6.1.Route of the Jesuits.(McKee, 1964 the resources of the continent.As time passed p. 104) the political, military, and economic significance of the Great Lakes grew, and nations found Thoughstilla matter of dispute,Louis themselves contesting each other for their con- Joliet is most often credited as being the first trol. So it was that Lake Erie, bcing second and white man to see Lake Eric, in 1669.After an southernmost in the chain of Great Lakes, would unsuccessful search for a copper mine on Lake play a vital and strategic role in the development Superior, Joliet paused at Sault Ste. Marie on his of North America. return to Montreal.There he acquired an Iro- quois guide who convinced him to return via a southern route, and Joliettraveled south into The discovery and early Lake Erie via the St. Clair River, Lakc St. Clair, exploration of Lake Erie and the Detroit River.By an amazing stroke of luckand a hair's-breadthJoliet managed to Oddly enough Lake Eric was the last of discover Lake Erie only days before one of his the Great Lakes discovered by European explorers. major rivals of the period, Rene Robert Cavelier, In the early 17th century Jesuits and voyageurs Sieur de la Salle. followed the Indian route to the interior via the An ambitious man with a dream of discover- Ottawa and Mattawa Rivers into Lake Nipissing, ing a trade route to the far east, La Salle lcd and then along the French River to Georgian an expedition up the St. Lawrence River in the Bay.Hence the three upper lakes received the summer of 1669.Following the south shore of earliestattention,anditwas thus from thc Lake Ontario he reached thc vicinity of Hamilton, "back door" that Lake Eric was first glimpsed. Ontario, on September 4th, where he learned Early Struggles for Peace on Lake Erie / 47 from Indians that another European, Joliet, was initial explorations and contacts with the Indians nearby. La Salle had been fighting an ilLess for the French had established a system of trade two months, so after meeting Joliet hedecided which stretched from the St. Lawrence to the not to continue with his original plan. However, mouth of the Mississippi.Several routes con- a Sulpician priest and a deacon whoaccompanied nected the Great Lakes to the Mother of all La Salle didpresson, and these two men, Rivers, one of the major ones via Lake Erie and Francois Dollier de Casson and Rene Brehant de the Maumee, Wabash, and Ohio Rivers. But the Galinee, completed the first east-west transit of French were not to have a monopoly.Inroads Lake Erie by white men.After wintering near were made when England establishedthe Hudson presentPort Dover, Ontario,theycontinued Bay Company in the latter half of the 17th cen- their journey by water to Sault Ste. Marie, there tury.The economic war was on. On Lake Erie to proselytize among the Indians. trading posts were established on the Cuyahoga, La Salle was somewhat daunted after en- Sandusky, and Maurnee Rivers, and for a time countering Joliet but did not abandon his dream both English and French traders worked the area of exploring the great rivers to the southwest in uneasy harmony. The dominant French were spoken of by the Indians.His movements over little bothered initially as few Englishmen were the next two years are uncertain.It is specu- able to penetrate the wilderness; voyageurs only lated that La Salle, accompanied by a Seneca had to paddle down the French controlled water- guide, traveled south to the Ohio River, following ways, whereas English efforts werehampered by it westward to the site of Louisville, Kentucky, the natural barrier of the Allegheny mountains. where he veered northward and returned by way The French, however, were not unaware of the of Lake Erie.His subsequent actions tend to insidious nature of English pressure. support this supposition.Returning to France, La Salle obtained a grant from Louis XIV to explore his supposed new route and establish trade with the Indians.Compiling another expedition, this one including men and material for ship construction, La Salle again set out.Cross- ing Lake Ontario and sailing up the Niagara River, he portaged the falls and began building thisship. After incredible toil the Griffin, a two-masted vessel of approximately 45 tons, was .11 1:1-i.1 I launched, and on August 7, 1679, she sailed into Lake Erie.After three days La Salle, the first known white man to navigate the length of Lake Erie, reached the Detroit River.The Griffin, minus La Salle, was soon afterward lost without a trace on the upper lakes,and La Salle himself, in search of his dream, was killed in Louisiana in 1682. Although their sojourn on the lake was short-lived, La Salle and the Griffin will forever be part of Lake Erie's mystique. Figure 6.2.TheGriffin. (G.A.Cuthbenson, Freshwater) The fur trade: Conflict between France and Great Britain East of the mountains King William's War erupted in 1689, followed shortly thereafter by The ncxt eighty years would see a continual Queen Anne's War in 1701. While the Alleghenies tug of war between France andEngland for and the Iroquois League provided a buffer to the control of the Great Lakes, and one overriding fighting, English influence exerted itself, compel- economic factor was the root cause of this strug- ling France to take steps to strengthen its grip gle for empirethe fur trade. Through their on the lakes.In 1701 Antoine Laumet, Sieur de 48 / Early Struggles for Peace on Lake Erie

Lamothe Cadillac established Fort Poatchartrain Lake Erie's midsection.Frontiersmen from the soon to be referred to simply as Detroitto colonies had by this time conquered the Alle- protect the vital strait between Lakes Erie and ghenies further south, and English fur traders Huron, just one of the chain of forts France were now moving north through the Ohio country. constructed to consolidate its hold on the fur Many tribes, especially those along western Lake trade. Erie, were becoming disgruntled with seemingly shady French trade practices, and the English exacerbated the situation by agitating amongst Struggle for control of the the tribes and undercutting French prices, thereby Indians sowing discontent.The outbreak of yet another Franco-English conflict, King George's War (1744- One of the keys to mastering the fur trade 48),instigated several minor skirmishes along was controlling the Indians.With most of the Lake Erie, but the Treaty of Aix la Chapelle tribes the French enjoyed preeminence, but there restored order. was one group of Indians they never could seem In 1749 the French attempted to cement to swaythe Iroquois, mightiest Indian confeder- their claim on Lake Erie.Realizing that the acy in North America.The Treaty of Utrecht, English were in North America to stay,they concluding Queen Anne's War in 1713, formally tried to forestall further westward expansion by prohibited any French meddling with Britain's dispatching Celeron de Bainville on a 3,000 mile trade and influence with the Five Nations, as the trek, during which he nailed tin plaques to trees Iroquois confederacy was called.England used and buried lead plates at strategic locations to this edict to lay claim to Lake Erie on the prem- once andforeverdelineateFrenchterritory. isethat since the Iroquois destroyed the Erie Part of his route took Cele:on down the eastern Indian tribe in 1655, Lake Erie should rightfully shore of Lake Erie, then south to the Ohio belong to the English.The problem with this River, down the Ohio to the Great Miami, from claim, however was thatit was obviously unen- whence he headed north, crossed over to the forceable and heightened tensions in the Lakes Maumee, and reentered Lake Erie.It was a r egion. historic journey, and caused the English to take aggressive action to counteract Celeron's move. The Ohio Land Company, formed by several prominent colonists from Virginia and Maryland in 1748, sent Christopher Gist across the mountains, where he traversed much the same territory as Celeron.Gist wooed the Indians, winning over several influential chiefs.It was a master- piece of deception. Gist turned the Indians against the French, all the while concealing the fact hc was scouting the area for English settle- Five ment. Nations Unlike the French, who limited their Iroquois intrusions to trading posts and forts, the English planned to take it all. Miami Unknown Gist's overtures to the Indians were not ignored by the French.Charles Langlade, a Figure 63.ApproximatelocationsofGreat Canadian with half Indian blood, led a punitive Lakes tribal groups inthe early campaign on his own initiative from Detroit in 1600s. (Adap(ed from Tomboulian, 1752 against those who befriended Gist. Langlade Michigan Natural Resources, 1986) attacked and destroyed the village of Pickawil- lany, and Old Britain, a Miami chief and Gist By this time France, with Forts Niagara and convert, was boiled and eaten by the victors. Detroit, controlled their namesake rivers.Both Another French expedition was sent south from ends were effectively plugged, but the French Montreal in 1753 to secure the upper Ohio valley, still couldn't prevent the English from penetrating and yet another series of military posts were

G ,) Early Strules for Peace on Lake Erie / 49 built,thefirstof which was Fort Presqu'Ile 13, 1760, and proceeded to the now British Furt (now Erie, PA).The Indians were thoroughly Presque Isle. Pushing on to the Cuyahoga River, cowed by these tactics and returned once more Rogers was intercepted by the prestigious and to the French fold. powerful chief of the Ottawa nation, Pontiac. One of the new French installations, Fort Their encounter was strained; the Indians of the Duquesne (Pittsburgh, PA), was cavalierly located Detroit region were still favorably disposed to- on land steadfastly claimed by the English, who wards the French.Not until Rogers convinced were quick to react.In 1755 a young colonel in Pontiac thatthe Indians would benefit from the Virginiamilitia, none other than George British trade was he allowed to continue. Detroit Washington, guided by Christopher Gist, was sent capitulated without a fight, and Lake Erie, to- to cope with the French incursion.Nearing Fort gether with all French bastions north and west Duquesne, Washington was forewarned by his of Detroit, reverted to British rule. scouts of an advancing French party, and with Detroit was one of the few posts west of 40 of his own men ambushed 33 French soldiers, the St. Lawrence to blossom under French con- killing 10.Washington had just single-handedly trol.By 1760 it was a boomtown of 500 people, launched a war that would determine once and and now British traders flocked to the area. for all the dominant culture of North America. The Indians, looking forward to a new prosperity, were soon disillusioned and dismayed by unscru- pulous traders who, now that the British sustained The French and Indian War amonopoly,swindledtheIndiansregularly. and its aftermath Taking advantage of this the French, from their location in the Illinois country, stirred unrest Lake Erie, still part of the western wilder- among the tribes.The pressure built until 1763, ness, was spared the horrors of the Seven Years when Lake Erie experienceditsfirstserious War, dubbed the French and Indian War in Amer- bloodletting since the Iroquois wiped out the ican history.Some Ohio Indians did assist the Erie nation almost 110 years before. French during the early stages of the war, par- ticipatingin the overwhelming rout of British General Edward Braddock's force near Fort The Indians fight back Duquesne on July 9, 1755.But the British, un- daunted after numerous blunders and setbacks, One of the great Indian leaders of all time, recouped their early losses, and in 1758 General Pontiac possessed a magnetic personality,his John Forbes enlisted Christian Frederick Post, a oratory easily able to sway and galvanize others. Moravian missionary, to roam among the Indians He seduced the Chippewa, Delaware, Shawnee, of the Ohio country and counsel peace.Post Huron, Potawatomi, his own Ottawa, and others succeeded,andwithoutIndiansupportFort to help him expel theEnglish.Pontiac struck Duquesne, at the extremity of a tenous supply in early May, 1763. Endeavoring to capture Fort line from Montreal, withered on the vine. Aban- Detroit by a ruse, Pontiac was frustrated when doned by the French in late December, 1758, Major Henry Gladwin, now in command, received Fort Duquesne was occupied by the British and advanced warning and evaded the trap.Detroit, renamed Fort Pitt.Duquesne was soon followed however, was one of Pontiac's few setbacks. by Forts Lc Boeuf, Venango, and Presqu'lle, Withi.1 two months almost every fort from wes- their garrisons retreating to Detroit.Even the tern Pennsylvania to Lake Superior fell, including citadel of Fort Niagara,atthe mouth of the Forts Miami, Sandusky, and Presque Isle, and in NiagaraRiver,felltotheBritishonslaught. most casestheirgarrisons wiped out. Only Although peace was not declared until 1763, the Forts Pitt and Detroit stayed the tide, but both fighting was virtually over after Quebec fell in were isolated and under siege. 1760; the rich lakes country was now ripe for Gladwin stubbornly defended his beleaguered the picking. outpost, ably assisted by two newcomers to Lake Assignedthistaskwas theredoubtable Eric, the 80 ton schooners Michigan and Huron. Major Robert Rogers and 200 of his now famous Built above Niagara Fallsat what was later Rangers. Rogers departed Montreal on September named Navy Islandthe first ships built on the 50 / Early Strusgles for Peace on Lake Erie lake since the Griffinthey were ready just in Erie came to an end.Pontiac himself lasted six time.Assailed time and again while running the more years, and died ignominiously, killed by a DetroitRivergauntlet,thelittlevesselsstill Peoria Indian at Cahokia, Illinois. managed to keep Gladwin's supply line open and Relative calm characterized Lake Erie over were instrumentalinpreventing Detroit from the next 13 years.Another brief uprising by falling. Ohio Indians in 1764 was quelled by the intrepid Dozens of battles and skirmishes marked Colonel Bouquet.Marching into Ohio as far as the bloody uprising and few vessels were as the Muskingum River he cowed the Indians, fortunate as the Michigan and Huron. A large forcing themtorelease 200 white prisoners number of bateaux trying to supply Detroit were captured during Pontiac's War.After these last ambushed at Point Pelee; 61 mcn were killed or recalcitrant Indians were subjugated, and a num- captured and most of the bateaux lost.Another ber of the Indian grievances redressed, the fur 75 men were killed in ambush on the portage trade once again flourished, both Indian and road just below Niagara Falls, known as the trader alike profiting. Devil's Hole Massacre. And at one point after 280 reinforcementsfinallyarrivedatDetroit, Captain James Dalyell led 247 of them in an White settlement of attack against Pontiac, who ambushed this ven- the Great Lakes area ture, killing Dalyell and 22 of his men. The lake itself quashed one effort to relieve Detroit; high Like the French before them the British winds caught 600 men in boats off the north realized that to protect the fur trade they would shore and all the supplies along with 70 men need to maintain good relations with the Indians were lost. and prevent expansion and settlement from the Despite such setbacks, Detroit and Fort Pitt colonies. A Royal Proclamation Line, circum- continued to hold out, providing the English time scribed in 1763, limited settlement to east of tbe to regroup and strike back.Helping the British Alleghenies; however, colonies such as Connecti- wcre Pontiac's own mercurial allies. The Indians cut,Pennsylvania, and Virginia had extended possessed neither the temperament nor the pa- their boundaries westward, in some cases from tience to sustain a long, drawn out conflict; the ocean to ocean, and development could not be rebellion was eroding from within.But the long forestalled. The Iroquois League was still a mortal blow was administered by a Swedish born powerful faction and precluded any movement British officer named Henry Bouquet. Leading a along the shores of Lake Eric, but farther south relief force of 400 men toward Fort Pitt, Bouquet settlers were pushing down the Ohio River. In was ambushed by an equal number of Delaware 1774 Lord Dunmore's War erupted along thc and Shawnee on August 5th, 1763. The Battle of Ohio, but Lake Erie was spared from this local Bushy Run lasted two days; Bouquet, with 25% outbreak.Also in 1774 the British passed the casualties and his men exhausted and near defeat, Quebec Act, which in addition to protecting the desperately laid a counter ambush, into which fur trade also extended Canada's boundary along the Indians impetuously pounced.Surprised and the Ohio River to the Mississippi; what it didn't defeated, the Indians withdrew, and on reaching take into consideration were the lands claimed Fort Pitt just kept on going.The siege at the by the colonies, who by this time were paying easternmost fort was lifted. scant heed to British bombast anyway. Itwas another11 weeks though before As yet there were no settlers per sein Detroit could breathe easier. Through the force Ohio, but white men were living there.In 1772 of his personality alone Pontiac was able to keep Moravian missionaries David Zeisberger and John enough of the wavering warriors with him to Heckewelderhadestablishedamissionat maintain Detroit's siege. When finally a French Schoenbrun, and before long several missionary representative from the Illinois country arrived families were working with the Tuscarawa and and made itplain that French assistance, the Delaware Indians in eastern Ohio.These in- last hope keeping Pontiac's dream alive, would nocuousphilanthropists andtheirflockwere not be forthcoming, his rebellion at last petered soon to be caught up in events far beyond their out.Six months of blood and horror on Lakc control. Early Struggles for Peace on Lake Erie / 51

The American Revolution the incredulous Williamson that they were non- combatants. After all, they were Indians. Unable It took very little to fan the long smolder- to think of anything else to do, Williamson and ing resentment between Great Britain and her his men murdered them.Killed were 96 men, American colonies into the flame of open war. women, and children, their skulls crushed with The outbreak of the Revolution brought no large wooden mallets.Only 2 young boys managed to armies into the Lake Erie wilderness; primarily it escape. was just a continuation of a steadily increasing Laterthat same year another American animosity between Red inhabitant and Colonial column was routed at the Battle of Olentangy in expansionist. Seemingly always caught in the north central Ohio.The captured American middle of the white man's wars, the Indians in commander, Colonel William Crawford, was tor- thisinstance opted to seek shelter under the turei and burned at the stake in retribution for British umbrella since the Americans were trying Gnadenhutten. Only the end of hostilitiesin to appropriate and settle Indian lands, and the 1783 brought a halt to the brutalities which were British were endeavoring to prevent justthat, oflatebecoming commonplace inthe Ohio albeit for ulterior motives.Americans pushed country. north and west from Fort Pitt, British and Indians pushed south and east from Fort Detroit; bloody skirmishes were fought and nothing was gained. Fort Laurens, the first fort established in Ohio, was constructed along the Tuscarawas River in September,1778,during one American foray against Detroit. For two months in the beginning of 1779, 150 defenders were besieged by British and Indians; the British, unable to crack the fort's walls, rctreated, and the Americans, after successfully foiling the British, felt the fort was untenable and abandoned it.To the northeast General John Sullivan marched a U.S. Army into western New York in the fall of 1779, and in a campaign of destruction devastated the villages and crops of the Iroquois.Though few Indians Figure 6.4.Burning Crawfordatthestake. were killed,their homes and livelihoods were (Print fromTheOhio Histmical destroyed, and thc once all-powerful nation that Society) controlled thc shores of eastern Lake Erie for two centuries was in weeks reduced to a virtual Even though Lake Eric's role in the Revolu- nonentity. tionary War was extraneous, the Treaty of Paris, As the war progressed columns of soldiers which brought aboutitsend, held long-term intermittently continued to move westward from significance for the region. The treaty stipulated Fort Pitt. Indians were killed and villages razed. thc lake be part of the demarcation line between One particularly brutal episode occurred in March, U.S. territory and Canada, running from the 1782.Moravian converts refused to compromise centerlineof the Niagara Riverthroughthe their new beliefs and fight for the British, conse- center of Lake Eric and continuing through the quently other Ohio Indians capriciously forced centerline of the Detroit River.Islands in the these peaceful Indians to move to the Sandusky lake and rivers were not specifically considered, area with nothing but the clothes on their backs. meaning there would be later arguments and Faced with starvation a portion of the Moravian adjustments, but for all intents and purposes the Indians wcrc permitted to return to Gnadenhuttcn border between the two countries was firmly to gather crops leftin the fields.There they established. were sct upon by ninety American militiamen Another important consequence of the war commanded by Captain David Williamson. Try as was that much of thc lake region could be opened they might thc Indians simply couldn't convince for white settlementit was still Indian land, but 52 / Early Struggles for Peace on Lake Erie why worry about such trivial matters. The main and west of the Ohio River there was no rhyme difference between the north and south shores of nor reason, no system for buying or selling, and the lake was that the Canadians co-habited with no laws for government. the Indians in peace.During the war tens of Attempts were made to institute guidelines thousands of people in the colonies remained when Congress enacted the Ordinance of 1784. loyal to the crown, and with America gaining its The provisions of the ordinance were unusually independence many loyalists chose to emigrate. broad and nebulous.In the governing of a pros- Fort Niagara, a British stronghold, was a natural pective state it bestowed almost unlimited power gathering place for displaced loyalists while the to a governor and only very limited participation war was in progress, and when it ended many to the people.As a result the ordinance was simply crossed the river and settled the Niagara never really accepted.A year later came thc region of Ontario and the north shore of Lake Land Ordinance of 1785, organizing a system for Erie. surveying and selling public lands or distributing them in a manner to benefit all, but it still made no provision for government.Congress rectified Early Indian treaties this omission when it finally passed the Ordinance of 1787, sometimes known as the Northwest On the south shore the Iroquois still claimed Ordinance. The Ordinance of 1787, its provisions the land that once belonged to the Erie Indians, stillin effect to this day, established the ter- so the U.S. negotiated and acquired the land ritorial system, fabricated policies for governing from the remnants of the league in a treaty the Northwest Territory, created procedures for signed at Fort Stanwix, NY, in 1784. The treaty, carving individual territories out of the whole, however, failed. totake into account the de facto and specified requirements for new territories to occupants: the Wyandots, Ottawas, Chippewas, become states.Slavery was one of the morc and Delawares. Further negotiations were there- significant aspects of the ordinance: none would fore necessary, and in 1785 another treaty was bc allowed in the Old Northwest. Essentially the signed with these tribesat Fort McIntosh, Pa. Northwest Ordinance was a constitutton for thc The boundary for Indian territory was then delin- newly formed Northwest Territory, and more eated by the Cuyahoga and Tuscarawas Rivers, than any document in the nation's history molded thereby opening up the Connecticut Western the five states of the Old Northwest into what Reserve for settlement. However, the treaty they are today.Ohio was confederated shortly didn't include the Firelands, that section of the afterward, and within thc Northwest Territory Western Reserve stretching westward from the wasthefirstindividualterritory,eventually Cuyahoga to Sandusky Bayincluding the Lake becoming the first state. Erie Islandsclaimed by Connecticutforher The Northwest Territory was now officially residents whose homes were razed by the British part of the new nation, and itsfirst Governor, during the war. Arthur St.Clair, was elected by Congress on October 5th of that same year.There was little to govern as yet since the territory was sparsely The Northwest Ordinance populated, but this didn't relieve it of problems, almost all of which were caused by the British Ohio atthis timc was partitioned into a and Indians. crazy quilt pattern of tracts divided among diverse ownership.Three of these tracts were reserved as bounty lands for Revolutionary War Cont inu ing problems with veterans, or those who suffered in the war, and the Indians and British were claimed respectively by the U.S. Government and the states of Virginia and Connecticuthence When the Treaty of Paris ended the Ameri- the Connecticut Western Reserve.Some land can Revolution,itsfiftharticle stipulated that was public, some was private, and with some one Congress would recommend to all state legisla- just couldn'ttell. Such an amorphous system turesthatpropertiesconfiscated fromBritish could easily lead to chaos; in all the lands north subjects during the war would be returned to Early Struggles for Peace on Lake Erie/ 53

by a United States Army.It was not until 1794 their rightful owners.The new owners were defeated at the naturally loathe to do this, anddidn't. The that the Indians were ultimately treaty Battle of Fallen Timbers (south of presentPerrys- British used what was to them an obvious Anthony" Wayne. breach to remain in possession of thelands they burg, Ohio) by General "Mad The upshot of Wayne's victory wasthe Greenville were obligated toabandon, including Forts Nia- At least this was the Treaty, signed by the Indians inAugust, 1795. gara, Detroit, and Miami. hostilities, the ostensible reason because in actualityBritain was Besides the obvious cessation of fur trade, treatystipulateda boundary lineremarkably vying to retain control of the lucrative Treaty, the and secretly hoped the establishedboundary line similar to that of the Fort McIntosh only difference being that all Indianclaims on would soon be realigned in its favor. The Indians, even though manyof their the area were not totally eliminated. lands were signed away by treaty,did not consider binding on Indian nations what wassigned by a relative few of each tribe.Their philosophy of land ownership simply didn'tabide that principle.The British thus manipulated theIndians to prevent U.S. expansioninto the Old Northwest, providingthemwithweapons,ammunition, supplies, and occasionally militaryadvisers, encouraging them to raid Americansettlements and discourage prospective settlers.Since the British ".4 441 controlled the forts on the lakes and wereagi- tating amongst the tribes, any attemptsby Amer- icans to exercise their rights onLake Erie or settle its shores proved hazardous in the extreme. Neither Great Britain nor the U.S. werewilling to go to war over what wasconsidered a rela- r.,* tively minor issue, so Americaattempted different solutions on the different factions: onemilitary Figure 6.5."Signing the Treaty of Greene Vile." and one diplomatic. (Painting by Howard C. Cristy) A militarysolutionobviously couldnot another work against the British without inciting British warthat left the Indians.In late 1790, General The problems with both Indians and Josiah Harmar, with an army ofapproximately were fortuitouslyrectified almost simultaneously: Jay's Treaty with Great Britain wasratified the 1,500 men, marched north fromCincinnati. After same month theGreenville Treaty was signed. burning some villages and cropsunopposed, was the force to facilitate Containing 28articlesaltogether,it Harmar injudiciously divided his concerned the Awaiting just such an oppor- second article of Jay's Treaty that the task at hand. and garrisons tunity, and taking advantage ofHarmar's inep- Northwest Territory: British troops from all posts within the boundarylines of the titude, a loose Indian confederacy,led by Little Jacket of the Treaty of Paris were to be withdrawnby June 1, Turtle of the Miami and Blue all of Lake Shawnee, attacked and routed theisolated detach- 1796. Free of constraint at last, Erie's south shore was now open forsettlement ment; outwitted, Harmarlimped back to Cincin- Chagrined by the defeat except a portion of northwestOhio west of the nati inhumiliation. Subsequent negotiations with President George Washington appointedhis old Cuyahoga River. theIndiansresultedinthe Treaty of Fort friend,General Arthur St. Clair, to assume com- Clair marched Industry in 1805which gave upthe Firelands mand, and in the fall of 1791 St. and the Treaty of north to avenge Harmar's defeat.With almost the Treaty of Detroit in 1807, Brownstown in 1808. Only a few very small 1,400 men St.Clair was surpriscd one frosty could after- morning by the same Indians, who onceagain reservations along western Lake Erie prevailed; in fact St. Clair's defeatremains to wards be claimed by the Indians. this day one of the worst disasters eversuffered 54 / Early Struggles for Peaceon Lake Erie The founding of the first Guthman, William H. 1975. Marchto Massacre, villages along the Lake A History of the First Seven Years of the U.S. Army, 1784-1791. New York: McGraw- With the fear of Indian depredationsre- Hill Book Company. moved settlers began wandering into theeastern Hatcher, Harlan.1945.Lake Erie. New York: lake region.Connecticut had been unable to The Bobbs-Merrill Company. dispose of all its land in the Western Reserve, so Flavighurst, Walter. 1966. The Great Lakes in 1795 it sold the remaining 4,000,000acres to Reader. New York: Macmillan. a group of speculators who formed the Con- Havighurst, Walter.1962.The Heartland: Ohio, necticut Land Company. To surveyits new Indiana,Illinois,1673-1860. New York: holdings the company dispatcheda party of 50 Harper & Row, Publishers. people westward in 1796. Stopping at the Con- Hinsdale, BA.1888.Sale of the Western Re- neaut River on July 4th a few hardy peoplewere serve. Ohio Archaeological and Historical impressed and decided to remain, founding the Society Publications, Vol. II,pp. 475-487. first community in the Western Reserve.The Columbus. remainder pushed forward, reaching the mouth of Hitsman, J. Mackay. 1968. Safeguarding Canada, the Cuyahoga River on July 22nd, wherethe 1763-1871.Toronto: University of Toronto party's leader, a land company director named Press. Moses Cleaveland, began surveying the site fora Hulbert, Archer B. (ed.). 1918.Ohio in the city-the city would of course bear hisname, Time of Confederation. Marietta, OH: minus one letter.Future towns in the Western Marietta Historical Commission. Reserve were named for two other directors of Hutchins, F.E. 1899. The Western Reserve. the land company, Moses Warren andJohn Ohio Archaeological and Historical Society Young. Publications, Vol. VII, pp. 259-274. Colum- Cleveland and Conneaut were onlytwo of bus. several villages to be founded during this period. Knapp, H.S. 1877. History cf the Maumee Valley. Erie, Pennsylvania, once the site of FortPresque Toledo: H.S. Knapp. Isle, was laid out by Andrew Ellicott in 1795 and Lajeunesse, Ernest J. (ed.).1960. settled shortly thereafter. The Windsor The east bank of the Border Region. Toronto:University of Niagara River, recently the home of theSeneca Toronto Press. Tribe of the Iroquois League, was next to receive Leverette, Clarke Edward.1976. attention. Land Use of The Holland Land Company of New the Canadian Detroit River Islands. London, York acquired a piece of land along theeast Ontario: Killaly Press. bank of the river, and the site of Buffalowas Mansfield, J.B. 1972. History of the Great surveyed in 1798. Civilization was ever so slowly Lakes. Cleveland: Freshwater Press. 2 Vols. creeping westward. Mathews, Alfred.1902.Ohio and Her Western Reserve. New York: D. Appleton and Com- pany. References McInnis, Edgar W.1942.The Unguarded Fron- tier, 1942. New York: Doubleday, Doran & Bond, Beverly W. Jr.1970.The Civilization of Company, Inc. the Old Northwest. Freeport, NY: Books McKee, R.1966. Great Lakes Country.New for Libraries Press. York: Thomas Y. Crowell. Browne, George W. 1905. The St. Lawrence Morehead, Warren K.1899. The Indian Tribes River, New York: Weather-cross Books. of Ohio. Ohio Archaeological and Historical Gilpin, Alec. 1970. The History of Michigan, Society Publications,Vol. VII, pp.1-109. 1805-1837. East Lansing: Michigan State Columbus. University Press. O'Meara, Walter. 1965. Guns at the Forks. Greenman, Emerson F. 1961. Pie Indians of Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press. Michigan. Ann Arbor, MI: Michigan Histor- Parkman, Francis.1980.LaSalle and the Dis- ical Commission. covery of the GreatWest. Williamston, MA: Corner House Publishers. Earor Struggles for Peace on LakeErie / 55

Quaife, Milo Milton (ed.).1958.The Siege of Detroit in1763. Chicago: The Lakeside Press. Roosevelt, Theodore.1896. The Vinning of the West. New York: P.F. Collier& Son, Pub- lishers. Executive Edition, 4 Vols. Roseboom, Eugene H. &Weisenburger, Francis P.1976. A History of Ohio.Columbus: Ohio Historical Society. Russell, Francis.1962.The French and Indian Wars. New York: AmericanHeritage Pub- lishing Company. Schoenfeld, Maxwell P. 1979. Fort De La Presqu'Ile.Erie, PA: Erie County Historical Society. Tucker, Glenn. 1956. Tecumseh,Vision of Glory. New York: The Bobbs-MerrillCompany, Inc. Utter, William T. 1968. The Frontier State, 1803-1825. Columbus: Ohio HistoricalSoci- ety. Wright, J. Leitch Jr. 1975. British and the American Frontier, 1783-1815.Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press. 7/ Openingthe Region to Prosperity

by Gerard Altoff

After the British evacuated theirforts in transport troops to Fort Detroit in 1796. U.S. territory following Jay's Treaty, Peter thcy built B. Porter, future general in the War of1812, ncw forts in Canada to protect thcir interests in helped form a transportation the Great Lakes region. company in 1805 Fort Erie was con- and acquired several parcels of landalong the structed justacross the Niagara River from cast bank of the Niagara River.Porter, Barton Buffalo, and Fort Maldenwas raised at the south- & Company built several warehouses east end of the Detroit River. When Dctroit near the was river, and by transporting salt fromBlack Rock evacuated many cl its residents remainedloyal to Fort Erie they established the first commercial to the Crown, so the civilians accordingly fol- link between the U.S. and Canada lowed the military and established on Lake Erie. Sandwich and The fastest growing industryon the lake Amhcrstburg on the east bank of theDetroit was shipbuilding. River, No major settlements were Portaging large vessels around yet located the Niagara's cataract just wasn'tpossible, and between Fort Eric and Malden, but smallfarms goods on Lake Eric and mills were already springing were awaiting transport; up to work this shipbuilding perforce became the logical rich agricultural arca. alterna- tive. The Canadian ProvincialGovernment estab- Under theprovisions of the Northwest lished a shipyard at Amhcrstburg,adjacent to Ordinance Michigan becamea territory on June Fort Malden, building merchant andmilitary 30, 1805, with William as its first governor vessels alike.Likewise the U.S. Governmentwas and Detroit the scat ofgovernment.Most of operating from the River Rouge shipyard the territory was still Indian land, in only a few Detroit.Shipyards at Cleveland, Erie, Buffalo, scattered settlements dotting its lakeshoresand Black Rock, and Fort Erie riverways; were adding their inthe southeasterncorner of the tonnage. The vast majority of these vessels territory only Detroit and Frenchtowncould by were sloops, schooners, or small brigs, averaging any stretch of the imagination be calledtowns. anywhere from 25 to 100 tons. A dispute arose between Michigan and Cargoes at this Ohio over time comprised mostly furs, Indian annuitiesand their respective borders alongwestern Lake Erie, trade goods,militarystores, andsalt. Lake hut little was done for the timcbeing. Erie's potentie.; as a major commercial In the years prior to the War of 1812 the route was just beginning to be realized when all ofa sudden sparsity of population precludedheavy commer- progress came to an abrupt haltAmerica de- cial use of Lake Erie. The fur trade was a still clared war on Great Britainon June 18, 1812. a viable industry, but as civilization encroached and the Indians were forcedout, the trade moved to the upper lakes. The military accountedfor a The causes of the War fair percentage of the limited traffic,not necessarily war vessels but ships contractedto supply Itis stretching the bounds of credulityto the numerous postson Lake Eric and the upper state that the war could have been averted via lakes; in fact the first vesselto fly thc American flag on Lake Eric implementation of judicious diplomaticmeasures. was hired by the army to The affronts for which Americawent to war in Opening the Region to Prosperity / 57

Fighting Indiana, Harrison confronted Tecumseh'sbrother, 1812 were serious, but not unsolvable. in charge. the Napoleonic Wars, Britain at thistime was the Prophet, whom Tecumseh had left endeavoring to blockade Europe. America, as a The Prophet, ambitious in his ownright, attacked maritime nation, conducted most of itstrade Harrison's army on the morning of November7, instructions to with Europe and hence ignored a seriesof econ- 1811, despite Tecumseh's implicit The Indians were defeated, and omic sanctionsissued by theBritishagainst the contrary. found in their village afterwards were numerous Napoleon.Under the guise of these sanctions Britain confiscated over 400 Americanmerchant weapons supplied by the British. Another problem was the British Navy. Hereinlaythe heart of the problems. ships. and vice Desperately short of sailors for its morethan Settlers had been plagued by Indians, of the westward move- 600 warships, the British were stoppingAmerican versa, from the beginning The consensus ships on the high seas and abductingAmerican ment; there was mutual hatred. Supposedly was that the British weredoing allin their sailors to fight for the British navy. kill and scalp searching for deserters, the British didn'tbother power to assist the Indians to "helpless" settlers.The weapons found at Tip- looking at citizenship papers and impressed over Whether it did or didn't 5,000 seaman from American vessels. pecanoe proved this. prove British conspiracyis irrelevant; westerners firmly believed it.It was also young westerners, with a few southerners, who werethe driving influence in Congress at this time, and menlike Henry Clay,Richard M. Johnson, and John Calhoun, dubbed the "War Hawks,"pushed for a second war with Great Britain.Diplomacy might have avoided war, but the temperamentof the times wouldn't permitit. Too many people wanted war, and when they achievedit westerners just considered it acontinuation of the war already begun at Tippecanoe.

Figure 7.1.Old shipyard at Ninth Street, Cleve- land. (Roseboom and Weisenbergen, Lake Erie in The Ohio Historical Society, 1986) the War of 1812 naturally In the Old Northwest the problem was, as Strategicallylocated Lake Erie operation in usual, the Indians.Wayne's victory at Fallen became one of the major theatres of Timbers alleviated temporarily but did notelimi- the War of 1812.With so few roads along its undeveloped shorelines the lake was necessarily a nate Indian confrontations.As the new symbol peaceful means major transportation route and lifelineto the of Indian leadership Tecumseh, by Lake regainIndian western forts and garrisons ofboth sides. ifatallpossible, ventured to which lands. Tecumseh's dream ran contrary toAmeri- Erie was also a ready made invasion route policies, which were to procure couldcutintothesoftunderbelly of either can governmental Therefore whoever con- more land for whitesettlement.With inherently Canada or the U.S. viewpoints Tecumseh and _William trolled Lake Erie possessed a tremendousstrategic conflicting maintained Henry Harrison, Governor of the newIndiana advantage. At the outset the British warships on the lake, whereas Territory, were frequently at loggerheads,and a small fleet of each new American grab for landinduced bitter the U.S. had but one small armed vessel. Prior to the war many Americans erro- acrimony.In the Spring of 1811 Tecumseh, on travels to recruit converts neously believed Canada secretly desiredassimil- one of his periodic of Britain's for his Indian confederacy, journeyedsouth.In ation by the U.S., and since most force a show- armed forces were involved in Europe,Canada his absence Harrison decided to Of the four Marching a small army to Tecumseh's was deemed ready tobe plucked. down. located village along the Tippecanoe Riverin western routes chosen to invade Canada two were 58 / Opening the Region to Prosperiry

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Figure 71.One cause of the war was impressment of American sailors. (Ohio HistoricalSociety) on Lakc Erie, one at either end.Thc dual in- their comrades stranded on the opposite bank. vasions of Upper Canada were designed to capture Of the roughly 1,000 regulars and militia that the British forts, Malden and Erie, whichcon- did cross almost all were killed or captured. trolledlake access, and also render southern General Alexander Smyth, with a brigade of Upper Canada defenseless.With Fort Malden 1,650 regulars at Buffalo, arbitrarily refused to and the Amherstburg Navy Yard as an objective, cooperate with Van Rennselear.At the end of General William Hull's army of 2,500 men, largely November, however, Smyth finally stirred, making Ohio Militia, marched north from Cincinnati and a move to capture Fort Erie by crossing thc up the western shore of the Lake to Detroit. Niagara with his regulars and more New York After a short campaign characterized by incredible Militia; complete mismanagement and confusion ineptitude and unbelievable blunders, Hullsur- compelled the landing to be aborted.The only rendered his entire army at Detroit to an inferior bright spots for America on Lake Erie in 1812 British force on August 16, 1812. were the capture of two British ships at Fort Operations at the eastern end of the lake Eric on October 8th by naval lieutenant Jesse fared no better. An army commanded by General Elliott, and the fact that a man named Daniel Stephen Van Rennsclacr began crossing the Nia- Dobbins commenced building a fleet of gunboats gara River below Oueenstori Heights on October atEric, Pennsylvania, to contest British naval 13, but after the fight was raging most of the supremacy of the lake. New York Militia, citizen soldiers as opposed to On the opposite side of the lake the small army regulars, refused to cross thc river, leaving force of British regulars and Canadian militia,

7 k) Opening the Region to Prosperity / 59

The under betterleadership,acquitted themselves George at the mouth of the Niagara River. creditably. Canada's greatest disaster was the fall of Fort George severed Fort Erie's supply death of Isaac Brock, Britain's most enterprising line, necessitating the abandonment of thelatter of general officerin Canada. Killed leading a fort, so that for awhile at least both banks charge at Queenston Heights, the loss of Brock's the Niagara were in American hands. The fallof indomitable leadership undeniably alteredthe Fort Erie also enabled Oliver Hazard Perry, course of the war along the northernfrontier. newly appointed commander of the infant Lake Seeming to make an inhuman war even Erie fleet, to transfer several small converted more brutal, the conflict alongLake Erie's north merchant ships from the previously blockaded shore took on all the aspects of virulentcivil Black Rock Naval Yard to Erie, Pennsylvania. war.In the years before the war large numbers Added to the six vessels constructed at Erie of people from the states emigrated to Canada, between November, 1812, and July, 1813, they consequentlyloyalties were uncertain. Both combined to furnish Perry a formidable fleet of sides recruited in the region with varied success, warships. In mid-August Perry sailed for Western and quasi-military units claiming allegiance to Lake Erie, choosing Put-In-Bay on South Bass either or neither side raided freely.In many Island as his base of operations.There was cases guerilla raids were simply excuses tosettle littlefor Perry to do afterwards except wait. old grudges under the guise of military expedi- The next move was up to the British. ence. Fear ran rampant and atrocitiesengendered further bitterness, precipitating even more sense- less violence.It was a problem unsettled during the course of the war, and deep scars remained for decades thereafter. The year 1813 began for the Americans the way 1812 ended, inauspiciously.Another invasion attempt along western Lake Erie resulied in yet another disastrous defeat.General James Win- chester was caught unaware at the River Raisin (Monroe, Michigan) on January 22nd, and only 33 men of an army of approximately950 escaped. Amplifying hatred between Indian and American was the massacre of 65 woundedprisoners by Figure 73.Massacre of captured Kentuckians at Potawatomies the day after the battle. Per- Frenchtown following the battle at petrated as retribution for the burning of Indian the River Raisin. (Ckments Lilyrwy, villages by American cavalry in late 1812, few Univenity of Mkhigan) Americans cared about the reason, only the dead. After the River Raisin episode General The British in the meantime had mounted a William Henry Harrison constructed Fort Meigs second invasion of northwestern Ohio inlate at the rapids of the Maumee as anadvanced July. A second attempt to capture Fort Meigs the first, and feeling base.Recognizing the fort as out on a limb the was no more successful than British elected to invade the U.S.; in late April their Indian allies would abandon their cause the British fleet debarked the army and artillery without some sort of victory, the British moved on the banks of the Maumeeand seige opera- on to what they felt was a moretractable target. tions were initiated.After holding out for a On August 1st the British forces surrounded Fort week American reinforcements arrived, and despite Stephenson (Fremont, Ohio). Thcre the obstinate more than half being killed orcaptured in a 21-year-old Major George Croghan and his small, pitched battle, enough managed to reach Fort heavily outnumbered garrison of U.S. infantry Mcigs to stave off capitulation; the British retired bloodily repulsed a determined bayonet charge, back to Fort Malden. forcing the British to once again retreat to Fort The fighting was not limited to the west Malden. end of the lake. On May 27, 1813, a joint Amer- Perry's appearance at Put-In-Bay created a ican army and navy operation captured Fort dilemma for thc British.With their fleet out- 60 / Opening the Region to Prosperity

Alit

'-V50; -

Figure 7.4.Perry's Victory on Lake Erie. (from an engraving by A. Lawson, after F. Birch) numbered and supply line along the lake cut off, Cleveland by Major Thomas Jessup,ferried they were left the option of either to fight,or Harrison's army from Camp Portage (Port Clin- abandon Fort Malden and the entire Detroit ton, Ohio) to the Canadian mainland. Having no region.There was really no choice; the British hope of a successful defense the British burned fleet appeared northwest of Put-In-Bay, and ina Fort Malden and the navy yard, and with their three hour duelPerry'sfleet of nine vessels Indianalliesretreated up the Thames River. overwhelmed andcapturedRobertHeriot Harrison followed and brought the British to bay Barclay's entire force of six ships.It was a just west of Moravian Town (near Thamesville, signalvictory with fortunate timing. Besides Ontario)ironically occupied by the same peaceful being a turning point of the War of 1812 in the Indians who had fled the U.S. seeking a place of Old Northwest, the victory occurred at a timc safety after Gnadenhutten. Harrison attacked. whcn Amcrica was becoming frustrated and dis- DemoralizedafterFort Stephenson and Lake enchanted with the war.Perry's decisive victory Eric, the British regulars surrendered after only bolstered American morale and provided the a shortfight. The Indians, however, stoutly necessary impetus to finish the struggle. resisted,fighting for thcir homeland and very For the first time in the war the lake was existence, until Tecumseh, physical and spiritual undisputedly American.Perry's ships, combined leaderoftheIndianmovement, waskilled. with afleetof smallinvasioncraftbuiltat After Tecumseh's death the Indians melted into Opening the Region to Prosperity / 61

The regular war on the Niagara frontier the woods, and for all intents and purposes, as On the third of that far as Lake Erie was concerned, fadedinto the resumed in July, 1814. oblivion of the history books. The Battle ofthe month General Winfield Scott led a strong Amer- time well Thames was another decisive Americanvictory, ican army across the Niagara, this and together with the Battle of LakeErie vir- trained and disciplined regulars. Two dayslater the tually ended the Wax 1812 in the Old Northwest. they defeated a British force of regulars at But eastern Lake Erie was still embroiledin Battle of Chippewa, and on July 25th the armies the conflict, and scorched earth became theunfor- fought each other to a bloody standstill in Battle of Lundy's Lane, near Niagara Falls.An tunate policy.After capturing Fort George in May the Americans met with several reverses American retreat to Fort Erie was followed up and the tempo stabilized, much of thefighting by the British, who laid seige to thefort.For and most of their troops eventually moving up six weeks the British doggedly maintainedtheir the St. Lawrence.Fort George was left gar- seige; one determined British assault was repulsed risoned by New York Militia, many of whose with heavy losses, an American counter-attack enlistments expired in early December, so natur- met with like results.On September 21st the ally they went home. With few men andfearing stultified British finally gave up and withdrew. hold a British attack, General GeorgeMcClure chose The Americans, after spending many lives to to abandon the fort and retreat acrossthe Nia- Fort Erie, decided they didn't want it afterall, and gara.In the early hours of December 10th he and on November 5th they mined the fort moved, but instead of burning Fort Georgeand retreated across the Niagara.The War of 1812 its supplies, McClure unaccountably set fire to on Lake Erie endedwith a big bang, the final the adjacent town of Newark, throwing thein- act making about as much sense asthe whole habitants, mostly women and children, out in the war. snow. The British, of course, retaliated.In the pre-dawn hours of December 18th British soldiers The aftermath of the War crossed the Niagara River, and ina surprise bayonet attack captured Fort Niagara.British The Treaty of Ghent was signed on Christ- and Indians moved quickly south behind ahasty mas Eve, 1814, bringingthe Canadian-American Ironically the major causes andrapidretreatofthe Americanmilitia. tragedy to an end. Lewiston, Youngstown, Manchester, and Fort forthe war weren'tevenaddressedinthe Schlosser were burned by the British; Black Rock treatythe fall of Napoleon had eliminated the and the navy yard, including two vesselsfrom economic sanctions and impressment problems, the Battle of Lake Erie, were burned; Buffalo and the Indian question was glossed over. As to was burned.Little remained of the east bank of the boundary, the treaty called for "status ante bellum," everything was to rcmain the same as theNiagarafrontierexceptfoundations and chimneys. before the war and all captured territory was to There was no improvement in 1814. In be returned.Over two years of bloodshed and mid-May a force of regulars and Pennsylvania absolutelynothingwasmateriallygained by militia boarded ships at Erie and sailed for Port either side.Typically, the only real losers were Dover. Sent to destroy military supplies, matters the Indians. somehow got out of hand; old scores and grudges Both sides also won. Canada emerged from needed to be settled, so private homes from Port the war with a newly discovered national pride, Dover to Long Point were looted and put to the having rebuffed annexation attempts by a country torch. To avoid inevitable British retaliation the withvastly supeTior material and population. Americans denounced the atrocities and court America displayed a newly won pride in its mili- rnartialed the American commander of the expe- tarydespite its early humiliations-after defeating dition.It was too late; the British were palpably the cream of the British army at Chippewa and outraged, and the Port Dover debacle culminated New Orleans, and also evinced a renewed con- in August with the burning of all public property fidence in its independence.For Lake Eric the episode in Washington, D.C. War of 1812 was the single most dramatic

4 t) 62 / Opening the Region to Prosperity in its human history.This war reached all the time consuming land route was invoked, or,if lake's nooks and crannies, impacted its future something needed to be shipped east from say development, left monuments to blood and hero- central Ohio, it was sometimes easier and faster ism along its shorelines, implanted bitterness over to ship it by the unbelievably roundabout route the brutalities and atrocities, and saw the birth of the Ohio am" Mississippi Rivers, and then of a peace that remains to this day. around via the i lac Ocean.If the situation Once begun the peace movement flourished. remained static Americans of the western lakes On April 16, 1818, the U.S. ratified the Rush- region would lose the competitive race because Bagot Agreement, a treaty between the U.S. and the St. Lawrence was available to their northern GreatBritainthatlimitednaval vessels and neighbors.The solution was well known, it had armaments on the Great Lakes.For the upper been bandied about for almost 100 years, but was lakes, including Lake Erie, it dictated no more just never tried. Canals! than two vessels for each country, not exceeding 100 tons and one 18-pound cannon.Although the terminology is archaic, the provisions of the The Erie Canal treaty are still in effect.Many first had to die, but a lesson was learned, the hard way. Ever As early as 1724 Cadwallader Co !den of since the War of 1812 the U.S., Canada, and New York City espoused thefeasibilityof a Great Britain have settled their differences peace- water route to Lake Erie via the rivers of central fully through a process of disarmament, arbitra- New York state. George Washington brooked the tion, and negotiation. subject in 1783, as did George Clinton in 1791 and General Philip Schuyler in 1797. New York even passed a resolution in 1810 to examine a Opening the region route from the Hudson River to Lake Erie, but to prosperity action was interrupted by the War of1812. Difficulty in moving supplies during the war only The end of the war also marked a new era reinforced the need for an easier route, and at of prosperity on Lake Erie.With the threat of war's end enthusiasm for the project grew. violence removed settlers flowed into all corners Due in no small partto theeffortsof of the lakeshore, isolated cabins became villages, DeWitt Clinton, New York finally appointed a villages became towns, and towns became cities. canal commission and appropriated funds. Work Industries developed, the land was worked, and began on July 4, 1817, in Rome, New York, and the bounty of the lake was harvested; commerce over the next eight years a canal was builtin thrived and Lake Erie became one of the hubs of three major sections.During construction of the that commerce. western section a controversy arose over where Helping to mark the beginning of this new the terminus should be located. Black Rock era was the appearance on Lake Erie of a com- argued it already had the necessary facilities and pletely new type of vessel, the steamboat.Built establishedtrade, but Black Rock was three at Black Rock, N.Y., the Walk-in-the-Water sailed miles down the Niagara River from Lake Erie, on her maiden voyage on August 23, 1818, creat- and manually dragging vessels against the current ing a sensation wherever she put in.Lost in a was an onerous task; even steamboats had dif- storm only three years later,the Walk-in-the- ficulty. In the end Buffalo won after agreeing Water was nevertheless a precursor of the tre- to dredge its harbor, and from that time forward mendous volume of commercial traffic that would was assured of becoming a major economic center. appear in just a few short years. Completed on October 25, 1825, the Eric Canal New technology was appearing, the economy was 363 miles long from Buffalo to the Hudson of thc lake region was growing and exports were River, consisted of 83 locks, and cost $7,600,000 increasing.The only problem now was getting to build.The canal proved to be a "sluice of these goods to their destination. No easy trans- wealth," and was not only an export route for portation route existed once the eastern end of lake products, but also a gateway for settlers Lake Erie was reached; either a laborious and and manufactured goods entering the lake region. Opening the Region to Prosperity / 63

Figure 7.5.Canals in Ohio. (Ohio Historical Society)

A spurt of canal building Mile Creek up the Niagara escarpment, a channel connected the canal with the Chippewa River, The Erie Canal was just the beginning of a which ranintothe Niagara above thefalls. canal building craze which kept the lake region From there vessels had to be towed up to the busy for decades.In 1821 Canada passed an act lake.The Welland Canal opened on November for the improvement of internal navigation, and 27, 1829, two vessels passing that day from Lake under its provisions a commission was formed to Ontario to Buffalo, New York.Work on the explore afeasible route for a canal between canal continued, however, since it was desirable Lakes Eric and Ontario. Formed in 1824 was the to eliminate the difficult stretch on the Niagara Welland Canal Company, and through its efforts River, and four years later it was at last finished, work began a yearlater. StartingatPort with the Lake Eric terminus locatedat Port Dalhousie on Lake Ontario and following Twelve Colbourne, Ontario. The 150-year battle with the 64 / Opening the Region to Prosperity

Niagara River, beginning with LaSalle in 1679, other two main canals, and they served practically was finally won. Improvements on the canal every major population center in the state. continued with new sections dug and oldones The canal obsession was in full swing when deepened or widened, until eventually it became Indiana decided to join the bandwagon.Begun the 28-mile-long Welland Ship Canal of thepres- in 1836 was the Wabash-Erie Canal, which when ent day. finally completed connected the Ohio River with Before the Erie Canal opened, and even Lake Eric from Evansville, Indiana, to Toledo, before the Welland Canal was started, Ohio also Ohio, stretching a total of 460 miles and adjoin- joined in the act.Feeling the economy of the ing the Miami-Erie Canal at Defiance, Ohio. state was dependent on a good canal system, A canal marrying Lake Erie to the Ohio Ohio formed a canal commission in 1822 and River was also dug inwestern Pennsylvania. hired an engineer to study prospective routes. Stretching from Erie, Pennsylvania, down the The Commission aimed towards connecting Lake Beaver River, the canal hitched up with the Ohio Erie with the canals, by the state's river system. River at Beaver, Pennsylvania, a few river miles Three different routes were initially studied:an below Pittsburgh.This latter canal also had a easternroutejoiningtheCuyahogaand feeder canal connectingitwith the Ohio-Erie Muskingum Rivers, a central canal linking the Canal at Akron. A veritable spiderweb of canals Sandusky and Scioto Rivers, and a western route now laced the entire midwest. connecting the Maumee and Miami Rivers. This complex system of inland waterways Work on the Ohio-Erie Canal, the former of was practically completed by 1847, and the con- the three, began on July 4, 1825, near Newark, tribution it made to the development of the Lake the groundbreaking ceremony presidedover by Erie region is incalculable.Jobs and immigrants none other than DeWitt Clinton, along with Ohio were brought in, the shipment of all types of Governor Jeremiah Morrow. A similar ceremony, agricultural and industrial goods was made rela- attended by the same two individuals, wasper- tively cheap and simple, and places like Toledo, formed a few weeks later for the groundbreaking once ramshackle collections of crude huts, were of the Miami-iErie canal at Middletown.The turned into major port cities and economic giants. original concept of three canals was modified; Unfortunately, by the time the systemwas com- instead of a separate canal the Scioto River pleteditwas already obsolescent. Railroads would be joined to the Ohio-Eric Canal, thus were pushing into Ohio by the 1830's and while eliminating completely the Sandusky tic-in. the canals prospered for awhile, they were unable Progress on the Ohio-Erie Canal was rapid, to compete with the burgeoning railway system. much of the work being performed by Irishmen By the onset of the Civil War the canals, with from the Mohawk Valley of New York, thesame the exception of the Erie and Welland Canals, hardy individuals who labored on the Erie Canal. were in a steady decline from which they could Hundreds of jobs were generated and immigrants never hope to recover. poured into northcentral Ohio. The path of the canal exuded prosperity.Unfortunately the route of the canal was also lined with the graves of Sickness and conflict hundreds who died from fever during its construction.Completed in 1833, the Ohio-Erie Canal Lake Erie was passing into a newage, but linked Cleveland with the Ohio River at both even so it could not be rid of all its old world Portsmouth and Marietta, and the port cities at troubles. In the Spring of 1832 cholera was either end thrived. detected in Quebec, and before long thepes- At the other end of the state it was the tilence spread to Albany and Buffalo.It swept southei n part of the Miami-Eric Canal, thesec- along the banks of Lake Eric and continued tion which served Cincinnati, that was excavated westward,leaving atrailof death. Cholera first, and it was not until 1845 that the entire cemeteries like the one in Sanduskystilldot canal, its northern terminus at Toledo, was fin- Lake Erie's shores. Mostly forgotten and ignored, ished.Eventually several feeder canals were dug they remain as pitiful reminders of the heartbreak connecting with each, but not to each, of thc and misery suffered by our forefathers. Opening the Region to Prosperity / 65

The OhioMichigan border dispute buck, turning the matter over to Congress.The latter devised a surprisingly sagacious compromise, No sooner had the cholera epidemic ebbed rendering a decision in favor of the three lower when a full-fledged border dispute erupted be- states and territories, and compensatingMichigan tween Ohio and Michigan; the "Toledo War" was by allowing that territory to claim the Upper boundaries whenitwas on. The debate could be traced all the way Peninsula withinits back to the Ordinance of 1787, which stipulated admitted to the Union on January 26, 1837. the boundary between any northern and southern states in the Northwest Territory to lie on a line perpendicular with the southern tip of Lake Rebellion in Canada Michigan.Both the Ohio Enabling Act of 1802 and the act forming the Michigan Territory in No sooner had one crisis been averted at 1805 conceded this line, and only Congress had the southwestern end of the lake than another the authority to change it.The Ohio Constitu- erupted along its northern border. When it came tended tionalConvention,fearing the neveractually to governing its colonies England's policies surveyed line might be much further south than to be self-serving and somewhat lessthan far- first anticipated, arbitrarily transposed the boun- sightedCanada was no exception.The Act of dary and drew it perpendicular to the northern 1791 had divided Canada into two provinces, cape of the Maumee River; Congjessdidn't react Lower and Upper Canada, the former comprising one way or the other.In 1817 Ohio surveyed mostly French speaking inhabitants and the latter and marked the boundary according to its con- English. Naturally the national, religious, and stitutionalmandate. Michigan objected, but political differences inherent in any such division nothing was done at the time. were bound to cause problems,mostly in Lower The affair simmered until 1835.In that Canada since Upper Canada was more closely year Michigan was lobbying forstatehood, and to attuned culturally to the home government in clear up the dispute Michigan offered a com- England. Inevitably English influence wormed its promise to Ohio Governor Robert Lucas; Lucas way into Lower Canada's Frenchdominated cul- turned it down, and Michigan geared up to pre- ture and compounded the problem. UpperCana- vent Ohio from stealing its land.Both sides da, however, was not immune from the meddling passed laws establishing jurisdiction in the same English or their governmental system of aris- area, and both leveled stiffpenalties for inter- tocratic rule.After the War of 1812 Lower ference withofficialsinthe performance of Canada's own aristocracy monopolized its bureau- their duties in that area.Ohio even went so far cratic system, and this "Family Compact" ruled as to organize Lucas Countywithin the disputed exclusively with an iron hand, closely tied to the area and form a common pleas court atToledo. mother country.One of the major causes of Fanning the flames was Toledo itself, in compe- dissention was the distribution of land. The tition at this time for the Lake Erie terminus of Family Compact, in concert with the Church of the Miami-Erie Canal, thereby injecting serious England, controlled huge tracts of land under the economic implications into the feud.Tensions guise of Clergy Reserves; favoritism and nepotism rode so high that Ohio and Michigan Militia abounded in parcelling out this land, and im- were called out to protect individualinterests. migrants from the United States were not even The politically astute Governor Lucas finally allowed the right to own land.Press censorship, played his ace. Sending a deputation to Washing- restricted educational policies, and persecution of ton to remind Andrew Jackson that 1836 was an dissenters further fueled the flames of discord. election year, he pointed out that Indiana and Open rebellion cane in 1837. Although both Illinois would also lose territory if Michigan won Upper and Lower Canada rose almost simultan- a dccision, making itclear to Jackson that his eously, the two movements were quite distinct popularity in the affected states of Ohio, Indiana, and separate owing to individual grievances.In and Illinois would be seriously eroded, not to Lower CanadatheegotisticalLouisJoseph mentionthelossofcriticalJectoralvotes. Papineau, with a small band of followers, struck That was enough for Jackson.Disclaiming any the first blow at Montreal on November 6th. He fealty towards individuals or states he passed the was easily crushed.In Upper Canada itwas 66 / Opening the Region w Prosperity

extremist William Lyon Mackenzie who, after blocked any further attempts to reinforce the founding a Committee of Vigilance, issueda island. Isolated and helpless, Mackenzie and Van proclamation of independence on Nov.3mber 11th. Rennselaer abandoned Navy Island on January Attempting to capture Toronto on December 7th, 14th, 1838.Both leaders were eventually caught Mackenzie's ill-conceived and ill-prepared sally and arrested, tried for violations of the neutrality wasrapidlyquashed. BothPapineauand laws, and sentenced to short prison terms. Mackenzie fled to the United States to continue Mackenzie failed, but the rebellion was far their quests. from over.Active operations just shifted west- In the U.S. both revolutionaries found sym- ward. Republicans held a public meeting at pathetic elements among the populace by preach- Dctroit on January1,1838,resulting inthe ing the popular topic of rebellion against England. formation of the Patriot Army of the Northwest, At Buffalo Mackenzie called a public meeting and a small, ragged group of volunteers. What ensued gained wide support for his cause aftcr a speech turned into a farce; attempts at organizing and denouncing English tyranny.Hundreds pledged equipping the force were complicated by the Mackenzietheirsupport,butas most often ambivalent Governor of Michigan and frustrated occurred during this uprising, promised support by the U.S. Army, and when sixty volunteers did farexceededactualparticipation. Evenso, manage to seize Bois Blanc Island, the foray Mackenzie, with a small party of volunteers collapsed when their supply vessel, the schooner commanded by Rennselaer Van Rennselaer, son Anne, was ineptly handled and captured by Cana- and grandson of War of 1812 generals, seized a dian Militia. number of weapons and promptly grabbed Navy The revolutionaries regrouped, schemed, and Island. There, on December 13th, Mackenzie set organized a series of attacks to coincide with up his Provisional Government of Canada. Washington's birthday, 1838. The firstaction Sympathy for these so-called patriots ran occurred at Fighting Island, several miles below high; supplies and more volunteers weresoon Detroit, on February 25th.Approximately 400 forthcoming. To transport both men and supplies poorly equipped and equally poorly led volunteers to Navy Island the schooner Caroline was pressed were easily defeated by British troops and Cana- intoservice. Flying the American flag,the dian Militia.The second thrust, scheduled to Caroline shuttled from Buffalo to Schlosser to seize Fort Henry at Kingston, Ontario, fizzled Navy Island, mooring at Schlosser on the night when itsleadersfellto bickering.The most of December 28th.On the west bank of the significant attack occurred in early March. A Niagara the Caroline's movements had not passed substantial force of volunteers from Canada, New unobserved.In the early morning hours of the York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Michigan seized 29th a cutting out party of British troops and Canadian owned Pelee Island, largest of western militia boarded the Caroline, killed a number of Lake Erie's archipelago. Discovering the invasion, her crew, and set the blazing hull adrift.The a mixed group of British Regulars and Canadian action was subsequently approved by the British Militia crossed the ice, stormed the island, and government, even though the Caroline's masthead after a sharp and bloody skirmish compelled the flew the American flag.Washington's response volunteers toretreatto Sandusky, where the was to send General Winfield Scott to the Niagara latter were disarmed and disbanded by Ohio frontier with American troops, an action which Militia. Two more attempts to cross the border, induced the British in Canada to begin gearing one at Lewistown, New York, in June and the upAmerica and England were once again on the other at Detroit in July, were equally unsuccess- brink of war. ful. In the meantime more volunteers and sup- After thesedismal,disorganizedfailures, plies were rushed to Navy Island.All for nought revolutionaryactivitiesconcentratedinan or- as it turned out; Mackenzie's dreams and designs ganization known as the Hunters, a society of for an independent Canada based on the American lodges founded specifically for the purpose of political system were doomed to failure.British sustaining the rebellion.Reportedly the lodges troops and Canadian Militia at Chippewa heavily contained thousands of members in states border- outnumbered Van Rensselaer's small force on ing Canada, and in September, 1838, a convention Navy Island, and Scott, on arrivalatBuffalo, of Hunter Lodges was held in Cleveland.Em- Opening the Region to Prosperity / 67 bodied at the convention was a republican gov- simply obeying orders. Incredibly,the U.S. ernment for Upper Canada, andinvasion plans Government could find no legal means of super- were hammered out to place the new government seding New York's jurisdiction over the case; in power.The Hunters moved on the night of federal courts were thus impotent in dealing with November 11th, crossing the St. Lawrence River what was clearly a delicate case of international at Ogdensburg, New York, with theintention of law.The question of McLeod's release spiraled capturing Fort Wellington at Prescott, Ontario. all the way to the New York Supreme Court, Discovered by an alert guard the attack on the which after lengthy deliberations ruled that Mc fort was thwarted, but the Hunters persisted, Leod killed at least one of the Caroline's crew, capturing instead a strong stone mill.Of the nevertheless, he was acquitted; it was ironic that 1,000 men originally slated to participateonly political expediency apparently abrogated justice 200 actually crossed the river;their numbers for the sake of peace. Not surprisingly Congress were small and their methodsprobably misguided, subsequently passed a law consigning any such but the hardy little band put up a stoutresis- future cases to federal jurisdiction. War fever abated when the McLeod affair tance.The end result, though, was a forgone conclusion, and the stalwart mill defenders were was settled, even though theHunters continued Border tension was further crushed by British troops. to foment revolt. The following month the die-hard Hunters defused when the governor of Upper Canada was Then the threat struck again. Two companies crossed theDetroit at last replaced with a liberal. River on December 4th and managed to burn a from the Hunters evaporated when theirlast few buildings and a steamer moored at Windsor. invasion plan collapsed, as no men could be British troops rushed from Fort Malden killed or enticed to face the strengthened British forcein captured 71 of the invaders, ending once andfor Canada. The rebellion's denouement occurred on all large scale operations by the Hunters. August 9, 1842.Negotiations between Secretary The border settled down after the Hunters' of State Daniel Webster and Lord Ashburtonhad last debacle at Windsor. The Hunters' andPatriot concluded with thesigning of the Webster- armies' lack of success was due in no small part Ashburton Treaty at Washington, D.C., returning to the efforts of Winfield Scott andthe U.S. peace and prosperity once more tothe Lake Erie Army. Though unable to completely prevent region. armed incursions, the army did yeoman servicein baffling and foiling the revolutionaries' attempts to arm and equip.After all, the governments Development of Lake Transportation themselves did not want war, even ifcertain factions on either side of the border werestriv- By the mid-1840s the frontiersmen, like the ing to instigate justthat. To keep the pot Indians before them, had quietly faded into the boiling the Hunters resorted to terrortactics, imaginations of children.The shores of Lake venturing to blow up Isaac Brock's monument on Erie were now civilized; new technology replaced Queenston Heights in April, 1840 andattempting time honored methods and archaic materials. to sabotage the WellandCanal in September, The firstpropeller driven vesselan invention perfected by John Ericsson,designer of the 1841.For all intents and purposes, though,the fight had reverted to thepolitical and legal U.S.S. Monitor of Civil War fameappeared on arena, the threat of warhinging on the case of Lake Erie in1842, and the U.S. Navy's first vessel constructed entirely of iron, the gunboat one man, Alexander McLeod. McLeod was a member of the boarding Michigan, was launched at Erie in 1843. A sys- party that captured and burnedthe steamer tem of lighthouses was springing up toassist and Caroline, and he boasted afterward ofkilling one guide ever increasing merchant fleets to move of every imaginable of her crew.When McLeod foolishly crossed everincreasing tonnage into Ncw York in November, 1840, he was,of cargo. Canals and railroads were being com- course, immediately arrestedand indictedfor pleted, business was booming; Lake Eric was rapidly developing into a major artery for travel murder. The British government demanded McLeod's release, insisting he was actingunder and trade, the auspices of His Majesty's serviceand was 68 / Opening the Region to Prosperity

and Lake Erie was assimilated as an integral cog in the national maritime wheel.

4_41- The Underground Railroad

Politics, in this instance, produccd a favorable solution for the harbors of Lake Erie, but another political development was amassing a threatening storm cloud which loomed on the horizon of the entirecountry; the issue was slavery.The first thunder was a by-product of onlya few ardentabolitionists,theirdistant Figure 7.6.U.S.S. Michigan.(Erie County His- peals barely heard and the dark clouds low in torical Society the sky.Lightning flashed with the Great Com- promise of 1850, and one particular aspect of the Thc potential for continued growth on Lake Compromisegeneratedextraelectricity,the Eric suffered a major setback in 1846.Recently ;Fugitive Slave Law. Prior to the law most north- introduced and passed by Congress was the Rivers erners wererelativelyambivalent toward the and Harbors Bill, designed to appropriate funds institution of slavery; it was a vaguely unpleasant for needed improvements in port cities.Well business that somehow didn't seem quite right, over $150,000 was slated for Buffalo, Erie, Ash- butit was a remote nuisance isolatedin the tabula, Cleveland, Huron, Sandusky, River Raisin, distant southern states.Slavery had little effect and Detroit; the Bill even carried a proviso for a on their lives and average Northerners prided Lake Erie dredge boat.President James Polk themselves on minding their own business. Slaves vetoed the Bill.Polk was of the opinion that had, of course, been escaping to Canada for benefits derived from such legislation would be many years, and this desire for freedom from felt only on the local level, and that projects enslavement was something northerners could lacking national significance should therefore not easily understand. They were sympathetic, but it be funded by the government.Clearly Polk did was nothing to get excited about and certainly not comprehend the fundamental import of the not justification to interfere with Southern inter- inland water-borne transportation routes or thcir nal affairs. potential to the future of the country, and his The Fugitive Slave Law changed allthat. shortsighted attitude aroused widespread anger The thought of slave catchers roaming the north and indignation. So aroused was the Great Lakes was loathsome, the thought of free Blacks in the region that a Rivers and Harbors Convention was north being abducted back into slavery on the held in Chicago in the summer of 1847, attracting flimsiestofpretexts was abhorrent, and the over 2,300 delegates fromatleast19 states. thought of being fined or jailedforhelping Some of the most influential men in the country someone escape human bondage was odious. attended, including a lanky representative from Most objectionable was the fact that the Fugitive Sangamon County,Illinois,by the name of Slave Law repudiated a fundamental dictum of Abraham Lincoln, and a number of resolutions the U.S. Constitution; when caught in the North were adopted.Essentially the resolutions urged slaves were denied the basic right to trial by that the nation's lakes and rivers be accorded jury.Backfire is what the law actually did.It the samc considerations as the oceans whcn spurred northerners to help slaves escape rather pertaining to commerce, safety and defense. The than to assist in returning them, and it placed governmentcouldn'tpossiblyignore such an slavery in the forcfront of the political arena. outpouring of national sentiment, and funds were Law or no, slaves would continue to flee. soon forthcoming.Ever afterward the national The easiest path to freedom for a slave was significance of the lakes was not underestimated, escape from thc United States, the simplest way Opening the Region to Prosperity / 69

into Canada, and Ontario, and when a spur connectedDetroit it to escape the U.S. was to cross Then in 1857 the shortest and quickest means of egressto was cause for greatcelebration. cable linked Windsor Canada was via Lake Erie.Slaves migrated to an underwater telegraph freedom via what became known over the years and Detroit. An unmistakable sign ofimproving railroad, and every port on relations was the recall of British troopsfrom as the underground The fort itself was con- the north shore of Lake Erie became aterminus Fort Malden in 1851. Generating of the railroad.Safehouses, or railroad stations, verted to a lunatic asylum in 1859. and tremendous enthusiasm in 1860 was the tourof dotted the tracks, fmanced by abolitionists including manned by Quakers, other religious sects, orjust Edward, Prince of Wales, his excursion Invisibletracks of the visitstocitieson both sidesof Lake Erie. plain humanitarians. in railroad crisscrossed Ohio, Pennsylvania, eastern Tranquility characterized the northern border Two of the 1861. Michigan, and western New York. The outbreak of the Civil War negated most populardestinationswere Buffalo and freedom. much of this harmony, and old tensionsquickly Detroit, a veritable stone's throw from Canada understandably did not look Other popular stations were the portcities that returned. lined the southern shores of Lake Erie.Seldom kindly upon thousands of soldiers mobilizing near did steamers undertake voyages toBuffalo or her borders.The fear of invasion was in many Detroit without first stopping at FortErie or minds.In May, 1861, Queen Victoria issued a making England's Fort Malden, and vessels with a Canadiandestin- Proclamationof Neutrality, andBritish ation were almost guaranteed to havefrightened intentclear;nevertheless,arms but exultant passengers whose lives wereabout regulars were hurriedacross the Atlantic to A secret study to take a sudden upswing.Steamers like the strengthen Canadian garrisons. Arrow and Morning Star even gained acertain was undertaken byBritain's military to inves- Lake notorious reputation as abolitionist ships.The tigate the feasibility of placing warships on seizure run of the undergroundrailroad is an inspiring Erie and how best to prevent American their own of the Welland Canal. Some Americansactually story of people risking reputations and such freedom to help defeat repression, a forerunner hoped for war with Great Britain, feeling Through an eventuality mightreunite the divided nation. of the modern human rights movement. all too the efforts of a few hundred altruistic andself- That predilection for war was brought less samaritans uncounted thousands ofslaves close by the indiscretion of one headstrong man. gained their liberty in Canada, and LakeErie, On November 6th, 1861, CharlesWilkes, Jacinto, for a vast number of those slaves, wasthe road impulsive commander of the US.S. San stopped the British mailship Trent on thehigh to freedom. seas and forcibly removed twoConfederate diplomatic commissioners on their way toLondon. The Civil War Enraged British citizens clamored for warand a provoked British government demanded redress Slavery, however, was but one of the hot and a full apology.Canadian volunteers poured Canada, who potatoes legislators juggled in thepolitical forum. into help the British troops in Combined with the headier issue of states' rights, were placed on a footingand massed at strategic Hamilton,and and the impassioned temperament of theperiod, citieslikeToronto,Kingston, London to counterattack any invasion attempt. itwas inevitable that the stormcloud of war incredulous would eventually climb over the horizon.The Some hotheads in America, in an search and tempest burst on April 12, 1861. turnabout from the War of 1812, felt the Enmeshed in an internecine Civil War, the seizure of foreign vessels their right under predica- circumstances, and argued for war with Great U.S. was too preoccupied with its own One small ment to comprehend the apprehensionthis conflict Britain. The outlook was bleak. engendered on its northern border.Relations mistake atthis stage and the U.S. would be between the U.S. and Canada were for the most inextricably embroiled in a two-front war. part harmonious in the decadepreceding the Fortunately the pragmatic hand of Abraham Understanding the American Civil War.In late 1853 the Great Lincoln took a firm grip. Western Railroad was completed acrosslower U.S. could not possibly survive asimultaneous 70 / Opening the Region to Prosperity confrontation with a formidable Great Britain would be one of the remote Lake Erie islands, a and an upstart Confederacy, Lincoln issued a sanctum which would seriously impede any escape formal apology and returned the Confederate attempt.Hoffman rapidly ruled out both North commissioners,denouncingthe SanJacinto's and Middle Bass Islands as too near the Canadian actions in the process.Great Britain's Secretary border, and South Bass and Kelley's Islands were of State for War appreciated Lincoln's dilemma, eliminated from competition because of their stating the U.S. would have to be insane to vineyards and wineries, too great a temptation challenge the greatest maritime nation in the for even disciplined guards.Eventually selected world while righting its own bloody Civil War. was Johnson's Island, inside Sandusky Bay and Tempers along the northern border cooled, just south of Marblehead Peninsula.By mid- buttensionwasn'ttotallyeliminated. Once November half the island's 300 acres were leased again, because of their proximity to Canada, by the government, and over thenextfour Detroit and Buffalo became popular, this time as months thirteen large barracks and dozens of a means of escape for Union deserters and draft smaller support structures were constructed.By dodgers across the border after conscription was April, 1862, the prison was ready; on thc 11th of instituted in 1863.Another sore point was that that month the first consignment of 200 Con- both North and South, desperate for professional federate prisoners arrived. soldiers, recruited among British units in Canada, offering large sums of money in some cases, or encouraging desertioninothers. Also,large numbers of Northern and Southern spies roamed freely in Canada, their bungling, maladroit incom- petence an embarrassment to everyone.All in all there were enough incidents to keep nerves frazzled, but war between the U.S. and Canada never came closer than it had during the Trent affair. Negative aspects are all too frequently emphasized,whileoftenforgottenandlittle heralded are the countless Canadians who enlisted and fought in the Northern armies during the Civil War, men who suffered and died to preserve a greater United States. Other than the occasional border incident, Lake Erie was a backwater of the Civil War. Tens of thousands of men from her shores enlisted in the Union armies, donned their blue uniforms,andmarchedintothemaelstrom, thousands never to return, victims of a fratri- cidal slaughter that rapidly degenerated into a savage contest of attrition.The bones of Lake Erie's best young men populated the battlefield Figure 7.7.Johnson's Island, site of Confederate cemeteries of the South. prison. (photo by Vic Mayer) Inevitably the war had to come to the Lake in one form or another, over and above the Over the next three years more than 25,000 constant flood of telegrams from the War Depart- prisoners unhappily passed through the portals of ment to soon to be grieving mothers. Both sides Johnson's Island.For the most part they were were totally unprepared to cope with vast num- rebel officers, hut included also were enlisted bers of prisoners of war.To expand its prison men, Union deserters and a few political prison- system the U.S. Government ordered Lieutenant ers.To this day 206 of them remain there. Colonel William Hoffman, Commissary General of During pcak months of operation between 2,500 Prisoners, to western Lake Erie in October, 1861, and 3,000 prisoners were incarcerated at any one to investigatesites fora new prison. Ideal time.Several escapes and escape attempts took Opening the Region to Prosperity / 71 place, keeping the guards on theirtoes, and stood away from Middle Bass with the Island rumors of at least two majorraids to release Queen in tow, the latter's passengers and crew prisoners in masse precipitated the movementof marooned on Middle Bass Island.Determined troops and artillery in and out of theSandusky though Beall was to carry out the original plan, area. A third rumored attempt, no rumorat all, it was not to be.As the Philo Parsons again proved to be a bizarrelittleincident known neared Sandusky Bay something misfiredahint today as the Lake Erie Conspiracy, thelake's of danger, a signal from shore not received most exciting moment of the war. exactly what isn't known; for some reason or As the steamer Philo Parsons was about to other the new masters of the Philo Parsons lost depart Detroit on September 19, 1864, for its their nerve.Shortly after midnight the Island usual run to he Lake Erie Islands, it was bearded Queen was set adrift and scuttled, and the Philo by a number of quiet, pensive men. A stop at Parsons steered a course for the Detroit River. Malden produced a similar group of passengers. The next morning the would-be liberators fled The regular stops at the three Bass Islands passed into Canada. uneventfully and the Philo Parsons steamed over The "what ifs?" in this case are really not Three days prior to the Philo to Kelley's Island.Shortly after leaving Kelley's that compelling. at 4: )0 p.m. the first mate, calledaside by a Parsons takeover a Confederate deserter informed bearded passenger, was surprised to find a pistol the military commander at Detroit of the planned stuck under his nose.Within the next few min- coup.The army officer discreetly inspected the utes John Yates Beall, an officer inthe Con- vessel and deemed it too insignificant to pose a federate Navy, along with his band of 30 men, scrious threat.To be on the safejiT,though, commandeered the ship.By 5.00 p.m. the small he did telegraph the intelligence to Sandusky, so steamer was approaching SanduskyBay. Thc both forts on Johnson's Island plus the gunboat conspirators could see the U.S. Navy gunboat herself were ready and waiting.Beall wouldn't Michigan anchored by Johnson's Island. The have stood a chance. plan was to board and capture the Michigan and Cole was rooted out and captured soon then release over 2,500 prisoners onto the Ohio after the telegraph message was received.Tried mainland. for conspiracy, he served two years in prison, The conspiracy was the brainchild of Jacob part of it on Johnson's Island itself.Beall was Thompson, former Governor of Mississippi, Secre- later captured aftera sabotage attempt near taryof theInteriorunderPresident James Niagara Falls.Tried for piracy, there would be Buchanan, and currently principal Confederate no exculpation for JohnYates Beall: he was agent in Montreal.After devising the scheme executed at Governor's Island, New York, on Thompson appointed Charles F. Cole, another March 24, 1865. Southern naval officer, to enact it.Cole regis- The Civil War came to an end on April 9, tered at a Sandusky hotel in October, where he 1865, and a stream of weary soldiers returned was joined by Beall.Together they conducted home. A populace sick and tired of depressingly surveillance of the island and concocted a plan. lengthy casualty lists was ready for peace.But Cole would remain at Sandusky while Beall per- on Lake Erie peacewould he slightly delayed. existed among Irish formed the actual deed. Anti-Britishfeelingsstill Up until the time Beall spotted the Michigan factions in both America and Canada. Agitators the plan worked perfectly, but thenitwent organized armed squads along the border to raid Once again Canadian Militia and haywire. Beall discovered the Philo Parsons into Canada. carried too little fuel for his intended high speed British troops, mobilized and stationed at strategic escape run to Canada, so he opted toreturn to locations, were poised to repel invasion. After a Middle Base to tep off the fuel bunke-s.At few scares the U.S. Government decided totake Middle Bass the conspirators encountered the a hand.Federal troops sent to the border re- steamer Island Queen, and having no meansof gions quickly suppressed the Fenian elements. avoiding the inevitable questions, they executed By late Fall, 1865, peace settled into the Lake a swashbuckling attack andoverwhelmed that Erie region, this time to stay. hapless vessel.The Philo Parsons refuelled and

' t) 72 / Opening the Region to Prosperity

Conclusion Gilpin, Alec. 1970. The History of Michigan, 1805-1837. East Lansing: Michigan State For a period of 200 years nations conducted University Press. theirintrigues, fought their wars, and buried Greenman, Emerson F.1961. The Indians of their dead, all for the sake of flying a flag over Michigan. Ann Arbor, Mich.: Michigan Lake Erie.In the end the original occupants, if Historical Commission. not forgotten, are long gone, and the lake itself Hatcher, Harlan.1945. Lake Erie. New York: divided, half Canadian and half American.For The Bobbs-Merrill Company. 200 years the lake sounded with the crash of Havighurst, Walter.1962.The Heartland: Ohio, gunfire-no more. Today there are no warships, Indiana,Illinois,1673-1860. New York: no forts, and no troops waiting to invade or be Harper & Row, Publishers. invaded.The road has not always been without Hitsman, J. Mackay. 1968. Safeguarding Canada, potholes. On different occasions there were 1763-1871. Toronto: University Toronto some very closecalls,but in the end cooler Press. heads have prevailed.Wars are now conducted Knapp, H.S. 1877, History of the Maumee Valky. at the negotiating table and battles are fought Toledo: H.S. Knapp. with words. Canada and American have learned Lajeunesse, Ernest J. (ed.).1960.The Windsor to share the lake in harmony. Lake Erie lives in Border Region,1960. Toronto: University peace! of Toronto Press. Mansfield, J.B. 1972. History of the Great Lakes. Cleveland: Freshwater Press. 2 References Vas. McInnis, Edgar W. 1942.The Unguarded Fron- Addison, L.G. 1888. The Ohio Boundary, or The tier. New York: Doubleday, Doran & Com- Erie War. Ohio Archaeological and Histor- pany, Inc. ical Society Publications, Vol. II, pp. 340- Morrison, Neil F. 1954. Garden Gateway to 344. Columbus. Canada, One Hundred Years of Hindsor and Berton, Pierre.1981. Flames Across The Border. Essex County,1854-1954. Toronto: The Boston: Little, Brown & Company. Ryerson Press. Berton, Pierre.1980.The Invasion of Canada. Nevins, Allen.1947. A House Dividing 1852- Boston: Little, Brown & Company. 1857.New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. Bond, Beverly W. Jr.1970.The Civilization of Ordeal of the Union, Volume II. the Old Northwest.Freeport, N.Y.: Books Nevins, Allen.1947.Fruits of Manifest Destiny, for Libraries Press. 1847-1852. New York: Charles Scribner's Botsford, David P.1985. At The End Of The Sons. Ordeal of the Union, Volume I. Trail. Windsor: Windsor Print & Litho Ltd. Porter, Admiral David D. 1970. The Naval Botsford, David P., et al.1947.Essex County History of the Civil War.Glendale, N.Y.: Sketches.Windsor: Essex County Ontario Benchmark Publication Corporation. Tourist Assn. Roosevelt, Theodore. 18%. The Winning of the Browne, George W. 1905. The St. Lawrence West. New York: P.F. Collier & Son, Pub- River. New York: Weather-cross Books. lishers. Executive Edition, 4 Vols. Callahan, J.M. 1896. The Northern Lake Frontier Roseboom, Eugene H. & Weisenburger, Francis P. During the Civil War. New York: American 1976. A History of Ohio. Columbus: Ohio Historical Association. Historical Society. Dobbhis, Daniel 1905. Lie Dobbins Paper. Rosenberg, Max.1968.The Building of Perry's Publications of the Buffalo Historical Socie- Fleet on Lake Erie, 1812-1813.Harrisburg: ty, Vol. VIII, pp. 283-379, Buffalo. Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commis- Frohman, Charles E. 1975. Rebels On Lake sion. Erie. Columbus: Ohio Historical Society. Rya 11, Lydia.1913.Sketches and Stories of the Gilpin, Alec.1968. The War of 1812 in the Old Lake Eric Islands. Norwalk, Oh.: The Amer- Northwest. East Lansing: Michigan State ican Publishers Company. University Press. Opening the Region to Prosperity / 73

Tiffany, Orrin E.1905. The Canadian Rebellion of 1837-1838.Publications of the Buffalo Historical Society, Vol. VIII, pp. Buffalo. Tucker, Glenn.1954.Poltroons and Patriots, A Popular Account of the War of 1812. New York: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc. 2 Vols. Tucker, Glenn. 1956. Tecumseh, Vision of Glory. New York: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc. U.S. Government.1932.Naval Forces on the Lakes, Agreement Between the United States of America a:id Great BritainSigned at Washington, April 28 & 29, 1817. Washing- ton: GPO. Treaty Series 110 1/2. U.S. Government. n.d. Treaty of Peace and Amity Between the United States of America and GreatBritain,Concluded atGhent, December 24,1814. Washington: GPO. Treaty Series 109. U.S. Government. 1942. Treaty Between The United States of America and Great Britain (Webster-Ashburton Treaty) Signed at Wash- ington, August 9,1842.Washington: GPO. Treaty Series 119. Utley, Robert M. and Washburn, Wilcourt E. 1977. The Indian Wars. New York: Ameri- can Heritage Publishing Company. Utter, William T. 1968. The Frontier State, 1803-1825. Columbus:OhioHistorical Society. Wright,J.Leitch Jr. 1975. British and the American Frontier, 1783-1815.Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press. 8/ A History of Great Lakes Shipping

by Alexander C. Meakin

The history of Great Lakes shipping is a A brief survey of various vessel types and broad subject.It begins with primitive dugout their development willgive a broader insight canoes and stetches across the years to modern into the role of the lakes in moving people and bulk carriers that are so large that itis impos- cargoes through the years. sible for them to pass through any of the canals and rivers that link the Hkes to the oceans. Thus, they are literally locked into the lakes. Primitive beginnings In attempting to understand the role of shipping from a historical perspective, it can be Over a period of many centuries, the heavy said that the upper midwest and central Canada v ooden dugout canoes used by the earliest Indians were developed because of the Great Lakes. The evolved into small hide and bark covered canoes. exploration of the central portion of North Amer- Theselightercanoes were quiteefficientin ica was carried out largely by water.Most of relation to what they could carry and the effort the early settlers entered the region by water. needed to move them from place to place. The And the development of heavy industry in North ultimate in small canoes were those covered with America's heartland occurred largely bccause of birch bark.They were very light in weight and the concentrations of minerals and other raw could be moved easily.It is generally believed materials in the region it-elf.The relatively low that the finest canoes of this type were those cost transportation of such materials over the developed by the Algonquian tribes. lakes led to the development of the largest part The wide use of smaller canoes led to the of the United States' and Canada's steel indus- development of a class of somewhat larger canoes tries, which were the backbone of these two which were used by the Indians for transporting nations' economies until the recent economic animals killed by hunting parties.Some of this recession.In a very real way, the Great Lakes type of canoe were also used for the movement were the lifeline that supported the development of war parties, hence the name "war canoe." of the United States and Canada over a span of Many of the earlier explorers and mission- almost a century and a half. aries also traveled by canoe.Most of these The vessels that were developed over that craft were of thelargervarieties:a 25-foot period were propelled by both sail and steam, as canoe could carry about a ton and a half of well as more modern types of engines in recent cargo, plus seven or eight men. The legendary years.They have included the clevelopment of voyageurs further developed the canoe into a technological features which in some cases have highly efficient type of cargo vessel.Some of spread into worldwide use.It is worth noting at these were 35 to 40 fcct in length and could this point that all vessels of whatever size that carry a crew of 14 to 16 people plus 6 tr, 8 tons operate on the lakes are called "boats," although of furs or other cargo.They plied the Great the terms "vessel" and "ship" are also proper. Lakes, carrying goods from Montreal to trade for furs in the northern lake area. A History of Great Lakes Shipping / 75

Sail power placed above the main deck.This was a significant change and somewhat lessened the danger Probably the first new type of vessel devel- to the passengers from the fires andexplosions oped especially to meet the needs of Great Lakes which were common in early steamers. commerce was what in later years came tobe known as a "Mackinaw boat."Originated by the French in the mid 18th century, it continued in use well into the present century.These boats were double-ended to make them easier to man- never. Many carried sails, and somehad center boards for stability.They were used largely on the upper lakes and for every imaginable purpose, including commercial fishing. The first large sailing vessel in service on the lakes was a.z.Griffin, which was built by the explorer LaSalle in 1679.As time went on, .7,-----;.- r.-,,,_.;,....sz.L5....:, ---uxn,-...... _- .I ---....,4. a...... --,..e.- sailingvesselsof many differenttypes were ---,------: - . ---,-- 11 ----0 b-, .-- built, both for the movement of people and for _ , various commercial cargoes. Some of these vessels reflected certain characteristics associated Figure 8.1. The Walk-in-the-Water,asail- with particular cargoes, such as open decks for assisted steamer.(Steamship His- carrying large, rough cut timbers.Others re- torical Society of America) flected the skills, or lack thereof, of their builders.Thus, vessels built in one port were often Many of the earlier sidewheelers, as well as quite different from those built elsewhere. some of the larger sailing vesselsin use during As sailing vessels continued to be built over the first half of the nineteenth century, carried the years, they gradually evolved a few standard thousands upon thousands of settlers to the new rigging designs.Some of these sailing vessels, communities then springing up along the shores such as the David Dows, were truly gigantic. At of the lakes.In contrast to other areas of the a length of 265 feet, with five masts_and a midwest and far west, people settlinginthe displacement of 1,419 tons, she was large even Great Lakes basin came to the region by water, by ocean standards.Built in 1881, she carriel rather than by covered wagon. farm products, general merchandise and some bulk cargoes until she was lost near Chicago in a violent storm in late 1889.Although sailing Great Lakes trade vessels continued to be built into the later years of the nineteenth century, the development of With the opening of the North American steam vessels paralleled the development and use heartland for settlement following the War of of sail. 1812, large quantities of household goods and raw materials for light industrybegan to be moved by ship across the lakes.Similarly, agri- The age of steam cultural products, fish, minerals, and timber were shipped across the lakes as a first link in their The first commercial steamer above Niagara transportation to other regions of Canada and was the Walk-In-The-Water. She was built in the United States. 1818 at Black Rock, New York, near the present Following the discovery in 1843 of large city of Buffalo.She c mild make the run from quantities of copper in the Upper Peninsula of Buffalo toDetroitin38-40 hours,inclwling Michigan, that metal became a major cargo on several stops for loading and unloading. the lakes for many years.After being smelted The sidewheeler Michigan, builtin1833, intoingotr,mostofthiscoppereventually marked a major change in vessel design.For reached the growing industrial areas along the thefirst time passenger accommodations were lower lakes and the cast coast. 76 / A History of Great Lakes Shipping

Soon after the close of the original explor- number of factors. The primary reason, however, ation of the lakes region, the shipment of timber was the constantly rising cost of fmished steel became a major operation in certain areas, par- over a period of many years.As a result, the ticularly on Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence American steel industry was gradually priced out River. During the eighteenth and early nine- of its own traditional markets.In turn, not- teenth centuries, the British Navy looked to both withstanding the higher shipping costs, American Canada and the United States for much of the manufacturers could purchase foreign steel at a timber used for construction of its vessels.In considerably lower cost. later years, lumber in rough form became the Crushed limestone was a major cargo that largest commodity moved on the lakes. grew in importance with the development of the By the early 1900s, the volume of lumber steel industry, since limestone is a ba-ic ingredi- moved began to decline.The lakes region was ent of most steel making.For many years lime- divided into a number of districts wir.ch were stone has been moved by self-unloading vessels established for statistical purposes related to the that run from the quarries to the steel mills, or cutting and shipping of lumber. Since there was to rail heads leading to the mills. no single source that collected all of the data on Crment is anothcr cargo requiring specialized a continuing basis, nor were the methods of carriers.Most of the vessels in this trade began accounting uniform, itis difficult to determine life as standard bulk carriers.In order to handle the total volume of lumber cut and shipped on a cement, hatches and holds have been rebuilt to long term basis.It was determined, however, facilitate the use of pneumatic unloading equip- that the lakes region provided in excess of 8.9 ment. billion board feet of lumber in 1892!By 1896 Historically, coal has been one of the major the total had shrunk to a bitless than 554 lake cargoes.For many years, coal was shipped billion board feet. From that time on the volume up the lakes for heating and manufacturing pur- continued to drop annually, although the move- poses.This was most advantageous to shippers ment of large quantities of pulp wood continued since the iron ore moved downbound.Without to be a major shipping activity until about the the coal cargoes, most vessels would have been time of World War H. empty on the upbound trip.With the drop in With the discovery of iron ore in the Upper the demand for coal for railroad and heating use, Peninsula of Michigan, and later in Minnesota, this cargo was significantly reduced.During the the development of the it on and steel industry in past few years, however, the movement of coal the United States and Canada entered a new era. has increased onceagain. Several Canadian The lakes became the main route for the move- fleets pick up coal at Ohio ports and deliver it ment of the ore to the new steel making centers. by way of the Seaway to the lower St. Lawrence Over the span of only a few decades, iron ore where it is transferred directly into ocean vessels became the major cargo moving on the lakes. for overseas delivery.Another recent develop- As time went on, thisore, together with the ment is the delivery of western coal from the coal and limestone used to make steel, became lakehead to shoreside power plants located on the life blood of North America's heavy industry the lower lakes and rivers.In recent years coal and thc economies of both the United Staes and has been moved across the lakes entirely in self- Canada.As recently as the 1970s and largely unloading vessels. because of the volume of iron ore moving on the But of all of the cargoes moved on the lakes, thelocksat Sault Ste. Marie annually lakes and Seaway today, the movement of grain passed more cargo in an eight-and-a-half-moath is second only to iron ore in tonnage.Almost season than did the Panama, Suez and Kiel Canals allof this grain goes overseas. Much ofit combined over a full year! moves downbound in standard bulk carriers of The importance of iron ore continued until seaway sizc.Somc of it also leaves the lakes in the 1980s when the entire steel industry col- ocean vessels as well.A considerable part of lapsed.The collapse of the industry, including this grain comes from the western provinces of the shipping of iron ore, was the result of a Canada and from the midwestern United States. A History of Great Lakes Shipping / 77

More cargo, bigger boats iron vessels resembled floating cigars. The theory behind the design was that waves would roll The handling of bulk minerals including iron over the top of the cylindricalhull, especially ore was originally done withbarrels or kegs. As when the boat was loaded and riding low in the specialized loading and unloading equipment was water. A fleet of these vessels was builtbetween developed, such cargoes began to be handled in 1888 and 1897. bulk. The first vessel especially designed and Several of the whalebacks even saw ocean built for the moving of such bulk cargo was the service. One, the Christopher Columbus, was wooden steamer RJ. Hackett, which was built in originally built as a passenger vessel in connec- Cleveland in 1869. An interesting peripheral tion with the Columbian Exposition which was development took place in relation to the Hackett. held in Chicago, but she went on to serve for Several years after she was built, a consort, the many more years. She was sowell designed that ForestCity,was builtto be towed by the she could safely load and unload up to 5,000 Hackett, thus increasing the cargo capacity of passengers in less than fiveminutes! In later the steamer. The barge carried a limited suit of years, two whalebacks were alsoconverted to a sails for propulsion in the event that she was let tanker and an automobile carrier.The last of loose or broke loose from the towing steamer. the whalebacks was finally removed from service This use of barges became quite widespread as after the 1969 season.Although the size of time went on. Many of the older wooden schoon- these vessels was small in relation to the cargo ers finished out their careers as towbarges.In demands of later years, they proved to be real later years a number of steel barges were built work horses. for such service.The use of consorts continued on a limited basis until shortlyafter World War

Figure 83. The Christopher Columbus, a whale- back steamer. (Steamship Historical Society of America)

As the twentieth century appeared onthe Figure 8.2. Lumber steamer towing consort horizon of history, the largest bulk vessels being barges. (Meakin Collection) built were about 500 feet long.Only six years later the first 600-foot vessels appeared.With breadth and depth, The use of steelinthe construction of some continued growth in vessels was infull swing by the end of the these vessels became a standard type for almost 1880s. A few of the earlier steel framed vefsels thirty ycars.As time went on,technological were sheathed with lumber, aneffort that sought improvements in engines, boilers and structural Larger to utlize the particular values of bothmaterials. design continuedata steady pace. A unique developn ent in vessel design was hatches, improved hatch covers and shipboard that of the so-called whalebacks or pigboats. cranes contributed to greaterefficiency in the They were used for the movement of bulk cargo, loading and unloading of bulk cargoes. The primarily iron orc, coal and limestone. Designed development of ncw and unusual types of loading the and built by Captain Alexander McDougall, these and unloading equipment added even more to 78 / A History of Great Lakes Shipping efficiency of ore handling.These improvements relatively small number of ports adequate for made Great Lakes bulk vessels among the world's their needs. Thus these huge carriers must most efficient freight carriers.Electronic vessel travel a few specific runs over and over again. navigation equipment was in widespreaduse on Recent years have also seen the lengthening lake vessels whileit was still regarded as an or "jumboizing" of a number of other existing unnecessary novelty by most ocean fleet owners vessels to take advantage of the present lock and operators. capacity at Sault Ste. Marie.All of the "jum- By the end of World War II, the newest boized" vessels, as well as the new super class vessels had grown to only 620 feet in length, but vessels, are self-unloaders which are not depen- they had swelled to about 70 feet in breadth. dent upon shore machinery for unloading their The dimensions of vessels are determined by cargoes. several factors.One is the limiting dimensions of the locks at several locations on the lakes, plus the parallel limitation of channel depths. - The other major factor is the spacing of loading chutes for handling cargo on the docks.Thus, until the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway, vessels entering or leaving the lakes were limited ' to a maximum length of about 250 feet in length and 43 feet in breadth. With the completion of the present St. Lawrence Seaway in 1959, chan- tt nels were dredged where necessary to a minimum depth of 27 feet.The new St. Lawrence locks deA were built to permit the transit of vessels up to 730 feet in length and 75 feet in breadth.This change in restricting dimensions led to the rapid development of a large fleet of new vessels built Figure 8.4. A self-unloadingorecarrier. to take full advantage of the deeper channels (Meakin Collection) and larger locks. With the completion of the new super-sized As the years have gone by, other types of Poe Lock at Sault Ste. Marie in 1968, a still vessels have come and gone from the lakes.At newer and larger class of vessel appeared. These this time, apart from a few remaining ferries and monsters measured 1,000 feet in length and 105 excursion boats, there is no regularly scheduled feet in breadth.While still limited by the 27 passenger service on the lakes.Once there was foot depth of the channels in some ports and a large fleet of cruise ships on the lakes, as restricted areas, this new class of vessel is so well as an even larger number of combination much larger that virtually all former shoreside passenger-package freight vessels that provided facilities are outdated and unable to serve these point to point service on regular schedules. vessels. Over a period of a few years, these A few specializedrailcarferriesstill vessels gradually increased in length: the William operate on Lake Michigan, although this limited J. Delancey, built in 1981, measures 1,013 feet in activity is a far cry from the large number of length.At the present time, there are thirteen such vessels that were in operation as recently vessels measuring at least 1,000 feet in length as a generation ago. At one time the movement operating on the lakes.As vessel dimensions of new automobiles by lake vessels was quite increased over recent years, hulls became more common, and some older ships were rebuilt boxlike, yielding a still greater cargo capacity. especially for this trade. Unfortunately, these "super" carriers are so large Petroleum and chemical tankers have long that they can not pass below Lake Erie because been a part of the vessel traffic on the lakes. of the limiting dimensions of the Welland Canal. But with the expansion of the petroleum pipeline Similarly, these vessels are also restricted to a nctwork serving the mid-continent region, the A History of Great Lakes Shipping/ 79 number of tankers formerlyengaged in such References service has been substantially reducedin the last Adventures on the Great Lakes.1980.Toronto: few years. Barges and scows towed or pushedby tugs Coles Publishing Company Limited. from port to port. With Boyer, Dwight. 1977.Ships and Men of the move numerous cargoes New York: Dodd, Mead & the gradually increasing costs ofvessel labor, a Great Lakes. has gone Company. considerable amount of experimentation Ladies of the Lakes. on in recent yearsin an effort to handle more Clary, James. 1985. Lansing, MI: Michigan Natural Resources cargoes by this means.A tug-barge (or barges) can operate with amuch smaller crew than a Magazine. thus leading to a con- Havighurst, Walter. 1975. 7he Long Ships standard lakevessel, Great Lakes. siderable saving in labor costs. Passing:7he Story of the New York: MacMillan Publishing Co.,Inc. Ratigan, William.1978. Great Lakes Shipwrecks Gateway to the sea & Survivals.Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eardmans Publishing Company. With the opening of theSt.Lawrence Seaway in 1959,it became possible for large ocean type vessels to enterthe Great Lakes. Today, the lakes play host to hundredsof these "sallies" each year.These ships represent many differentvesseltypes,and carry almost any imaginable kind of cargo in and out of thelakes region. Regrettably,thispartof thelake shipping industry was restricted for many years by extremely high toll charges for the useof the Seaway locks and channels, and stillis restricted by the limitation of a short shipping season. Oceantrafficin and out of thelakes, however, did not begin with the present Seaway. Rather, through traffic from the lakes tothe sea began with the opening of thefirst Welland Canal in 1848.Ocean to lake commerce grew slowly, but with each enlargement of locksand deepening of canals and channels, the volumeof tonnage increased. The presentSeaway makes it possible for much larger ocean vessels to enter and leave the lakes than was previouslypossible, as discussed in the nextchapter. The development of vessels on the Great Lakes and their connecting waterwayshas over the years, in a very real sense, been areflection of the state of development of the economiesof both Canada and the United States. Newvessel types were developed to meet newneeds. And these, in turn, were modified or evenreplaced by the needs of each new day.So it has been in the past, and so it still is today.And if the lessons of the past have -ny meaning, soit will continue to be in the future.

Di 9/ Condition of Shipping on the Great Lakes

by Jeffrey A. Bryant

Like the constant ebb and flow of the Ice limits the system's seasonal operations. Great Lakes waters, issues and problems facing Many locks are not large enough to accommodate the commercial shipping industry on the Great the large "supertankers" or are in desperate need Lakes remain in a state of flux.This chapter of repair.Bridge failures also plague the Sea- outlinesprevalentissuesaffectingtheGreat way's efficiency.The local economy, in addition Lakes shipping industry.There is no question to the aforementioned problems, has experienced that problems exist which are peculiar to Great a notable decrease in shipbuilding operations.In Lakes ports.But the economic impact of these the face of these growing challenges, the Seaway ports will continue to make key lakefront cities is forging ahead to maintain the Great Lakcs' invaluable resources in the decades ahead. official status as "America's Fourth Seacoast."

The St. Lawrence Seaway Great Lakes shipbuilding and the shipping industry Current status DedicatedinApril,1959,byPresident Eisenhower as a "magnificent symbol to the entire Shipbuilding in Lake Eric ports declined in world of the achievement possible to democratic the 1980s with the closing of American Shipbuild- nations," the St. Lawrence Seaway had been the ing Company yards in Toledo, Cleveland and fastest-growing sea route in the world during its Lorain.The demise in shipyards, shipbuilding first 10 years of existence.But a number of jobs and related support industries has taken its problems which confront the 2,342 mile Seaway toll in terms of economic impact.For example, threaten its successful competition with saltwater the same Toledo shipyard which employed nearly ports.From the Seaway's start, it has been the 1,300 workers before the Great Depression was only deep-draft navigaiional project in the United closed in 1983 when American Shipbuilding, faced States required to repay its $88 million appro- with declining orders, transferred all orders to priation for construction, maintenance and opera- its Tampa, Florida, and Lorain, Ohio, yards. tion by the users.In addition to this,ithas Today, the Toledo Shipyard has been re- been losing markets because of the trade deficit, opened by the Toledo-Lucas County Port Author- the decline of heavy industry (mainly coal, iron, ity and employs some 200 workers. The Toledo and steel), the development of container vessels, dry dock facilityis the only active shipyard in steel imports and a reduced global demand for Lake Erie.In 1986 the yard produced two new grain, the lakes' major r -go (Figure 9.1). What vessels, a 360-foot self-unloading, bulk cement was a record high of 5-/.4 million metric tons of barge and a 600-passenger excursion boat. cargo passing through the St. Lawrence Seaway Shipyards are more numerous in the Upper in 1977 became a very low 37.3 metric tons in GreatLakes;withsophisticatedshipbuilding 1985. facilities such as Bay Shipbuilding Corporation Condition of Shipping on the Great Lakes / 81

Bulk Commerce Components 1900-1990 (by 5 yr intervals)

250 Stone

200 Grain

Coal 150 MIIron Ore

100

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

(Data compiled from Lake Carriers Association annual reports)

Figure 9.1.Relative contributions of cargo types to total Seaway tonnage. were constructed with wood,rather than steel, thus morc graving docks were built near timber country on the upper Great Lakes and propor- or9W. tionately morc shipyards survive in the north today. r ' In light of a continuing worldwide slump in commercial orders, government contracts provide the economic lifeline needed to keep the American shipbuilding industry solvent.Great Lakes shipyards have constructed self-unloading bulk carriers up to 1,000 feet in length, floating barracks, Figure 92.Toledo's grain shipping firms loaded Navy patrol boats, ice breakers, rescue/salvage 91 million bushels of grain to inter- craft,minesweepers and othervesselsunder national destinations in 1985. (photo government contracts.The region receives lim- courtesy of the Toledo-Lucas Coway ited Department of Defense shipbuilding dollars, Port Authority) however. The Great Lakes Task Force states that and Peterson Builders,Inc.,in Sturgeon Bay, historically,andatpresent,the Great Lakes Wisconsin, and Fraser Shipyards, Superior, Wis- region does not receive an equitable share of consin, to name a fcw.The reason more ship- Department of Defense shipbuilding dollars. The yards survive in the upper lakes is an historical Great Lakes has received only three percent of one, based on the availability oftimber in the the Navy's recent construction budget, andvirtu- Upper Great Lakes states.Early lake vessels ally none of its repair and/or overhaul budget. 82 / Condition of Shipping on the Great Lakes

Need for governmental support The diversion of these "preference" cargoes to coastal ports costs the midwestern economy a The capabilities, the technology, the skilled very high price in terms of economic impact and labor and the shipbuilding tradition exists in the employment. According to COMMUNICORE, an Great Lakes region. But unless government international maritime trade and consulting firm, orders increase, the Great Lakes shipyards will each time a shipment of cargo as smallas 5,000 continuetostruggle economically. Even an to 10,000 tons is loaded at a Great Lakes port, a upswing in the U.S. economy and revitalized direct expenditure of about $230,000 takes place heavy industry would not spur shipbuilding orders at the port.Multiplied by even a million tons on the Great Lakes for three reasons.1) The or 14 percent of the available DOD cargothis inexpensive cost of labor in Korean and Japanese could inject $23 million directly into the Great shipyards allows those countries to submit lower Lakes port economy. bids than U.S. yards.2) Ocean vessels built in The COMMUNICORE study also found that Great Lakes yards are limited in length to 730 in 1984, DOD spent 23 percent of its contract feet,because of thesizerestrictionsof the budget on goods manufactured in the eight Great Seaway locks.3) American and Canadian lake Lakes and five adjoining states which constituted fleets are not currently working at full capacity, the study.Yet, virtually none of those cargoes with decommissioned ships ready to be refitted if were shipped from midwestern ports.The pres- needed. ence of a U.S.-flag ship service in the Great Lakes has spurred competitive bidding for DOD cargoes, saving the government over $15 million American flag vessels dollars in shipping costs over a 12-month period, and Great Lakes port leaders are seeking expan- An issue related to government support for sion of additional American flag service into the shipbuilding is that of preferential use of Amer- lakes. ican ships.Because of cargo preference laws in the United States, American-flag liner (regularly scheduled)serviceisimportant in the Great Limitations of the Seaway Lakes to help attract U.S. Department of Agricul- ture(USDA), U.S. Department of Defense Lock dimensions (DOD) and Export-Import Bank (ExIm) cargo shipments. The maritimefraternityisin agreement In 1986, however, only two U.S.-flag liner that the dimensions of the St. Lawrence Seaway operators, Fednav Lakes Services, Inc., of Detroit locks form a structural constraint upon Great and Lykes Brothers Steamship Lines of New Lakes ports. The maximum-sized vessel capable Orleans, scheduled regular Great Lakes/Seaway of transiting the Seaway locksis 730 feet by service. Fednav operates two 682-foot sister 75.6 feet with a 25 foot draft.Ocean ports, of ships with fortnightly service between Toledo, course, do not face this size limitation in vessel Detroit, Milwaukee and Northern Europe. Lykes traffic and thus siphon more and more tonnage calls at Milwaukee, Chicago and in the Mediter- from Great Lakes ports, with the construction of ranean.Since the lakes are served by only two each new super carrier. U.S.-flag operators, most Midwest-produced gov- The cost of building new locks to accom- ertunent cargoes are lost to coastal ports with modate the large ocean vessels is estimated to more frequent U.S.-flag service. be well over $3 billion.Future prospects for In 1984, for example, of the 7.7 million such construction do not rate highly. measurement tons of DOD cargoes shipped over- In 1985, the Seaway was forced to close seas, less than one-tenth of one percent were for 25 days at the height of the shipping season loaded at Great Lakes ports, despite the fact when concrete eroded in one of Lock No. 7's that 91 percent of the cargo destinations are walls at the Welland Canal. The 1985 mid-season serviceable from the Great Lakes, and many of closing of the Welland for repairs marked only the cargoes were manufactured in the Midwest. the second time that the Seaway, opened in Condition of Shipping on the Great Lakes/ 83

k.41 0 ., i

7:11P!

st°

2".

Seaway locks is displayed by thetight fit of these vessels in Can- Figure 93. The size limitation of the Corporation, The St. Lawrence ada's Welland Canal.(Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Seaway, 1979) reflected a 43 Unfor- statistics through November, 1986, 1959, ceased operation in mid-season. vessel calls tunately, however, the first closing occurn.d but percent increase and 170 overseas November 21, 1984, when a compared to 123 for the same period in1985. one year earlier, on Both the Canadian and United States govern- lift bridge malfunctioned about 40miles west of ments have increased maintenancefunds ear- Montreal.The bridge spans the Beauharnois maintenance Canal near Valleyfield, Quebec.Its malfunction marked for upgrading and preventive blocked navigation for 18 days. of the Seaway lock system. Both Seaway closings resulted inreported losses of millions of dollars to vessel operators Limited Navigation Season and others.This was a potentially disastrous situation, considering that scores of oceanvessels in thc winter.For- Lake Erie seaports, like all ports could have been trapped for the obstacles to failed to mater- Great Lakes region, face two natural tunately, both times the problems by Atlan- ialize because of mild temperaturesand an ex- the 12-month navigation season enjoyed tic,Pacific and Gulf coast ports.Unlike salt- tended Seaway season. ice-free, the fresh Although the Seaway systemreceiveda water harbors which remain and connecting channelsof the great deal of negative publicityfrom the closing waterports negative Great Lakes arc susceptible tofreezing through- incidents in 1984 and '85, the actual and severe Great impact of the accidents and publicity appearsto out the course of both normal This conclusion is based on Lakes winters. be non-existent. Except for limited lake barge movementsin 1986 overseas cargo statistics atOhio's largest all of Ohio's ports tonnage port, the Port of Toledo,where overseas selected ports in winter, 84 / Condition of Shipping on the Great Lakes

Ashtabula, Conneaut,Cleveland,Lorainand ment's St. Lawrence Seaway Authority,overseers Toledoare closed to normal shipping by the of five of the Seaway's seven locks. formation of ice nearly every winter.The com- The first step in the elimination of Seaway mercial inter-lakes shippingseason is generally tollsand an incentive to shipperscameon limited to 10 months, from March 1 through November17,1986, when President Ronald December 31. The Seaway or ocean transit Reagan signedintolaw H.R.6,the Water season has a normal opening date of April 1, and Resources Development Act.The first water closing date of December 15. resources bill passed by the Congress and signed by the President in 16 years, H.R. 6 authorizesa number of nationwide water projects, from shore- Season extension line erosion abatement to port development projects.The bill has a provision which eliminates Any discussion of season extension for the the U.S. Seaway tolls. Great Lakes/St. Lawrence Seaway (Seaway) ship- When H.R. 6 went into effcct April, 1987, ping season is sure to attract interest from the (the traditional opening date of the St. Lawrence maritime fraternity as well as the media and Seaway) the Great Lakes realized a decrease in general public.Most experts are in agreement, operating costs to shippers.Until that date however, that a 12-month shippingseason is not Great Lakes ports had been the only U.S. ports viable in the immediate future. which, in effect, taxed vessel operators. The U.S. While harbor tugs are sometimes pressed portion of St. Lawrence Seaway tollsis now into service as ice breakers to assist late-season rebated to shippers under the new legislation and navigation in Lake Erie harbors, the idea of replaced by nondiscriminatory, nationwide, ad open lake icebreaking by Coast Guard vessels is valorem cargo fees. The new user fee is charged cost prohibitive.The use of ice-breakers has in at all ports of call around the nation and these fact become less practical with the advent of revenues will be used as the local share of dredg- larger lake vessels. In the past, smaller vessels ing and other harbor-maintenance costs. As meant more traffic through shipping lanes and means of illustration, the new ad valorem cargo channels, thus retarding the heavy buildup of ice fee could be compared toa national gasoline or and facilitating the effectiveness of ice breakers. liquor tax, with all regions of the nationpar- Super lakers up to 1,000 feet in length, however, ticipating on an equal basis. carry two to three times the freight of older The elimination of the American portion of lakers, meaning fewer vessel transits. Seaway tolls will mean a 12 percent decrease in Navigational aids such as buoys must also the cost of moving a bushel ofcorn through the be removed from channels and harbors before Seaway System.This example translates into a the formation of ice.Additional winter naviga- savings of $3,673 per vessel transit, basedon a tional problems include increased vessel insurance 730-foot long lake vessel's average load of 28,200 premiums, undue hardships on longshoremen and tons, or 1,110,174 bushels of corn. the need for preventive maintenanceon the St. The passage of the water resources bill is Lawrence Seaway locks. seen by most maritime observers as a major victory for all Great Lakes ports and shippers. H.R. 6 also includes language which requires the Emerging developments UnitedStatesgovernmenttonegotiatewith Canadian officials for the purpose of eliminating Seaway toll reduction all Seaway tolls.The total elimination of tolls would mean a savings in excess of $40,000 for Sincethe opening of theSt.Lawrence the vessel transit of a 730-foot laker laden with Seaway in 1959, Great Lakes ports have been corn. The passage of H.R. 6, and subsequent ad burdened with a Seaway toll structure which valorem cargo fee assessment at all U.S.ports, charged vessels in excess of $40,000 to transit puts Lake Erie ports in a much better position the Seaway System (Figure 9.4). Over 70 percent to compete with tidewater ports for overseas of the tolls are collected by the Canadiangovern- commerce. The futurc elimination of all Seaway Condition of Shipping on the GreatLakes / 85

Total SeawayRevenues 1959-1986

1 1 1 1 I I 1 1 1 1 I 1 5 if? Ac° ,ctC,? Sg" st? str ,g; sg° s? sr?. srSs) .c,cY sOr3 sO° sf:+' Year

(Data from St. Lawrence SeawayTraffic Report 1985)

Figure 9.4.Revenues of the Seaway since 1959. boat docks and the incentive to attracting Promenade Park, recreational tollsisseen as a key anchor Toledo's new riverfront additional tonnage through the SeawaySystem. HotelSofitel building boom. Cleveland is in the process ofreshaping its Municipal Stadium-lakefront arcawith a major Urban redevelopment retailing and restaurant centerdue to open in face new the late1980s. The $258 million project will Lake Erie portsinparticular maritime education challenges as major Great Lakes citiesand ports, also include an aquarium and It is expected that $118million in reven- such as Cleveland, Buffalo, Toledo,Detroit and center. into vital ues and 1,380 permanentjobs will result. Already Erie forge their waterfront real estate in renewed As ports continue development in The Flats has resulted economic development tools. Cleveland's links toits Lake Erie to lose business fromtraditional cargo-related interestin recreational and heritage. industries, they are turning to million project, survive. In Buffalo, New York, a $50 tourist-based industries in order to expected to generate more than 3,000 newjobs ConstructionalongdowntownToledo's by 1993, is underway. A commerceand transpor- Maumee River waterfront, whichbegan in the of a $200 million in tationfacility will be created from part late 1970s, has totaled well over Already 21 companies are completed projects and has provided over4,000 defunct steelmill. Major firms such as interested. new jobs in the 1980s. Expected to be completed by 1991, a$75 Toledo Trust and Owens-Illinois haveconstructed in Erie, Pennsyl- buildings on the west shore of millionrevitalization project ncw headquarters vania, will most likely replacethree ship repair the downtown Toledo watcrfront.Those struc- docks and a shipbuilding yard.The new con- tures, along with PortsideFestival Marketplace, 86 / Condition of Shipping on the Great Lakes

44,44444 maritime official has gone so far tosay that

%- Lake Erie is in a state of "chaos and confusion." "The relationship between industrial and or. recreational uses of Lake Eric hasnever been more intimate than itis today," stated Gary L. Failor,seaportdirectorforthe Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority."Even though I may be slightly exaggerating indescribing Lake Erie's economic rebirth as the midwife of chaos and confusion at Ohio's ports, the words excitement, sports-fishing,tourism, deep-sea romance and international commerce truly establishan everincreasing synergistic relationship betweencom- mercial, industrial, and recreational uses of Lake Erie," Mr. Failor said. As governmental,civic,community and Figure 9.5.Toledo, Ohio, site of the most diverse industrial leaders continue to look toward Lake port on the Great Lakes as well as Erie for urban and recreational revitalization, arevitalizedurbanwaterfront. the interspatial problems of new urban develop- (photocourtesyofToledo-Lucas ments crowding existing port facilities, plus the County Port Authority) coordination of commercial and recreationaluses of Ohio's key to the sea, will cont;nueto exist structionwillincludecondominiums,stores, into the foreseeable future.This problem, how- marinas, restaurants, a hotel anda maritime ever, is one of opportunity for Erie's lakefront museum to house thereconstructed Niagara, cities. Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry's ship used to win the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812. References But not all developments are viewedas positive by all parties involved. Though expected Government of Quebec, St. Lawrence Development to enhance lake recreation, a proposed influx of Secretariat. 1985. The St. Lawrence: A new marinas in the Black River in Lorain, Ohio, vital national resource. Quebec, PQ. and on the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland is viewed LesStrang, J. (ed.)1985.The Great LakesSt. by the Lake Carriers Association (LCA)as a Lawrence System.Boyne City, MI: Harbor potential hindrance to commercial vessel transits. House. The Lake Carriers fear that a proliferation of Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation. recreational boaters on these two waterways will 1979.The St. Lawrence Seaway.Washing- slow commerce and endanger both commercial ton, D.C. 2 pp. vessels and pleasure craft. In Detroit, the LCA opposed the City's plan [In order to keep abreast of developing to extend Cobo Hall over the Detroit River. issues and problems concerning shippingon the Although Detroit withdrew its proposal to extend Great Lakes, two annual works are suggested.] the convention center 360 feet into the river, the LCA remains adamant in its contention that Annual Report: there must be no expansion of any building into Lake Carriers' Association the navigational channel. 614 Superior Ave., N.W. In addition to increased recreational boating 915 Rockefeller Building traffic, the coordination of recreational activities Cleveland, Ohio 44113-1306 and special events, such as annual holiday fire- works displays or hydroplane races, has ledport Great Lakes Report to Congress agencies around the state to assume a growing A publication of: role as calendar keepers and coordinators of The Great Lakes Task Force special events, so that costly delays to commercial 2200 Bonisteel Boulevard shipping activity can be minimized.One Ohio Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109 10/ Lake Erie Coastal Uses

by Richard Bartz

While this chapter focuses on coastal usesof Lake Erie in Ohio alone, it provides a general example of the types andmagnitude of activities occurring all around the lake. Lake Erie is the second smallest ofthe This area is characterized by barrierbeaches all Grcat Lakes, having a surface arcaof 9,910 along the shoreline with wetlands behindthem. square miles bounded by 871miles of shoreline, The presence or absence of a beach affects including the mainland, islands and bays.The how the shoreline is used.In 1974, the Division province of Ontario, Canada and the statesof of Geological survey found that 52%of Ohio's other Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and NewYork Lake Eric shoreline had a beach zone; the Since we have had border Lake Eric, which provides a richinterna- 48% was without a beach. About one third high lake levels for the last 16 years,the per- tional and interstate resource. beach may have of Lake Erie's surface area and 265 milesof its centage of shoreline without a shoreline liein Ohio, and about one third of increased. Ohio's geographic arca is in the LakeEric drain- Lake Eric Facts. (Michigan Sea age basin.This area contains at least part of 35 Table 10.1. of Ohio's S8 counties and 40% of Ohio'spopula- Grant) (ion. Thephysicalfeatures along Lake Eric's shoreline, including the shore typesthemselves, Length 210 mi1338 km In the central affect how the lakeisused. Breadth 57 mi/92 km basin of Lake Erie, high bluffs frontthe shore- Depth 62 ft/19 rn average; line. At the western end of thisbasin near 210 ft/64 m maximum Sandusky, Ohio, the bluffs are aboutfive or six 116 cu rni/483 cu km feethigh, butat the far eastern end ofthe Volume basin the bluffs may be 65 feet high. These Water Surface Area 9,906 sq mi/ bluffs arc extremely susceptible to erosion,but 25,657 sq km help to confine flooding in thc centralbasin to Drainage Basin Area 22,703 sq mi/ the areas around river mouths. 58,800 sq km fronted The western basin of Lake Eric is Shoreline Length 856 mi/1,377 km by low plains which are susceptible toboth (includes islands) erosion and flooding.The drainage area of the 571 ft1174 m western basin is very flat and verylow.During Elevation Niagara River and Falls major storm events, flooding mayextend up to 2 Outlet miles inland because of this flattopography.In Detention Time 2.6 yrs (shortest of the lakes) beach- this basin are thc remnants of a barrier Population 1,515,000 (Canada) wetland system that once extended fromSandusky 11,347,000 (U.S.) to Toledo, Ohio, and on up toDetroit, Michigan. 88 / Lake ErieCoastal Uses Year 1920 1925 Canada 1930 U.S. 1935 1940 1945 1950 1955 1960 1965 A. 1970 `W....-.14 1975 1980 r. 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 Thousands of tonnes Figure 10.1.Commercial catch of selected species in Lake Erie.

Diverse habitat tial. Andrew White discusses the Lake Erie fishery in detail elsewhere in this volume. Lake Erie provides habitat for many species of animals living in and on the water.Because Lake Erie is so shallow, it is the most biologically diverse of all the Great Lakes.Its varied bottom features and water characteristics provide habitat for benthic (bottom-dwelling) organisms, fish, and waterfowl.This diversity of animal life is both economically and esthetically important. Catching the many species of fish found in the lakepro- vides recreation for some fishermen anda liveli- hood for others. In1986, Ohioans harvested14.5million pounds of fish from Lake Erie.Of this total, 11.3 million pounds were harvested by recreational sport fishermen and 3.2 million pounds by commercial fishermen. The greatest success on Lake Erie is the walleye fishery.Lake Erie has been named the walleye capital of the world.In 1975, we harvested 112,000 walleyes from the lake.In 1986, we harvested4.4million walleyes, the largest walleye harvest from Lake Erie in the Figure 102.Great Blue Heron. (Marcia L last eleven years.The walleye sport fishery in Seager) the western basin of Lake Erie alone has been estimated to generate $100 million in revenues Wildlife and natural areas along the lake- each year.This figure represents only revenues shore help to maintain habitat and protect wet- for walleyes caught from private boats in the lands.Wildlife areas are managed primarily for western basin; it does not include revenues from waterfowl habitat.These areas are concentrated the central or eastern basins, the perch or bass mainly in thc western basin and are remnants of fisheries, or the 700 charter boat captains that the old barrier beach-wetland system. We have operate on Lake Erie. The impact of the walleye been able to protect about 20,000 acres of wet- fishery on Ohio's economy is therefore substan- land habitat through federal and state initiatives

1 U J Lake Erie Coastal Uses / 89

practices which will and through the efforts of privateduck hunting tillageand othertillage habitat not reduce soil erosion and decreasephosphorous clubs.These wildlife areas provide is estimated that between forotherimportant levels in runoff. It onlyforwaterfowl but million acres of farmland will have species, including the bald eagle. one and two Lake Erie's to be put into conservationtillage and/or no Several natural areas along for this program Ohio shoreline were set asidemainly to protect tillage type practices in order to have a notableeffect on pollution levels in wetlands.Four of these are state nature pre- runoff. serves.In addition, The NatureConservancy, a non-profitorganization,maintainstwoareas Creek and one in along the lake, one at Arcola Commercial uses Sandusky Bay. Lake Erie plays a very importantrole in and On- Water supply the economies of the bordering states tario.In 1985 about 67 million tonsof goods The great- Lake Erie and the other GreatLakes repre- moved in and out of Lake Erie ports. fresh water. The Great est number of shipments onLake Erie occurred sent a huge reservoir of In that year, 98 million tonsof goods Lakes contain 20% of theworld's fresh surface in 1979. United States' fresh surface were moved onthe lake, 90% of which were water and 95% of the grain, limestone, About 110 billion gallons of waterflow represented by four commodities: water. Ports and commercial navi- through Lake Erie each day. Ohio usesabout 4% coal, and iron ore. Of that gation are thus very important toagriculture, of that, or 4.3 billion gallons perday. These million the steel industry and the powerindustry. total,Ohioans use approximately 530 estimated to have in municipal 98 million tons of goods were gallons per day for drinking water contributed $1.4 billion to Ohio's economyin water supplies, 628million gallons per day for industrial processing, and 3.2 billiongallons per that record year. There are eight commercial harborsalong day forelectrical generation. Note that we rather than "con- Lake Erie that are maintainedby thc United speak of water being "used" They are im- sumed," because much of that wateris returned States Army Corps of Engineers. portant to the economy as a costefficient means to the Great Lakes afterappropriate treatment. keep product claims that of transportation which helps to There is an old adage which Many harbors are dredged bythc "the solution to pollution isdilution."To some costs lower. but Ohio has made Corps to about 28 feetbelow the low water extent that still holds true, datum. Dredging involves the movementof large great strides towardimproving Lake Erie's water amounts of materials, and itis very costly.The quality. All of Ohio's municipal wastewater Ohio also require treatment plants have beenupgraded to include four recreational harbors in Industries have also im- dredging.Keeping these harbors clear in 1986 secondary treatment. million cubic yards of Thanks meant dredging about two proved their waste treatment processes. million dollars. the amount of pollution material at a cost of about 6.4 to these improvements, Dredging activity on the GreatLakes is decreas- entering Lake Erie is decreasing.For example, lake than ever ing, however. As of 1979, about 9.3million less phosphorous is entering the being dredged an- statewide cubic yards of material were before, and we are approaching our More than phosphorous nually from all of the Great Lakes. goal of reducing the amount of Erie alone. About entering Lake Erie from sources inOhio to half of that came from Lake 3.6 million cubic yards weredredged in Ohio 11,000 metric tons per year. of all the dredging Most of the future improvementsin water that year, accounting for 40% non-point that occurred on the GreatLakes. qualitywillcome fromregulating method of disposingof likeagriculturalrunoff. Thetraditional sources of pollutants dredged materials on the GreatLakes is to return Ohio is developing a program towork with farm- them to the open lake.However, many of the ers in 25 countiesin the Lake Erie basin in polluted with This sediments that arc dredged are northwestern Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan. metals.The pol- program is designed to encourageconservation organics, nutrients, and heavy 90/Lake Erie Coastal Uses luted materials must be disposed of eitherat along Lake Erie and is expanding in Ohio. De- upland sites or in containmentareas offshore. tails of the lake effect are discussed in other Thus in the last twelve yearsa new coastal use chapters in this book. has developed along the lakes: confmed disposal facilities.This program was initiated to protect the water quality of Lake Erie and the other Recreational uses Great Lakes. Several facilities have already been constructed along Lake Erie's shoreline. Weare Areas for fishing, boating, swimming,sun- currently looking for new sites at both Toledo bathing, walking, or just viewing the lakecover and Cleveland Harbors, as wellas in other states approximately 23% of Ohio's Lake Erie shoreline. bordering the lake. The Ohio Department of Natural Resourcesoper- This is a very expensive program which has ates six major state parks along the lake.At already cost over $68 million.In addition to the the request of a State Representative, the De- high cost of building contained disposal facilities, partment of Natural Resources recently completed the large area needed for each facility takesup a study to locate a new state park along the valuable nearshore habitat.For example, the shoreline. However, the study showed that there existing facility at Toledo Harbor takesup 242 are few,ifany, remaining areas along Lake acres of shallow water.We face a tradeoff Erie's shoreline that wo,ild be appropriate for between protecting water quality and preserving dfveloping a major new stue park. nearshore habitat. State parks are not the only recreational Commercialoperatorsextractsandand facilities along Lake Erie. Almostevery shoreline gravel from Lake Erie from four designatedareas community has one or two municipal parks which in Ohio.These areas are old geologic deposits are designed for local needs. For the last several and not part of the littoral system.There are years, we have seen increasing demands for more also two salt mines along the shore, whichhave regionalrecreationalfacilities. Through the shafts 2,000 feet deep extending one-halfto one Lake Erie Access Program, the Department of mile under the bed of the lake.Natural gas Natural Resources is trying to work withcom- extraction has been occurring in Lake Erietor munities to improve their municipal parksto some time, although not in the United States. better meet regional needs. Over 1,000 wells have been drilled in Ontario Additional public access is provided through waters with no adverse effects, butno oil or joint public and private ventures. An exampleof natural gasextraction occursin Ohio waters this is Portside in Toledo, where facilities include because of the concern for possible environmental public access along the Maumee River,commer- damage. cial shops,theinternationalheadquartersfor Power generation is an important industry Owens-Illinois, and new boat slips in the park. in Ohio. There are six coal-firedelectricity Nearly one-fourth of all the boats registered generating plants along the Lake Erie shoreline. in Ohio list Lake Erie as their primaryarea of Ohio also has two nuclearpower plants, the use. That represents over 70,000 boats using Davis-Besse Plant in Ottawa County and the Lake Erie from Ohio alone. The economic value Perry Plant in Lake County. Nuclear power of Ohio's boating industry on Lake Erie has been plants depend on large amounts ofwater to cool estimated at $133 million peryear, and recrea- their reactor cores. tional boating contributes a large amountto that Specialty agriculture dependson the lake's total. moderating effect on climate. Lake Erie affects Thereisa95-square-mileareainthe the climate along itsshoreline for about five western basin of Lake Erie offshore from Camp miles inland, causing a warmerautumn and in- Pcrry that the military useas an artillery range creasingthelengthofthegrowing season. for testing and targetpractice. This area is Along the shoreline, then, are fruit farms,nur- oftenrestrictedforboating andfishinguse series,and vineyards. Leamington, Ontario, during the summer. The Sea Grantprogram and claims to be the tomato capital of the world, its other organizations are working to minimize the success largely due to the lake effect. Winemak- conflicts between recreational and militaryuses ing is an established business inmany areas in this area. Lake Erie Coastal Uses / 91

7- A p...../ ) 14100101orlo I 1 1 / (Won, L.

er IonnsyNo.,

1.50(00 Ok 1Owat MVO oI 510, Am* 10.1.. 12 50.$00000rt . ...r.....-,., 1400 Anendonc.. rwmomas ,...-...--- ....:, sIc4a of wet 4963 .,, .,...... ,

(U.S. Depannwnt of the Interior,Lake Erie Figure 103.Recreational areas in the Lake ErieBasin. Report, 1968) was done to propertyalong the Lake Erie shore- lineduringthatperiod. Shoreline property owners also spent anadditional $34 million to protect their properties.It is very expensive to try to protect shoreline property;costs during the survey period ranged fromabout $150 per linear foot to supply large stoneriprap up to $2,000 per linear foot to build a breakwater.

-7 It! efez it ,141rj pmm - 11144%

Figure 10.4,Lake Erie marina.

Residential housing More so on Lake Erie than on anyof the other Great Lakes, residentialhousing represents a major use ofshoreline property.Residential of the Lake housing takes up about 116 miles Lakefront condominiums near Port Erie shoreline in Ohio. Buildingalong the water- Figure 10.5. front causes problems when the structuresget Clinton, Ohio. (Victorl. Mayer) too close to the shoreline.Flooding and erosion We have experienced high lakelevels since are significantproblems for many shoreline prop- 1972. Most of the constructionalong the Lake erty owners.A survey to assess the damages 1900 and 1970 erosion from 1972 Erie shoreline occurred between due to shoreline flooding and levels.Until the to 1976 found that over$65 million of damage during a period of lower water 92 / Lake Erie Coastal Uses last 15 years, water levels had not been signi- References ficantly above the long tcrm average for any length of time since before 1900.As a result, Central Lake Erie Recreational Climate Guide. property owners developed the shoreline based on 1986. Columbus, Ohio: The Ohio State expectationsofloweraveragewaterlevels. University. Recent trends indicate that these expectations Governor's Report on Lake Erie.1986.Colum- may no longer be realistic. bus, Ohio: Ohio Departments of Natural Most of the damage that occurs along the Resources and Transportation and Ohio Lake Erie shoreline is a result of major storms. Environmental Protection Agency. Lake Erie is oriented along a southwest-northeast The Great Lakes: An Environmental Atlas and axis.Whenever a storm occurs which involves Resource Book. 1987. United States En- high winds blowing along this axis for a long vironmental Protection Agency and Environ- period of time, the water is literally pushed to ment Canada. one end of the lake in a storm surge which Lake Erie Report. 1968. Washington, D.C.: causes an exceptionally high water level.In a United States Department of the Interior. recent storm on December 2, 1985, gale force Western Lake Erie Recreational Climate Guide. winds of over 60 miles per hour blew from the 1986. Columbus, Ohio: The Ohio State southwest for several hour.The lake was al- University. ready at a record high level, and on top of that the wind pushed eight feet of water along the lake toward the Buffalo area. At the same time, water levelsin Toledo, on the southwestern shore of the lake, were much lower than normal. During a similar storm event in November, 1972, winds from the northeast raised the water level at Toledo by more than 4 feet, causing $22 million of damage. One last important point should be made about the ownership of the Lake Erie shoreline. The State of Ohio holds in trust for the people of the state the submerged lands of Lake Erie. The littoral upland owners hold the land down to the waterline.The Great Lakes are not like many other coastalstates where thecitizens have customary rights to use the tidal areas.In these other states, people gew up able to go to the beach and walk expansive lengths, picnic, camp, swim, or whatever they would want to do. In Ohio and other Great Lakes states, the beaches are held for the exclusive use of the upland owner. We can only visit beaches along the Great Lakes at public parks.As a result, most of us have not grown up with a close association to the lakes.It has been difficult under these conditions to foster the statewide stewardship for Lake Erie and Great Lakes programs. How- ever, with the improvement in the fishery, the increasing awareness of the importance of clean fresh water, and the efforts of educators, we have seen a heightened sense of stewardship for the Great Lakes begin to grow.Much still remains to be done. 11/ Water LevelFluctuations onthe Great Lakes'

by Thomas E. Croley II

the Introduction fluctuationsandtheircauses,compares naturalfluctuationswithexistingdiversions, concludes with a The Great Lakes are one of our greatest describes current conditions and long-term perspective on lake levels. water resources, containing95 percent of the nation's and 20 percent of theworld's fresh surface water.The prime measures of water quantity are the lake levels ofthe individual Physical system As a result of Great Lakes and Lake St. Clair. of levels which The Great Lakes basin contains an arca the continuing record highlake thousand square the spring of 1985, there hasbeen approximately three hundred began in miles, about one third of whichis water surface. rencwed interestinlakeleveltrends and in high water The basin extends some 2000miles from the factors accounting for the current Superior to the Moses- levels. Many lake shore interests areparticularly western edge of Lake Saunders Power Dam on the St.Lawrence River. concerned about continuing stormdamage and fall storm season on the The water surface drops in acascade over this flooding during the distance some 600 feet to sealevel.The most lakes. to think of upstream, largest and deepestlake is Lake Super- Thereisa major tendency governed ac- of extremes ior.Lake Superior is completely Great Lakes water levels in terms Plan 1977, under rather than of normal conditions.Within recent cording to a regulation plan, the International JointCommission. The lake memory we experiencedthe record low lake into the This resulted in docks sitting has two interbasin diversions of water levels of 1964. Bay Basin, the Long Lac insufficient depths for naviga- system from the Hudson out of the water, 11.1). Lake Superior tion in many harbors andchannels, and greatly and Ogoki Diversions (Figure waters flow through thelock and compensating reduced recreational opportunities.These low works at Sault St. Marie anddown the St Marys levels were followed nine yearslater in 1973 by River into Lake Huron where they arejoined by record high lake levels withresultant flooding, water flowing from LakeMichigan. shore damage and erosion.The lake levels have period and Lakes Michigan and Huron areconsidered remained high over the intervening hydraulically because of their again set on Lakes to be one lake new record highs were once of Mackinac, Clair and Erie in connection through the deep Straits Superior, Michigan, Huron, St. and together they have a vastsurface area that 1985 and 1986. provides a buffer to flow changesleaving the This chapter presents the physicalcharac- lake.The third interbasin diversiontakes place teristics of the Great Lakes from a waterquantity Here water is perspective, outlines the basin and lakehydrologic from Lake Michigan at Chicago. diverted from the Great Lakes tothe Mississippi cycles, summarizes the climatologyof the Great River Basin. The water flowsfrom Lake Huron Lakes, examines the types ofnatural lake level

1GLERL Contribution No. 508.

1 94 / Water Level Fluctuations on the Great Lakes

-_. ( A ..r.,,. I ' # , \-.--.-- Ogoki :,..:-.---./ A ri .:.-- Diversion omms.- .0NIASI EMIR% ORM / / // IONG; pm "7 tnECIP3 PLAN11 V/ ,.--1WPIGO Mgt / . .4.10.14104 de Long Lac Diversion ..... ( MORO PIA/1 INUROIJIIllnyli C.--%'-''A MINNESOTA ,.,,,.. /4 ...., / 5 if p ...,. ( e ,0 .. p Ys E ) i , ',el. 0.UEBEC I-.. Ulls , 1 ;4,7=1'61'.Ne,,,,.. N., l v: \' m..121k/.. / '.1, t - 44,B.L-f.tts -1 ..VC:1

LAM SUPERIOR °WOOL maw IT AlArrl VVIII \l, \ t.0.1M...S.,SELOPI 19, 1/4, . V; --.--__L-,,, 1 , ,..vr,:4 Va -::, IF,/ 110611fEl Os lik '''''''T\r" s.....,..:. cA ...: \ --Al.:swat/ROE PowIR firIORCI; ... .. - S...... __ ..;;-/ .Ells. , , C KG MICHIGAN ..C. \ Welland Canal IUSE31001 , )1/0tRNEIKVIEE 0 PoInDS II CDOe 2 Diversion ( ON CM .i. ,. ICRONIU AKE-ONTARICV ./ IN _../ tOall!0,1 "(CC Wt. DM* TAIL IIEMIX0) ((All A poRSI EWrYORK Lake MichiganC114, DEIRCEIR ONERSONS ) Diversion /4, 011101 End. at Chicago / New York State ....4n.t.f I carit."1'.\ Barge Canal OHIO PENNSYLVANIA Ws I Diversion NO I ANA e, 4 1 .0"

Figure 11.1.Diversions within the Great Lakes Basin. (!JC 1985) through the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair and the New York State Barge Canal System which is Detroit River systcm into Lake Erie.The drop ultimately discharged into Lakc Ontario. in water surface between Lakes Michigan-Huron Lake Ontarioiscompletely regulatedin and Lake Erie is only about 8 feet.This results accordance with R-gulation Plan 1958D. The in a large backwater effect between Lakes Eric, outflows are controlled by the Moses-Saunders St. Clair, and Michigan-Huron; changes in Lakes Powcr Dam between Massena, NY, and Cornwall, St. Clair and Erie levels are transmitted upstream Ontario.From Lake Ontario, the water flows to Lakes Michigan and Huron. through the St. Lawrence River to the Gulf of From Lake Erie the flow istilrough the St. Lawrence and the occan. Niagara River and Welland Diversion into Lake Ontario. The major drop over Niagara Falls precludes changes on Lake Ontario from being Hydrologic cycle transmitted to the upstream lakes. The Welland Diversionisan intrabasin diversion bypassing The primary process that determines the Niagara Falls and isused for navigation and lake levels is the hydrologic cycle of the Great hydropower. There is also a small diversion into Lakes Basin. As shown in Figure 11.2, precipita- Water Level Fluctuations on the Great Lakes / 95 tion enters the snowpack, if present, and is then Major sources of water entering a lake available as snowmelt depending mainly on air include precipitation on the land basin which temperature and solar radiation.Snowtnelt and results in runoff into the lake, precipitation over rainfall partly infiltrate into the soil and partly the lake surface, inflow from upstream lakes, and run off directly to rivers, depending uponthe diversions into the lake.Net groundwater flows moisture content of the soil.Infiltration is high directly to each of the Great Lakes arc generally if the soil is dry, and surface runoff is high if negligible.The outflows consist of evaporation the soil is saturatcd.Soil moisture evaporates from the lake surface, flow to downstream lakes, or istranspired by vegetation depending upon and diversions. The imbalance between the the types of vegetation, the season, solar radia- inflow and outflow resultsin the lake levels tion, air temperature, humidity and wind speed. either rising if there is more inflow than outflow, The remainder percolates into deeper basin stor- represented by a positive change in storage, or ages which feed the rivers andlakes through fallingif thereis more outflow than inflow, interflows and groundwater flows. Generally, represented by a negative change in storage. these river supplies are highifthe soil and groundwater storages are large.Because of this buffering effect of the large snowpack and the Climatology largesoil,groundwater, and surface storages, runoff from rivers into a lake can remain high Precipitation causes the major long term for many months or years after high precipitation variationsinlakelevels. Figure 11.3 depicts has stopped. total annual precipitation over Lakes Michigan- Huron, St. Clair and Erie for the 1900-79 period. From 1900 through1939, a low precipitation Insolation regime predominated with the majority of the Precipitation Temperature years falling below the mean.From about 1940 to 1987, a high precipitation regime hasexisted,

SnowRain Of particular interest is the high precipitation in the early1950s,the low precipitationinthe early 1960s ihat led to the record lows, and a consistently very high precipitation regime from Evapotranspiration the late 1960s through the present time. Melt Runoff /

Surface Upper Soil Runoff Zone Moisture Lakes Michigan-Huron, St. Clair, and Erie ., EvapotranspIration Precipitation 3 Year Non-centered Mean Percolation (based on 1900-1979 period)

Lower Soil interflow Zone Moisture Evapotranspiration 1 000 Deep 1 Percolation E900

Ground Groundwater A Water Zone Moisture Evaporation its800 : c. 700 SIc:rage 1900 1920 1940 1960 1980

Basin Outflow Year

Figure 11.2.Runoff hydrology concepts. Figure 113.Historic precipitation. 96 / Water Level Fluctuations on the Great Lakes

Table 11.1. Great Lakes annual precipitation summary

SIMMUEMIEVII======Lake

Period Superior Michigan Hu ron Er ie Ontario ( in) (% ) ( in) (%) ( in) (%) (in) (%) (in) (%)

Norma la 29.6 10031.1 10031.510034.110034.3 100 1900-39( low) 28.59630.8 9930.5 97 33.5 9833.8 99 1940-85(high)b31.810732.0 10333.610735.810535.6104 1970-85b 33.0111 32.9106 35.0111 37.4 11037.0108 1985b 41.2c13938.2c123 41.6c13242.0 12336.9108 ======M======MIX ======WWWM======allormal is definedas the mean for the period 1900-69. bJune--December 1985provisional data from the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers (Detroit District). cRecord high for 1900-85.

Table 11.1 summarizes Great Lakcs annual The runoff is at a minimum in the late summer precipitation totals by basin for several periods. and early fall because of large evapotranspiration Of particular interest are the progressions of in- from thelandbasin. The lake evaporation creasing precipitation for each basin.While the reaches a minimum during the spring and gradual- 1940-85 period is above normal (from 3 to 7% ly increases untilit reaches a maximum in the higher), thc last 15 year period is higher still (6 late fall or early winter.The high evaporation to 11%); 1985 set many ncw records with the period is due to very cold dry air passingover highest precipitation to date (24 to 35% higher warm lake surfaces.The integration of these for the upper lakes). components is depicted in the net basin supply, Variations in air temperature also influence whichconsistsof theprecipitationplusthe lake level fluctuations.At higher air tempera- runoff minus thc evaporation.The net basin tures, plants tend to use more water, resulting supply reaches a maximum in April anda min- in more transpiration, and thereare higher rates imum in the late fall.Thc negative values indi- of evaporation from the ground surface.This cate that more water is leaving the lake through yields less runoff for the same amount of precipi- evaporation than is being provided by precipita- tation than would exist duringa low temperature tion and runoff. period when there is less evaporation and transpiration. The annual mean air temperature around the perimeter of the Great Lakes since 1900 Lake level fluctuations and trends (Figure 11.4), indicates three distinct temperature regimes: a low temperature regime from 1900 to There arc three primary types of lake level 1929, a higher temperature regime from about fluctuations:annuallakelevels,seasonallake 1930 to 1959 and an additional low regime from levels, and short period lake level changes due 1960 through the present period. The difference to wind setup and storm surge.Annual fluctua- between the previous and current regime isa tions result in most of the variability leading to drop of about 1 degree Fahrenheit. the record high and low lake levels.The annual The magnitudes of the hydrologic variables lake levels are shown in Figure 11.6 from 1860 vary with the season, as shown in Figure 11.5 through the present to illustrate the long-term for Lake Erie.The monthly precipitationis variability of the system.The record highs in fairly uniformly distributed throughout theyear, 1952 and 1973 and record lows in 1935 and 1964 while the runoff has a peak during the spring are readily apparent.There is an overall range which results primarily from the spring snowmelt. of about 6 feet in the annual levels.Of par- Water Level Fluctuations on the Great Lakes / 97

tation on the annual Lake Erie water levelsin Great Lakes Annual Temperature inDegrees C Figure11.7. Precipitation tends to lead the Means Based on 1900-29, 1930-59, and1960-84 Periods water levels by approximately one year, asshown c.)12 here by the 1929 highs, the 1935 lows, and the Particularly noticeable is the impact a)11 1952 highs. a) of the last 15 years of high precipitation,result- c:0 10 Mean ing in very high water levels.Thus, the contin- 9 uing high levels are the result of the increased a precipitation regime since 1940 coupled with the 7 lower temperature regime since 1960.

L. 6 E 5 Lake Superior tr) 183 IT- 4 1980 1900 1920 1940 1960 :-1-)182

Year 01 177 Lake Michigan-Huron Historic air temperature. cc 176 Figure 11.4. Lake St. Clair 175 Lake Erie .c 774

Lake Erie a) 173 Components Net Basin Supply Lake Ontario 75 250 a) 200 as 74 O Runoff 1860 '70'80 '90 1900 '1020 '3040 5060 '70 J C 150 Precipitation Time (years) c 100 0 50- Figure 11.6.Historic Great Lake levels. tu 0 «Evaporation 0 -50 Diff. From Precip. E -ioo Mean (ft) (mm) 3 1 000 150 Water Level -200 FMAMJJ ASOND J FMAMJ JASOND Precipitation 900 Month 800 Figure 11.5.Seasonal net basin supply. ticular interest is the fall in the levels ofLakes 700 Michigan and Huron occurring in the mid-1880s, _- from which the lakes never recovered. This 1900 1920 1940 1960 probably results from dredging for deeper draft Year navigation in the St. Clair River.Other changes in the St. Clair River include sand and gravel Figure 11.7.Annual Lake Erie water levels dredging between about 1908 and 1924, a 25-foot navigational project in the mid-1930s and a 27- Superimposed on the annual levels are the foot navigational project in the late 1950s and seasonal cycles shown in Figure 11.8; eachlake The early 1960s.Without these changes, the level of undergoes a seasonal cycle every year. Lake Michigan-Huron would be approximately 1.5 magnittAde depends upon the individual water feet higher than it is today. supplies.The range varies from about 1.5 feet The three-year precipitation mean in Figure on Lakes Erie and Ontario toabout 1.0 foot on 11.3 correlates very well with annual lakelevels Lake Superior.In general, the seasonal cycles as observed by superimposingthe annual precipi- have a minimum in the winter, usually January 98 / Water Level Fluctuations on the Great Lakes

or February. The levels then rise in response to the record highs set in 1973.In 1985, record increasing water supplies from snowmelt and levels were set in April and May on Lakes Michi- spring precipitation until they reach a maximum gan-Huron, St. Clair and Erie. By October 1986, in June for the smaller Lakes, Erie and Ontario, Lake Michigan-Huron had set record high monthly and September in the case of Lake Superior. levels for 12 consecutive months and Lake St. When the net water supplies diminish in the Clair had set records for 13 consecutive months. summer and fall, the lakes begin their seasonal Lake Erie had set records each month since decline. October 1985 except for April 1986.

Great Lakes Average Seasonal Cycle 175.0 1900-1975 Record High Levels 183.2_ Lake e 183.0 1970-80 1940-79 Ina 176.4_Lake Michigan- 1-...... it...... ,.iron, c co 176.2 174.0 1900-39 g 9 174.0_ V.2 173.8_ Record Low Levels W 74.7 74.5 i 173.0 Month JFINAMJJASOND J F M A MJJ A Month Figure 11.8.Seasonal water level cycles. Figure 11.9.Lake Erie level comparisons. The final type of fluctuation which is common along the shallower areas of the Great Lakes, particularly Lake Erie, Saginaw Bay, and Diversions in some cases on Green Bay, are storm surges and wind set-up.Under these conditions when It is interesting to compare the impacts of the wind is blowing along the long axis of a the existing diversions on lake levels in Table shallow lake or bay, a rapid difference in levels 11.2 with natural lake-level fluctuations. This can build up between one end of the lake and enables a comparison of human impacts with the other.This difference can be as large as 16 naturalfluctuations. The combined effectof feetfor Lake Erie.These storm conditions, Ogoki-Long Lac, Chicago and Welland Diversions when superimposed on high lake levels, cause on the lakes ranges from a plus 0.11 ft. for Lake most of the damage along the Great Lakes shore- Superior to a -0.33 ft. for Lake Erie. The com- line. bined effect on Lake Michigan is only -0.02 ft. Looking in more detail at the past trends and on Lake Ontario 0.08ft. The diversion in lake levels, along with the more recent condi- effects are therefore small in comparison with tions for Lake Erie, we see a steady progression the 1.5-foot seasonal cycle and the 6-foot range of changes in the lake levels over time in Figure of the annual variations. 11.9. These changes reflectthe changesin The small effects of the diversions along precipitation illustrated in Figure 11.3 and sum- with the long response time of the systemil- marized in Table 11.1. At the bottom of Figure lustrate why diversions are not suitable for lake 11.9are the record low lake levels for each regulation. Because of the large size of the month which were set primarily in 1964.Pro- Great Lakes system it responds very slowly to ceeding upwards we have the 40-year average human-induced changes.This is illustrated in from 1900 to 1939. From 1940 to 1979, the lake Figure 11.10 by the length of time it takes from isat a still higher average level.Taking the the start of the hypothetical diversion on Lakes 11-year period from 1970 to 1980, we see that Michigan and Huron (of the magnitude of the the lake level average is higher yet, followed by Chicago diversion) until the ultimate effect of Water Level Fluctuations on the Great Lakes/ 99

Table 11.2. Impact of existing diversions on lake levels. 111371t=iii===.411 ======WARIMAIMi=MUMMMi =====i2.7e===WW71 ======Ontario Diversion Amount Superior Mic hHur Erie (cfs) ( feet) (feet) ( feet) (feet) + 0 .2 1 + 0 .3 7 + 0 .2 5 + 0.22 OgokiLong Lac ,5 ,600 0.10 3 ,2 0 0 0 .0 7 0 .2 1 0 .14 Chicago , 0 9 ,40 0 0 .0 6 0 .1 8 0 .44 Welland , 0.33 + 0 .0 8 COMB I NED + 0 .0 7 0 .02

diversion is reached on Lakes Michigan- A major agricultural or aquifer rechargeproject that and Heron and Erie.It takes approximately three to could require 10,000 cubic feet per second three and one-half years to achieve 50 percent would result in lake level decreases rangingfrom of the ultimate effect and 12 to 15 years to get 0,4 foot on Lake Erie to 0.7 feet on LakeMichi- 100 percent of the effect.Thus, regulation by gan-Huron.It should be emphasized that these diversion would not produce changes responsive are hypothetical projectionsfor illustration only. to natural fluctuations.Recent studies atthe Great Lakes Research Laboratory indicatethat an increase of 10% in theNiagara River discharge Current conditions from Lake Erie would lower it10.5 inches in Precipitation was much higher than normal about 11 to 12 years. throughout the Great Lakes Basin everymonth 100 from December 1984 through March 1985, sometimes ranging 100% higher than normal in some parts of the basin.A major spring snowmelt 80 Lake Michigan-Huron TD also occurred during thc last weekin February > 1985, compounding the problem. On 18February 2,)60 Lake Erie 1985, there was a large snow coverthroughout / of 40 the Great Lakes Basin. One week later most the snow in the southern part of the basinmelted levels to 20 and quickly ran off causing the lake April through June of 1985 was dry to a) rise. a. normal but every month from Augustthrough 0 5 10 15 December of 1985 was again very wet,with Time After Start of Diversion in Years August and September 100% higherthan normal Air temperatures Figure 11.10.Lake level response to diversion in some parts of the basin. throughout the summer were below normal, re- Additional interbasin diversions arc a highly ducing transpiration and evaporation. Air temper- throughout the fall controversial issue around the Great Lakes. Pos- atures were close to normal the basin and lower than normal during thewinter, result- sible uses of Great Lakes water outside In March of are flow augmentationfor navigation, energy ing in major snowpack storage. pipelines, agriculture 1986, both precipitation and airtemperatures uses such as synfuels or resulting in snowmelt and aquifer recharge and municipal watersupplies. were higher than normal, A small pipeline project such asthe Powder runoff which kept the lake levels high. River coal slurry pipeline would require 5-8cubic The results of these conditions for January fcct per second of water and wouldhave no through May 1985 are shown in Figure 11.11 as A synfucls they affect water levels for Lakes Erie, St.Clair measurable impact on lake levels. record project, highly unlikely at this time, couldrequire and Michigan-Huron; also shown are the approximately 800 cubic feet per secondand monthly mean levels established during 1973.At below the result in lake level lowerings of 0.04-0.06feet. the start of 1985, the lake levels were 100 / Water Level Fluctuations on the Great Lakes record levels.The effect of the February 1985 Similarly, for July 1985 through April 1986, snowmelt is shown by the sudden rise, in Figure water levels and record monthly means are shown 11.12, of Lakes Erie and St. Clair.The lakes in Figure 11.12 for Lakes Erie, St. Clair and began exceeding the record levelsin March. Michigan-Huron.Lake levels continued to be Heavy rains on the southern portion of the basin high but slightly under record levels on Lakes occurred in late March and early April of 1985, Erie and St. Clair from July through September which resulted in Lakes Erie and St. Clair setting or October 1985.In November 1985, levels on new record highs in April. Lake Michigan-Huron these two lakes again began exceeding the record. also set record high levels but rose at a much Extremely wet conditions during the fall of 1985 slower rate due to its very large water surface, prevented the lakes from following their normal roughly 45,000 square miles.The record high seasonal decline, causing levels in early 1986 to levels continued in May 1985, but because of the rise near 1985's seasonal peak levels. Above drier conditions on the basin no June records normal pmcipitation in June 1986 further in- were set. creased lake levels. In September 1986, the basins received more than twice their normal rainfall, causing levels to continue to set records (ft) through January 1987 on Lakes Michigan-Huron 581 theSt. Mich.-Huron and Erie; an ice jam in Clair River 580 Record enabled Lake St. Clair levels to drop below the 579 record level that month.However, as a result of extremely dry conditions beginning in Novem- 576 St. Clair Record ber 1986, Lakes Michigan-Huron and Erie exper- 575 Heavy Rain ienced almost no seasonal rise in levels during SnowmeltSouthern Basin 574 1987; by September 1987, Lake Michigan-Huron Erie 573 Record was 1.4 feet and Lake Erie was 0.8 feet below 572 September 1986 levels.

571 1985Jan Feb March April May Future

Figure 11.11.Daily lake levels, 1985. Water supplieswillnot changefast,as shown by the above consideration of diversions. Other studies at the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory indicatedthatif normal meteorologicalconditions were againrealized ("normal"beingtheaverageconditionsover 1900-69),it would still take about 6 years for Lake Michigan-Huron to return from its January 1986 level to its normal (1900-69) level. About 7 years would be required for Lakes St. Clair and Erie to return to within 4 inches of normal and about 9 years would be required for them to return to within 4 inches of normal and about 9 years would be required for them to return to within 2 inches of normal.Even supposing that we encountered a drought similar to the 1960-64 conditions, the studies showed that about 3.5 years were required for Lake Michigan-Huron JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JANFEB MAR APR and about 4 years were required for Lakes St. 1985 1988 Clair and Erie.Drought conditions since late 1986 caused levels to drop more rapidly than Figure 11.12.Daily lake levels, 1985-6. these studies indicated; precipitation during No- Water Level Fluctuations on the Great Lakes / 101 vember 1986June 1987 was 12% less than the Acknowledgment driest equivalent period in the 1960s.However, the lakes still are 1.0 to 1.5 feet above average This report relied extensively on presentations of, and levels;fall and spring storms could still cause other materials gathered by, Dr. Frank H. Quinn, and on studies performed by Ms. Holly C. Hartmann, both from the much damage along Great Lakes shorelines. Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. A long-term perspective on Lake Michigan levels for 7000 years was reconstructed through geologic and archaeologic evidence by Curtis References Larson in 1985 under work sponsored by the IllinoisGeologic Survey. Conditionsseveral Coordinating Committee on Great Lakes Basic thousand years ago were not necessarily the Hydraulic and Hydrologic Data. 1977. same as today because of isostatic rebound and Coordinated GreatLakesphysicaldata. uplift during the intervening time.But, in gen- Detroit: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, eral, this provides us with additional perspective Detroit District. 33 pp. on possible conditions we may experience in the Croley, T.E.,II. 1983. Great Lakes basins future. Looking at just thelast 2500 years, (U.SA.-Canada) runoff modeling. Journal of during which time the Great Lakes were in their Hydrology. 64:135-158. current state, there were major lake level fluc- De Cooke, B.G., and D.F. Witherspoon. 1981. tuations.During most of this time the levels Terrestrial water balance.In IFYGLThe were much higher and more variable than they International Field Year for the Great Lakes, have been during the last 102 years of record. edited by E.J. Aubert and T.L. Richards, If the past is any indication, lake levels in the Ann Arbor: Great Lakes Environmental future could go through a considerably larger Research Laboratory. pp. 210-219. range than we have experienced lately.Indeed, Freeman, N.G., and W.S. Haras. 1978. What you the period of record which makes up what many always wanted to know about Great Lakes consider to be normal, the early 1900s through levelsanddidn'tknow whom toask. the 1960s, may be abnormal conditions. Ottawa: Environment Canada. 28 pp. International Lake Superior Board of Control. 1981. Regulation of Lake Superior: Plan Conclusions 1977 development description and testing. Washington: International Joint Commission. The Great Lakes are experiencing high lake 56 pp. levels, except for Lake Ontario, making it likely International Lake Superior Board of Control. that lake shore interests will experience continued 1982.Regulation of Lake Superior: Opera- flooding, erosion and shore damage. Based upon tional guides for Plan 1977.Washington: the persistence of the current high precipitation International Joint Commission. 52 pp. and low air temperature regimes itis likely that International Great Lakes Diversions and Con- the current high lake level regime will continue sumptive Uses Study Board.1985.Great for the next several years.It is also important Lakesdiversionsandconsumptiveuses. to keep in perspective that while we have ranges Washington: International Joint Commission. in annual lake levels of 4 to 6 feet, and addi- 82 pp. tional short term effects on the order of 7 or 8 Larsen, Curtis E. A stratigraphic study of beach feet, human effects on the system are relatively features on the southv,tern shore of Lake small, on the order of a couple of tenths of a Michigan: New evidence of holocenc lake foot.Therefore people can have relatively little level fluctuations.Environmental Geology impact in bringing about major reductions of the Notes 112.Champaign, IL: Illinois State existing high lake levels. Geological Survey. 102 / Water Level Fluctuations on the Great Lakes

Quinn, F.H.1981. Secular changes in annual and seasonalGreat Lakesprecipitation, 1854-1979, and their implications for Great Lakes water resource studies. Water Re- sources Research. 17:1619-1624. Quinn, F.H.1982. Trends and extremes of Lake Erie water supplies.Proceedings Interna- tionalSymposiumonHydrometeorology, Minneapolis, MN: American Water Re- sources Associaticn. pp. 267-270. Quinn, F.H. 1985. Great Lakes water levels. Great Lakes Water Levels. Briefing of SenatorsandRepresentativesfromthe Great Lakes Basin, Washington, D.C.: Inter- national Joint Commission, July 19. pp. 1-24. Quinn, F.H. and T.E. Croley, II.1981. The role of precipitation climatology in Hydrologic Design and Planning on the Laurentian Great Lakes.In Proceedings Fourth Con- ference on Hydrometeorology, pp. 218-223. Boston: American Meteorological Society. Quinn, F.H. and R.N. Kelley. 1983. Great Lakes monthly hydrologic data.Springfield, VA: NationalTechnicalInformationService, NOAATechnicalMemorandumERL GLERL-39. 79 pp. Quinn, F.H. and D.C. Norton. 1982. Great Lakes precipitation by months, 1900-80.Spring- field, VA: National Technical Information Service, NOAA Technical Memorandum ERL GLERL-20. 24 pp. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. 1985. Great Lakes water level facts.WashIngton, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1985-556- 778. 15 pp. 12/ Effect of HumanActivities on theEcology of LakeErie

by Elliot J. Tramer

No sizeable lake anywhere inthe world has (1) Early settlement period, experienced such extensive changes asLake Erie 1790s-1825 in the past 150 years.The changes in Lake arrived on populations, When thefirstwhite settlers Erie'sfish fauna, algae, bacterial 1800, virtually the conditions and oxygenconcentrations Lake Erie's shores just before bottom entire region was covered bydense hardwood have been especially profound.Without exception, changes lies in a forests that had stood undisturbedfor thousands the key to understanding these South and cast from Cleveland,the study of the activities of peoplewho have settled of years. rolling hills of the AppalachianPlateau supported in the lake's drainage basin sincethe early 1800s. rich forests of beech and sugarmaple, with lesser This chapter provides anoverview of those ac- in numbers of oaks, red maples,hickories, white tivities,and attemptstocorrelate changes In the deep in the develop- ashes, tulip trees and other species. lake conditions with major events hemlocks tow- societies along Lake Erie ravines that drained this plateau, ment of modern human ered 80 feet and more, shutting outthe light on during the 19th and 20th centuries. and its even the brightest summerdays. West from The modern history of Lake Erie side of the lake, people can be divided into fivetime intervals, Cleveland and on the Canadian major the land formed a low levelplain of rich clay correspondingtoeventsthatcaused earlier, whcn changes in the lake's ecology.These are (1) soil laid down thousands of years 1790s-1825, (2) the the lake had extended furtherinland, inundating early European settlement, vast areas of the plain.Towering forests of period of transportation development,1825-1865, ash, pin oak, "revolution" and rapid silver and red maple, elm, black (3) the period of industrial Cleve- of full sycamore and walnutcovered this plain. population growth, 1865-1930, (4) the era Forest City in the lake degra- land itself was nicknamed the industrial development and maximum nineteenth century. Some of the treesexceeded dation, 1930-1975, and (5) the presentinterval, 100 feet in height, and rangedupward of five which I will hopefully andoptimistically call the feetin diameter. An ancient sycamore near period of lake recovery, from 1975 toonward. table and four In general, the rates ofpopulation growth Cleveland that was so wide a card chairs could be set inside itshollow base.hi and lake change were very slowduring the first pioneer days this lake plain hadinnumerable low period, accelerated during period(2) until just swampy areas that wereunder water for up to before the Civil War, increasedexplosively during during period ten months each year. period (3), and gradually slowed It is difficult for us toappreciate the inten- (4). Although modest populationgrowth has con- sity of the early settlers'antipathy toward this tinued in Lake Erie's watershedduring the past forest.Today, trees are valued for theirshade 10 years (period 5), conditionsin the lake have people flock to our gradually improved for the firsttime in human and beauty, and thousands of state and metropolitanparks each year to enjoy memory. 104 / Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology ofLake Erie

lation of Cleveland was about 600; Detroit had 1,442 citizens and Toledo did not exist.

A :423 ,

-6k:;"1. Figure 12.1.The largest sycamore.(Cleveland Museum of Natural History)

the few wooded areas thatstill exist.But in pioneer days the forest wasa dark forbidding presence that sheltered wolves, bears, and other Figure 12.2.A "brag" load of white pine I.;s, animals perceived to be dangerous, not to mention Michigan, 1880.(Michigan Depart- hostile Indians.It was an enemy to be van- ment of Conservation) quished, and later, a source of lumber to be exploited for profit. The forest was an impedi- Fcw descriptions of Lake Erie havecome ment to travel and inhibited the growth ofcom- down to us from the early days of settlement. merce and agriculture. The first duty of any In the earliest accounts, stream and lakewaters settler after staking out his plot of landwas to are described as pure and "sweet," and the clarity clear the timber and underbrushas quickly and of the water is often mentioned.Fishes were completely as possible.It is not surprising that apparently exceedingly abundant, especially during virtually none of the original forest remained in spawning runs in the lake's major tributaries. the Lake Erie basin by 1890.In fact, only about The species of fish mentioned ascommon in the 10% of the land in the basin has been allowedto early days include those typical of clear, well- returnto forestcover. Of allthe changes oxygenated waters (see Andrew White'spaper in wrought by modern humans, deforestation has this volume), indicating that the lake and rivers been by far the most powerful agent of change feeding into it were, probably of very high quality. in the character of Lake Erie. At the end of the early settlement period Atfirst,the paceof deforestation was (1825), forest cover still extendedover most of slow.There were few settlers because of prob- the region. Episodes of siltation caused by forest lems with the Indians and a lack of goodavenues removal, or of sewage contamination from human of transportation.Trees had to be felled with settlements, either had not yet occurred orwere hand axes or primitive saws, and teams of horses so local and of such small magnitude that they or oxen were required to move the huge logs. were not worthy of remark. Deforestation was easiest (and thus occurred One change well under way by 1825 deserves first) on level dry lands.Swampy areas were mention: the creation of mill damsacross rivers flooded and thus inaccessible during much of the and creeks. Transportation was slow and unrelia- year, and the steep-sided ravines along the lake's ble, so early settlers could not dependon ship- southeastern flank were also difficult to exploit. ments of flour from the east.They needed to Roads being almost non-existent, most settlers be able to grind their own grain to produce flour arrived from the east by boat.Therefore the for baking.In this connection it is interesting early settlements were located on the lakeshore to note that Detroit was already a French fort or the banks of larger rivers.In 1820 the popu- in 1701, long before there were other European

g P 't. LVSik Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie / 105 settlements near Lake Erie.Famines occurred possible a steady flow of some people and goods there with great frequencyin 1780, 1784, 1789, from the developed Atlantic coastal states into etc.in part because the French thought the land the Lake Erie basin. At first the canal primarily too swampy or sandy for successful cultivation. brought settlers westward, but as the population The famines did not cease until 1825, when cuhi- of the Great lakes increased, the canal began to vation was successful and mills were built, allow- carry goods produced by those peopleback to ing flour to be produced locally and ending eastern markets eager for grain, lumber and other dependence on flour shipments froz../ elsewhere. products of the frontier. The only source of abundant power in early days was to harness the force of gravity byusing falling water to drive mill wheels.In much of the lake basin, where the land was flat and streams lacked natural waterfalls, the only way to harness this power was to build an artificial waterfalla dam.

'4'41

Z-X Figure 12.4. Canal scene. (Ohio Historical Society)

Between 1825 and '` 1a virtual orgy of canal building ensued r 29 the Welland Canal Figure 12.3.Mill dam. (Ohio Historical Society) connected Lake ( with Lake Eric, circum- venting Niagara Falls and the rapids of the These dams decimated many populations of Niagara River.Canals extended from Cleveland migratory fishes by blocking their spawning runs, to Portsmouth, Ohio, and from Toledo to Cincin- and created areas of ponded watcr upstream nati, linking Lake Erie with ports on thc Ohio where silt was allowed tosettleout on the River. These connections to the south were bottom. By the end of the early settlement important in expanding the grain trade in the period hundreds of dams were under construction, Lake Eric region. and virtually every river or creek bed that led Buffalo was the first city on Lake Erie to to Lake Erie had at least one mill dam across it. experience a "boom" during the canal era. It had seen only 120 boats enter its harbor in 1820, but by 1850 over 9000 vessels wcrc trading there (2) Transportation development, each year.By the 1850s Buffalo was thc largest 1825-1865 grain market in the world.This growth was spurred by Buffalo's location at the eastern end This era was ushered in by an event of of the lake, a natural transfer point for grain profound significance in the history of the Lake grown in the midwest and shipped to thelarge Erie basin, the completion of the Erie Canal. eastern cities, and by the invention at Buffalo in This canal, which extended westward some 300 1843 of the grain elevator, which permitted fast miles from the Hudson River at Albany, New loading and unloading of grain from big ships. York, to its terminus on Lake Erie at Buffalo, The canal system was thc dominant form of was completed in 1825.Roads were so poor at transport for only about 20 years, from 1825 to that time that canals were thc fastest and most perhaps 1845. Thc human labor devoted to con- reliable means of travel.The Erie Canal made structingthatsystem was incredible by any 106 / Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie

lir Fremont and Perrysburg, Ohio (the worst section), because travelers often progressed less than a mile a day. The Black Swamp greatly impeded the development of northwest Ohio compared to other parts of the Lake Erie basin.Until the Black Swamp road (now U.S. Highway 20) was finally macadamized in 1842, the preferred overland route from Buffalo to Detroit was through southern Ontario.The extent to which northwest Ohio was bypassed by the early tide of settlersis reflected in the 1830 census figures.At that Figure 12.5.Buffalo Harbor in the 1850s. (Mar- time, the six counties of southeastern Michigan ine's Museum, Ne*prot News) contained 14,585 people, while an almost identi- cal-sized arca (now comprising nine counties) in standard: canals were dug by hand, using picks northwest Ohio had only 2,955 residents. and shovels.Imagine digging a trench 26 feet The growth of population and commerce in deep, 40 feet wide, and 300 miles long without the Lake Erie basin accelerated tremendously the aid of machinery!Ironically, improved roads with the coming of railroads.A railroad link and increasing competition from railroads in the between Buffalo and Albany was completed in 1840s ard 1850s quickly made the canals obsolete. 1843, following the same general route as the Despite the development brought about by Erie Canal.The system expanded rapidly until canals, there was still an acute need to improve by 1848 railroad tracks extended all the way to ovetland transportation in the 1820s and 1830s. Chicago. Horses were faster than barges, and both the In the early 1850s a number of events made canAs and Lake Eric were frequently made im- the south shore of Lake Erie a focus of industrial passable by winter ice. Violent storms made Lake development in the midwcst. One was thecon- Erie unpredictable and often dangerous for travel- struction of railroads northward to the lake from ers by ship. A serviceable wagon road connected the coal fields of Pennsylvania, West Virginia Buffalo and Cleveland with thc east by 1820, but and southeastern Ohio.Another was the dis- west of Clevc.laild the situation was different. covery at Titusville, Pennsylvania, in 1859 that Most of noi thwestern Ohio was swampy or marshy crude oil could be brought to the surface from land that rcmained flooded from Octoberor wells drilled deep into the earth. A thirdwas November until July of the next year. A par- the discovery of vast deposits of iron ore along ticularly wet area of more than 3000 square miles Lake Superior.The latter event was the prime lay like a moat across the route from Cleveland impetus for the construction of the Soo Locks to Detroit.This huge area, called the "Black connecting Lakes Huron and Superior; shipments Swamp," was the major obstacle to overland travel of iron ore to the lower lakes began immediately along Lake Erie's southern flank. upon completion of the locks in 1855. Pressure to establish an overland mail route The Lake Eric shore had no oil, coal or between Cleveland and Detroit caused Congress iron ore ofitsown, butitwas strategically to appropriate funds for a road through the Black located between huge deposits of all three.In Swamp in 1821.Completed by 1827, the road addition to being major transportation hubs, the was an elevated, 40-foot-wide strip with ditches cities on the lake had another great resource of on either side.For the first15 years of its inestimable value for industrial developmentan existence,it was known as the worst road on abundant supply of clean water. the North American continent.Its surface was The railroads facilitated development of the mud, and horses and wagons became hopelessly lake's cities as important marketing centers for mired during the nine months each year that thc agricultural products as well.Buffalo became swamp was flooded.Hauling teams out of mud- the leading grain port, and wool, beef,pork, holes provided a steady income for settlers along lumber and a host of lesser products were shipped the route.Inns existed at each milepost between by way of the lake ports. The railroads hastened Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie/ 107

except for portions of the Black Swampin northwestern Ohio. Some idea of the spreadof agriculture in the basin may be gained from the observation that the bobwhite quail, a bird that thrivesonly in weedy agriculturallandscapes, reached its all-time peak of abundance in southern Ontario in the 1850s. With the growth of cities and the absence of any means of sewage treatment, the appearance of water-borne diseases wasinevitable. The first New World outbreak of cholera began in 1832 at Quebec on theSt. Lawrence River, broughttothishemisphere on a ship from Europe.Sailors who drank contaminated water Figure 12.6.Railroads meet shipping terminals at Quebec soon brought the disease to ports on in modern Toledo.(Toledo-Lucas the Great lakes, where it spread rapidly. Buffalo CourUy Pon Authority) had several outbreaks in the 1840s after some of its shallow wells became polluted.After a par- deforestation of the region by making possible ticularly virulent cholera epidemic in 1849 killed the rapid transport of large quantities of lumber over a thousandcitizens,Buffaloinstalleda to the east, where the forests had been destroyed water intake in the rapids of the NiagaraRiver two generations earlier and an insatiable market and urged its residents not to drink from wells. for building materialsexisted. The railroads Cleveland also experienced difficulties with themselves consumed vast quantities of wood, polluted water. A typhoid epidemic in 1851 was both as fuel for the locomotives and as ties for attributedtocontamination of wells and the the tracks.Lumber quadrupled in value during Cuyahoga River. The lower Cuyahoga was already the railroad period as the population grew and becoming infamous foritsfoul quality in the the need for housing increased. A kind of posi- 1850s, when a resident described it as "...yellow- tive feedback phenomenon took hold, with the ish...bad-tasting...slimy in August with all manner establishment of railroads creating new oppor- of impurities floating on top" (Avery 1918).Be- tunitiesforagriculture,industryandurban cause of the unsanitary conditionof the river growth, which in turn increased the need for and well water, Cleveland in 1853 installed a lumber and other resources, creating thc need watcr works whose intake was 1000 feetoffshore for more railroads, and so on. By 1860 Cleveland in Lake Erie.By the 1860s the Cuyahoga was had 43,000 residents while Buffalo's population little more than an intercepting sewer, carrying coal, exceeded 81,000. raw human sewage, slaughterhouse wastes, The spread of agriculture, industry and pop- sawdust, oil and other contaminants out to the ulation began to have noticeable effects on Lake lake.Even small towns were not immune to the Erie by the end of this period.By 1855, big ravages of growth; Perrysburg, a smallcommunity lake sturgeons no longer ascended the rivers to on the Maumee River at the edgeof the Black spawn. Dams and the contamination of river Swamp, suffered a cholera epidemic in 1854. mouths by sewage and industrial pollutants had After 1860 the Civil War briefly sapped the already decimated populations of fishspecies country's energies and slowed development in the that moved from the lake into rivers to repro- Great Lakes basin.As soon as the war ended, duce.In the 1850s mention of siltin streams however, the stage was setfor the industrial and turbidity of river and nearshore lake waters "revolution" to move into high gear. Despite appears for thefirsttime in the writings of problems with water-borne diseases and the early people living around Lake Erie. The bulk of the evidence of environmental deterioration described population wasstillrural,and conversionof above, the prevailing attitude was that Lake Erie forestlands to farms was virtually complete was too big to ever become seriously polluted. 108 / Effect of Hurnan Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie

(3) Industrial "Revolution" tons of ore were shipped through Cleveland, and explosive growth, 1865-1930 Conneaut and Ashtabula on their way to the steel-making re0on between Youngstown and The growth of Cleveland was typical of the Pittsburgh. rapid economic expansion that occurred through- Grain continued to be Buffalo's chief port out the Great Lakes region following the Civil business into the 1870s, with meat-packing, lum- War,John D. Rockefeller, a resident of that ber, iron and steel becoming increasingly impor- city, began in 1861 to centralize the fledgling oil tant thereafter.By 1900 Buffalo was the second industry under his personal control.By 1869 largest lumber market in the midwest, The Cleveland was an oil refining center, with Rocke- construction of a hydroelectric plant at Niagara feller's new Standard Oil Company leading the Falls in 1895 provided cheap electric power, and way. By the 1900s Cleveland was the leading oil further spurred industrial growth in the Buffalo refining city in the world. area.The world's largest industrial steel plant, owned by the Lackawanna Steel Company, was located at Buffalo in 1907. Toledo also expanded rapidly. By the 1890s it was second to Cleveland as an oil refining center. The Libbey Glass Company came to

.:Liissigioggig' =our:_ Toledo in 1888 from New England, lured by abundant sand for glass-making and cheaper wood and soft coal fuels.Natural gas was discovered 111- ilja* at Findlay, Ohio, in 1885, precipitating a brief but intense economic boom. Gas fires proved to - . be ideal for glass-making, and the proximity of Toledo to the gas fields further stimulated the growth of that city's glass industry.After the invention of a machine for mass-producing glass bottles by Libbey Company's Michael J. Owens in Figure 12.7.Anoilrefinerynear Cleveland. 1902, Toledo became the world's leading manufac- (Andiew M. Mate) turer of glass products. Detroit's growth was only moderately fast In the 1860s coal was rapidly replacing wood until 1900, when Henry Ford began mass-produc- as a fuel.It was particularly needed for the ingautomobilesthere. Then Detroit grew manufacture of iron and steel.Cleveland's iron explosively.Other cities on the lake also par- foundries already employed 3,000 men by 1860, ticipatedin the auto boom; Toledo provided and these factories were important suppliers of windshield glass and spark plugs, Akron's rubber arms to the Union forces during the Civil War. industry produced tires, and Cleveland, Sandusky In 1865, 456,000 tons of coal were shipped to and other cities manufactured a variety of auto Cleveland, most of it for use in the iron industry. body and engine components. This was only the beginning.Iron ore shipped In all these places, the growth of industry to Cleveland increased from 723,000 tons in 1883 provided unprecedented opportunities for employ- to almost 3 1/2 million tons in 1890 and over 11 ment that drew people from near and far to settle million tons in 1930.Leaders of the steel in- in the Lake Erie basin.The period 1870-1918 dustry found the existing lake sailing ships too was a time of political and social unrest in cen- slow for the commercial transport of iron ore, so tral and eastern Europe, and hundreds of thous- they built their own fleets of steam powered ands of European refugees fled to this country freighters,uniquely suitedforcarrying heavy seeking to build new lives. The industrial revolu- cargoes of ore on thelakes. Consequently, tion put them to work, often in the factories on Cleveland became the leading shipbuilding ccnter Lake Erie's shore.Reflecting this flood tide of in the Great Lakes, and by 1890 it led the nation immigrants, Buffalo's population quadrupled be- in shipbuilding.In addition to the ore uscd by tween 1860 and1900. Cleveland grew from Cleveland'sfoundries,thousands of additional 43,000 inhabitants in1860 to 92,000 in1870, Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie / 109

more than doubling itspopulation in just10 of its forests; western Ontario followed by 1915, years.By 1930 Cleveland had over 900,000 resi- although the immediate lakeshore arca had been dents, and was thefifthlargestcityinthe deforested far earlier. United States. Detroit had over one million This era also saw the final demise of the people, and ranked fourth. Black Swamp in northwest Ohio. The swamp was the last vestige of primeval forestleftin the Lake Erie basin.Despite early efforts to convert 15 it to agriculture, the swamp was still more than 50% forested in 1870.The key to clearing the swamp was efficient drainage, and advanced techniques of tile drainage, already in use elsewhere, were not generally known to the local residents until the 1870s.Persistent problems with "ague" (malaria) and knowledge that the soils of the 10 swamp were very fertile provided strong impetus for drainage projects.Finally, between 1874 and 1881,localgovernmentsinvested1.5million dollars in roads, drains and ditches in the swamp. Creeks were cleared of snags, and the water table quickly dropped, drying out most of the swamp.Cutting of the forest followed at once, lowering the water table still further.By 1887 the swamp was more than 90% deforested.Be- tween 1890 and 1930 the Black Swamp produced the best agricultural yields in the entire Great Lakes region, with corn the dominant crop.In the 0 the years immediately aftcr World War I region became the most intensively farmed area 1900 10 20 30 40 SO 60 70 80 1990 in the United States, and visitors to the arca Figure 12.8.Population growthinthe Great could sec no evidence whatsoever that an im- Lakes' basins since 1900. (Bo(ts penetrable swamp had stood there a mere half and Kncshelnkki. 1987.rig Great century before. Lag. P. 18) In fact, agriculture thrived in most of the Lake Erie basin during this period.In north- The need for wood also expanded greatly eastern Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York, the after the Civil War. Wood was still the nation's hilly lands of the Appalachian Plateau wcre well primary building material, and lumber was becom- suited for dairy cattle.Apples, grapes and other ing increasingly scarce. The primary focus of the fruit crops thrived, especially along the narrow lumber industry in the late 1800s was on the lake plain from Sandusky eastward. Rich harvests whitepineforestsof Michigan and western were produced in southeast Michigan and Ontario Ontario.For a generation or more this region as well.Grain production was very successful, provided the bulk of the nation's needs for wood with 26 million bushels of wheat marketed at and wood products.Huge shipments of pine Detroit in 1886.Extreme southern Ontario had lumber arrivedat Toledo almost daily in the rich soils and a long growing season because of 1880s, towed from the sawmills on Saginaw Bay the ameliorating influence of Lake Erie on spring on Lake Huron.Paper products also consumed and fall temperatures. The area quickly became vast amounts of wood, especiallyafter1890, a center of production for fruits, vegetablesand when newsprint was made entirely of wood pulp grains.Tomatoes, grapes, apples and peaches instead of a mixture of wood pulp, straw and wereparticularlysuccessful,and Leamington, rags.A single newspaper, the Chicago Tribune, Ontario, soon declared itself "the tomato capitol used 200,000 tons of newsprint annually in the of Canada." 1920s.By 1890 Michigan was stripped of most 110 / Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie

Farming at the close of the 19th century areas became choked with silt.Unprecedented was very different from today.The average flood crests occurred, causing heavy damage to farm was only about 100 acres.Fields were small riverside communities.In Fetruary 1883 a heavy and were bordered by wide brushy fencerows or rain raised the Cuyahoga River ten feet in several hedges that provided wildlife cover and v4ed- hours.Cleveland's industrial flats were flooded, breaks.Crops were rotated and land was often causing millions of dollars of damage. The situa- "rested" for a year or more, or cycled between tion was exacerbated when an oil tank exploded crops and pasture.Manure and legumes were and flaming oil was spread across thc water's plowed under to maintain soil fertility, and farm- surface. The author witnessed another flood ers gyew much of the food they consumed at after a heavy rainstorm in June 1959 that put their tables. After 1915, however, agriculture UniversityCircle,Cleveland'sculturalcenter, began to change. The advent of motorized farm under six feet of water.This 1959 flood was machinery made it more economical to grow caused by extensive paving and channel confine- monocultures on much larger fields. Farmers ment in the watershed of Doan Brook, which raised just one or two cash crops and kept little drains two of Cleveland's eastern suburbs. or none of what they grew, buying most of what Bacterial contamination of drinking water theyatefromthestore,likecitydwellers. became a pervasive problem in the lakeshore Hedgerows and brush were cleared away, reducing cities in the late 19th century.Cleveland's water cover for wildlife and accelerating the erosion of intake had to be moved 6,600 feet offshore by topsoil. With the topsoil went chemical fer- 1874 and in 1904it was relocated again, this tilizers, directly into die waterways. time about 4 miles offshore!In 1917 a filtration Siltation of waterways leading to Lake Erie plant was builtto purify Cleveland's drinking was extremely heavy during this period.Biologist watcr. In Buffalo water use increased 33-fold E.L. Moseley traveled from Toledo to Cleveland between 1868 and 1906.After the CM! War in a heavy rainstorm in June 1902, and wrote: "I Buffalo's sewage emptied viainterceptors and foundallthe ditches between Sandusky and canals into the Buffalo River, whence it entered Cleveland carrying torrents of muddy water, and the eastern end of Lake Erie, proceeded down creeks swollen to the size of small rivers bearing the Niagara River, and was returned (in part) to their loads of sediment on toward the lake." the citizens of Buffalo via thcir drinfing water The commercial fishery thrived in the 1880s intake!In 1883 an interceptor was built to carry despite rapidly increasing contamination and the some of the sewage to the Niagara River down- loss of spawning habitat.However, the tons of stream from the intake.Finally, in 1896 drinking sediment carried into estuaries such as Maumee water was pumped from another intake in Lake and Sandusky Bays soon suffocated the rooted Erie, well offshore.These changes, together aquatic plants there, ruining the spawning areas with increased surveillance of the quality of Buf- of the most desirable food fishes.By 1900 these falo's drinking water, improved the health of the bays had been converted from lush aquatic mea- city's residents in the 1890s.In 1891 Buffalo's dows to feckless, turbid basins devoid of rooted dcath rate was 2.35% (6,001 deaths among 255,000 plants. Thanks tosilt,sewage and toxic in- people); by 1900 the death rate had fallen to dustrial wastes, a profound shift in the species 1.4% (4,998 deaths among 352,000).Virtually all composition of the Lake Erie fish fauna was well of this improvement was the result of reduction underway by the early 1900s. Andrew White in deaths from water-borne diseases. describesindetailthedevastatingeffects of By the end of this period there was finally these changes on our commercial and sport fish- some official concern for the deteriorating quality eries elsewhere in this volume. of Lake Erie.By 1930 scientific surveys of the Increasingly, water was confined to river lake'salgae, zooplankton and fishpopulations channels as floodplains were diked or filled and had begun.Oxygen levels in the central basin built upon, ditches and drains dug, roads paved off Cleveland and around the Lake Eric islands and plant cover removed.Storm runoff was were being monitored. No one was yet attempting channeled immediately into creeks and rivers and any remedial action and conditions were to be- hastened downstream; areas of streambed with come far worse, but at least there was now some fastflow were scoured out, while slow-water public awareness of the lake's problems. Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie/ 111

(4) Peak of industrial commercial aviation revolutionizedtravel, and development and lake virtually eliminated railroads and ships as passen- degradation, 1930-1975 ger carriers in the Great Lakes aswell as elsewhere. Goods still traveled by ship and rail, but The world-wide depression of the 1930s tractor-trailer trucks carried a larger and larger brought industrial growth in the Lake Erie basin share of the nation's produce during this period. to a virtual standstill.The depression was also The explosive growth of truck and car travel hard on farmers, and many had to leave their exacerbated air pollution problems already made farms to seek employment in the cities. Substan- acute in marcities by heavy industry.By the tial acreage of rural land was abandoned -..0;! 1960s Cleveland had the third-worst air quality reverted to second growth thickets.This episo,2,.. in the U.S. (after New York and Los Angeles), a was brief, however, and WorldWar II brought designation based on particulate matter and ozone full employment and renewed economic vigor to concentrations. the region.After the war ended in 1945 the Auto production was at record levels through economic boom continued at an even faster pace. most of this period, and oil, paint, glass,electri- Factories that had devoted their resources to cal and other industries vital to the economic producing armaments and other war materials welfareof theregion continuedtoprosper. turned once again to the production of automo- However, by 1970 there werc some danger signs. biles, appliances and other consumer goods. Especially distressing were ominous changes in Agriculture became more and more mechan- the steel industry.Steel production in the Lake ized, and the use of chemical herbicides, insec- Erie cities peaked during World War II and then ticides and synthetic fertilizers became almost began a gradual but accelerating decline.The universal.Increasingly, farmers had to be agri- steelindustry in Ohio and Pennsylvania was businessmen and auto mechanics as well as horti- beset with outmoded plants and equipment and culturists and stockmen.Farming became more high labor costs. economically risky as chemicals, fossil fuels and The late 1960s were also a time of social farm equipment increased in cost. Farmers were unrest caused by a combination offactors, in- forced to put every square foot of land under cluding urban decay and an unpopular war in cultivation. Fields were no longer rested by southeast Asia. For several consecutive summers fallowing; crop rotation was based on market riots occurredin many American cities,with considerations rather than the long-term health Detroit and Cleveland experiencing some of the of the soil, and wildlife cover became nonexistent worst. The costs of unrest ran into thehundreds on many farms. Waterways were stripped of of millions of dollars, most of it from arson and vegetation and channelized to allow farmers to destruction of property. Many employers reacted cultivate floodplains right to the edge of streams to this situation by moving theirbusinesses out and ditches; the adverse affects on topsoil, water of downtown areas.Stores, restaurants, banks quality, fish species and human populations living and offices of all kinds relocated in the suburbs. downstream were ignored. This pattern occurred Many industries, already stressed by high labor most extensively in the Maumee Riverwatershed costs, simply left the region altogether, atrend south and west of Toledo: the Maurnee was and thatstill continues in the 1980s.Midwestern stillis the largest contributor of siltto Lake cities that had been beacons of opportunity to seemed on the verge Erie. poor immigrants in the 1890s The 1950s brought profound changes in of becoming impoverished backwaters, occupied urban areas as well. The basin's large industrial only by those too poor to leave, and run by gov- cities leveled off or even declined in population ernments unable to generate the revenues to as urban pollution and crowdingdrove the more meet their obligations. affluent people out to the suburbs. This shift in Throughout the years of industrial develop- population was abetted by the interstate highway ment and population growth, Lake Eriehad been system, begun in the 1950s, which allowedpeople used as thc dumping place for the wastes and to live far from their jobs and commute toand byproducts of tens of millions of people.In the from the city each day.Improved highways and mid-1950s, the cumulative effects of a century the -development of high-speed jetaircraft for and a half of indifference became too obvious to 112 / Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie

ignore.Water quality investigations revealed an existed that favored strong, decisive action on alarming spread of anoxic (deoxygenated) waters, environmental problems. Federal laws were soon especially in the lake's central basin.Bearing enacted setting goals for air and water quality the accelerating costs of harbor dredging and and protecting endangered species of wildlife. sewage treatment had become a burdensom," The International Joint Commission was empow- necessityfortaxpayers. Nuisance blue-green ered to deal with a wide range of environmental algae growths caused by overfertilization of the issues affecting the Great Lakes.An Environ- lake encumbered boating, fouled beaches and mental Protection Agency was created to enforce tainted drinking water with their toxins.Exces- the nation's new environmental laws, and federal sive bacterial counts closed beaches to swimming, grants were made to many Great Lakes cities to and the spectacular collapse of the commercial help them upgrade their wastewater treatment fisheries for blue pike, cisco, lake whitefish and facilities to meet the new standards.For the sauger made headlines. first time, there was cause for optimism about By 1970 Lake Erie had attracted so much Lake Erie's future. negative attention in the popular press that its name had become a kind of "sick joke," a euphe- mism forecological disaster. Television talk (5) The Lake's show hosts and stand-up comedians couldguaran- recovery and future tee a laugh by mentioning "Lake Erie" in the prospects, 1975-? context of something grossly unpleasant or ruined beyond repair.Some ignorant or irresponsible Improvement in the quality of Lake Erie authors even popularized the idea that Lake Erie has occurred on at least four fronts.First, the was "dead," an absurd notion in view of the vast nuisance algae blooms of the late '60s and early blooms of all-too-living blue-green algae and '70s have subsided.This change may be attri- tons of forage fish being produced annually in butedtolower phosphorus concentrations,a the lake. reduction caused by tertiary sewage treatment and by the phasing out of high phosphate laundry r detergentsin many statesaround the Great Lakes.Ohio, however, does not enforce a phosphate ban.Especially beneficial has been improved sewage treatment by Detroit, formerly the S. largest single contributor of phosphorus to Lake Erie.Overall, phosphorus loadings declined by almost 56% between 1968 (the peak year) and 1982 (see Herdendorfs article in this volume.) Improved sewage treatment is undoubtedlya major contributor to progress on two other fronts as well, reduced coliform bacteria counts and the gradual shrinkage of the volume of anoxic water in the lake's hypolimnetic zone. A fourtharea of improvement is the lake's fishery.For the Figure 12.9.Cleveland beach closed in 1972 by time being, atleast,fish populations seem to coliform contamination. (Andrew have stabilized, and the walleye has fullyrecov- M. White) ered from its steep decline of the 1960s. Lady Luck may also be lending a hand. Fortunately, the turbulent years at the end The years 1972 through 1974 and 1984 through of this period were also the dawn of a newera early 1987 have seen record high lake levels. of environmental awareness. On April 22, 1969, High lake levels are not new; they result when- years of growing concern culminated in the first ever abnormally high rainfall and snowfall occurs Earth Day, which gave tremendous positive publi- in the basins of Lakes Michigan, Huron and city to the environmental movement and showed Superior, all of which empty into Lake Erie.In government officialsthata huge constituency recent times lakelevels have reached record Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie / 113 highs and have been well above average more they cannot be tolerated, even at low concentra- frequently, probably because of extensive paving, tions.Examples include acids, heavy metals like deforestation, drainage and stream channelization mercury, lead and cadmium, and syntheticchemi- throughout the Great Lakes basin. Although cals like PCBs and some of the pesticides. These high lake levels have wreaked havoc with lake- materials threaten drinking water, ediblefish shore property owners, theeffects on water stocks and recreational use as well as wildlife, quality have been beneficial because a much and should be kept out of the lake regardless of larger volume of water is available to dilute the the cost or inconvenience of doing so. effects of nutrient and toxic waste inputs.In Third, we still need a better understanding fact, the degree to which lake improvement since of the life cycles and needs of species important 1975 is "real" (i.e., the result of better sewage to the lake's commercial and sportfisheries, not treatmentand toughereffluentstandardsas only the fishes themselves but also the algae, opposed to high water levels) remains somewhat zooplankton,insects,aquatic birds and other controversial. organisms that make up the food web of which In a perverse way, the decline of heavy fishes are a part. We still do not have enough industry in the Lake Erie basin may also aid in data to set reasonable limits of exploitation on the lake's recovery.Reductions in steel produc- the fish nor do we know enough about the lake's tion, oil refining and so on mean less industrial biotic community to predict with confidence the waste entering our waters; the flightof heavy effects of a given human activity on the lake industry from the Great Lakes to cheaper labor ecosystem. An obvious corollary is that asscien- markets to the south and west also means slower tificdata become available we need effective rates of population growth in the region.As laws (rigorously enforced) that will protect the long as employment opportunities can be made lake's biotic resources. available in the non-polluting service sector of Finally,the most intractable problemis the economy, this change may be highly desirable. probably siltation.Up to two million tons of In fact, making a successful transition from a siltstillenter Lake Erie each year from the heavy industry to a service economy is one of Maumee River alone.With the silt comes the the major challenges facing political, socialand major part of the phosphorus now entering the financial institutions in the midwest as we ap- lake.Most of itstill comes from agricultural proach the last decade of the 20th century. land, but an increasing proportion is the result In- Iwillclose by suggesting four arcas of of construction projects of various kinds. concern. Our success in dealingwith these con- creasingly in the 1980s farmers have been forced cerns will determine thelake's future quality. off their land by economic hardship, and their First,municipal wastes arestillasignificant farms converted to tract housing, shopping malls, As the ground sourceofoxygen-depletingorganicmaterial. industrial "parks" and highways. Cleveland, Detroit, Toledoin fact, most of our isbulldozedatthconset of construction,a older citiesare served in part by combined storm massive pulse of topsoil is injected into nearby and sanitary sewers.No matter how much we streams.Once the area has been "developed," improveoperationsatourcentral treatment the large expanses of non-absorptive pavement plants,our outmoded collectionsystemsstill and rooftops cause episodes of extremely rapid bypass the plants and send raw sewage into the runoff duringrains,raisingflood peaks and lake after even modest rainfalls.The cost and destructivelyalteringthechannelsof nearby isa difficult problem to inconvenienceofreplacingtheseineffective watercourses. This systems are generally prohibitive,although some combat. Of course, a certain amount of "develop- cities (including Toledo) are at least considering ment" with its attendant soil disturbance is nec- More to the point, the problem occurs half-measuresthatwillpartiallyalleviatethe essary. as a diffuse, non-point sourceof pollution. One problem. matter, one A second, increasingly serious problemis construction project(or,forthat thc disposal of toxic wastes. Although LakeEric farmer plowing his field) may make a relatively is far from dead, lakes can and do die.They small impact on Lake Erie, but the cumulative can be "killed" by toxicsubstances so foreign to effects of thousands of such projects (or inten- the evolutionary experience of aquaticlife that sively-tilled fields) have been devastating.

16 Ir- k - ,) 114 / Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie

Since this problem stems from both agricul- we can effect very rapid improvements. Our tural practices and urban sprawl, it must be com- region is blessed with the largest supply of fresh bated on both fronts.The adoption of reduced water anywhere on earth.Its future depends on tillage or no-tillage agriculture, now being tried ourwilltoexertwise stewardship overthe on an increasing number of farms in the region, quality of that most precious of natural resources. will sharply reduce losses of topsoil to rivers and streams.Agronomists hope this shift will allow farmers to spend less on gasoline, equipment Acknowledgements maintenance and fertilizers while retaining high crop yields. I am grateful to Stuart Givens and Joan Swcda of the Great Lakes Research Center, Bowling Green State Univer- Urban sprawl and its associated soil disrup- sity, for their assistance in locating much of the historical tion pose a more difficult issue.Current efforts materialinthis article. In addition, Harold F. Mayfield to revitalize the inner cities so that people will generously provided me with several valuable references from actually want to live in them are helpful, but his personal library. real progress will require the adoption and enforcement of regional zoning laws based on ecologicalcriteria. Such laws would prohibit References development of steep slopes, floodplains, marshes, lake margins and other sensitive areas and would Avery, E.M.1918. A History of Cleveland and establish guidelines for construction methods, the Its Environs. New York: Lewis. revegetation of areas after development, and so Beckett, W.1972. A Brief History of the Port on. Such ordinances are badly needed almost of Toledo.Toledo: Toledo-Lucas County everywhere; they are also anathema to developers Port Authority. and growth-oriented politicians, unpopular with Brown, S.1815.Views of the Campaigns of the many farmers, and simply haven't been considered Northwestern Army.Philadelphia: Wm. G. seriously by most of the rest of us. Murphey. Danford, A. 1966.The Perrysburg Story, 1816- 1966. Perrysburg, Ohio: Sesquicentennial Publishing Committee. Dowries, R.C.1952.History of Lakeshore Ohio. Vol. I. New York: Lewis. Farmer. S. 1890. History of Detroit, Wayne County and Early Michigan.Detroit: Silas Farmer & Co., 3d Ed. Havighurst, W. 1942.The Long Ships Passing. New York: MacMillan. Kaatz, M. 1953.The Settlement of the Black Swamp of Northwestern Ohio.Northwest Ohio Quarterly. 25:22-35, 134-156, 201-217. Lamed, J.N.1911. A History of Buffalo.Pro- gress of the Empire State Co. Figure 12.10.Clevelandshorelinefrom Lake Lower, A. 1938. The North American Assault Erie. (photo by Susan Fisher) on the Canadian Forest. New York: Green- wood Press. Clearly there is much to do to further the MacDonald, J.1966. Shantymen and Sodbusters. progress made in the last 15 years.There is J. MacDonald. also much cause for optimism. The reduction in Moseley, E.L. 1904. Lake Erie: Floods, Lake phosphorus loadings and the decline of algae Levels, Northeast Storms.Columbus, Ohio: blooms in a few short years have been nothing Ohio Historical Society (reprinted 1973). short of spectacular.Lake Erie has a turnover Rose, W.G.1950.Cleveland: The Making of a time of only about three years; as long as high City. Cleveland, Ohio: World Publishing Co. quality water continues to enter from Lake Huron Effect of Human Activities on the Ecology of Lake Erie/ 115

Symons, T. and J. Quintus. 1902. History of Buffalo Harbor. Buffalo Historical Society. Tramer, EJ. 1985. Lake Erie: Premature Req- uiem for a "Dead" Lake.Northwest Ohio Quarter4,. 57:39-50. Trautman, M. 1977.The Ohio Country frc.'n 1750 to 1977.A Naturalist's View.Ohio Biological Survey Notes #10.Columbus, Ohio: Ohio State University. Urquhart, F. (Ed.).1957. Changes in the Fauna of Ontario. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Wiegman, C.1953. Trees to News.Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, Ltd. 13/ History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery

by Andrew M. White

We all tend to think of history within our other hand is bordered by cliffs; it has no reefs time frame of reference, usually our lifetime, and or islands and only one small lakeshore marsh, our view of fisheries is no different.Over the Mentor Marsh, located near Painesville, Ohio. short term, we have probably all heard the in- This basin is deeper, with depths of 15 to 30 famous statement, "...you should have been here feet within one mile of the shore and slightly last week."On a slightly longer time frame, I more than 80 feet many miles offshore. am convinced that fishing was much better when The eastern basin is also bordered by cliffs. I was a boy. However, my father always told me Here, however, the streams are small; there are that fishing was much better when he was a boy no rcefs or islands and only one bay, Presque than when I was a boy.It all begins to sound Isle Bay. Depths inthis basin are generally like one fish story piled upon another.In fact, greater along the shore and reach a maximum of fishing was better when he was younger, and 130 feet just east of Long Point.It is the wes- before that, and before that.Of course, the tern and central basins that will be the focus of converse of this is that the fishery has progres- thisdiscussion since the eastern basin fishery sively deteriorated over the past 150 years, and has not been as seriously affected by human itis this progression of events that is the focus activities as have the other two. of this chapter. The fish fauna of Lake Erie and its tribu- The first thing we must understand is the taries consistsof 139 species and subspecies. nature and characteristics of Lake Erie.Lake This is more freshwater species than in virtually Erieisactually a very wide spot inalarge any other state in the Union, and more than in river.Itis not really one lake but three, each all of New England.It is a great "mixed bag" of withitsdistinguishingcharacteristics(Figure fishes.How did this one lake and its drainage 13.1).The western basin, extending from Cedar come to be populated with this fauna?Primitive Point west to Toledo, Ohio, contains islands and Lake Erie once drained through the Maumee into rock and is very shallow, less than 25 feet deep the Wabash of Indiana and out into the Missis- in most areas.In fact, during storms in low sippi.At another timc, waters flowed northwest water ycars, lake freightcrs often bump on the through the Teays River from the Carolinas into bottom while passing through Pelee Passage in Lake Erie, allowing the invasion of fishes from the island region.In addition, the western basin Kentucky, West Virginia and the east coast. The includes two large estuarine areas, Sandusky Bay connection across Michigan allowed species to and Maumee Bay. invade from the upper Mississippi and western The central basin extends from Cedar Point Canada.The glacier, in its retreat, left glacial eastward to Erie, Pennsylvania.This arca has a species behind.And the Great Flood through different water circulation pattern; thus it tends New York allowed species to enter from upstate to be somewhat isolated from the western basin. New York and other New England areas. The lakeplain of the western basin provides Evenlater,afterEuropeansettlershad vast areas of flatlands which were originally arrived,canals formed connections with Lake immense marshes. The central basin on the Erie and the Ohio River drainages. This allowed

LJ History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery/ 117

Fri*

Toledo

EASTERN BASIN WESTERN BASIN 0 MEAN DEPTH 24' 20 40 MEAN DEPTH 80' 60.4 BO. 400. 120. 140. 60 Lake Erie Longitudinal Cross-Section 140.4 20044 220. "Lake Erie Figure 13.1.The three basins of Lake Erie.(Adapted from Department of the Interior, Report," Wathington, D.C., 1968) Otherwise, they southern species to invade the Lake Eriebasin. of their physiologk tolerance. As recently as one hundred years ago adirect would have continued theirinvasion intothe into the Ohio River. route from Louisiana toCleveland was created. upper Great Lakes, or south from Itisobvious then,that before white settlers Other species were purposefully introduced the Great Lakes, over areas across the sea: carpand brown trout from ever stepped foot into Europe and the goldfish from Asia. Others(smelt half of the Lake Erie fish fauna were "in trou- and perhaps the grass carp) escapedfrom ex- ble? Since they were on the edge of their Still more recently, the St. range, by defmition they wereresiding in an perimental ponds. For Lawrence Seaway (especially the WellandCanal) area where conditions werebarely tolerable. has allowed the invasion of the whiteperch, southern speciesit may have been a little too and alewife and the dreaded sea lamprey. Within thc cold, for northern ones, a little too warm, past five years a new invader,the pink salmon, so forth.It would take very little disturbance has entered through Great Lakesconnections to decimate the populationof a species that was Any change would from northern Canada. already living precariously. The fauna of Lake Erie is thus acollection have had an effect on at least one species,prob- of fishes from more than 18 states,Canada, ably more.With this in mind, what was Lake Europe and Asia.This fauna of diverse origin, Erie like when the first settlers arrived? placed into one area, must have atremendous Itisdifficulttodeterminetheprecise Not only that, but composition of Lake Erie's fish fauna prior to diversity of requirements. all since they have such a wide range of origins,it thearrivalof the European settlers, but is important to recognize that LakeErie is the indications are that populations in Lake Erie were edge of the range for more than halfof these dominated by predaceous species (pike, muskellunge, walleye and smallmouth bass) ratherthan fish species.Since they are at the edge of their geographic range, they must also be at the edge omnivores or planktivores which currently domi-

95 118 / History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery

nate (carp, goldfish, gizzard shad). Itis also downtown Toledo, Ohio. The Maumee now car- generally agreed thatindividuals were much ries a mud plume several miles out into Lake larger then than at present. Numerous anecdotes Erie, and if you placed your finger into the water in the writings of early pioneers and settlers today at the location described by this early contained remarks about six-foot pike (muskel- pioneer, you would barely be able to see the lunge) and 250-pound sturgeon. first knuckle. In1797,thesurveypartyofMoses Cleaveland reported that the Cuyahoga and Grand River valleys were immense marshes. They also made numerous references to the abundance of small streams and springs and to the clarity of thewaters. ConcerningtheSandusky and Maumee Bays in 1816, Brown wrote that,

"...[they]resemble alittlelake and within the bosom of the baysgrow several thousand acres of wild rice."

Figure 13.2.Lake Sturgeon Acipenser fulvescens. Conditions seemed to remain about thesame (University of Wisconsin Sea Grant until the 1820s.After that time the first series Irutitute) of severe disturbances to the Lake Eriesystem began to have an effect.Mill dams, the first A man who caught a catfish to feed his family source of power for the largely agricultural state of seven noted that they "ate of it three times." of Ohio, had been constructedas early as 1790. That's a very big catfish.But then he wrote By 1820, nearly every stream entering Lake Erie that "...we gave the rest to the Indians." was blocked by several of these dams, often The writingsoftheearlysettlersalso within less than a mile of the lake.At Paines- attest to the great abundance of fishes in Lake ville, there was a dam eight tenths ofa mile Erie and its tributary streams.Brown, in 1815, from the mouth of the Grand River.Henry wrote that Howe reported that by 1830 there wereover one thousand mill dams in Ohio. These dams effec- "...soldiers at the fort [Maumee] killed tively blocked the spawning migrations ofmany fishwithclubs and sticks, and by Lake Erie species but were especially disastrous blindly throwing spears into the stream. to the pike, muskellunge and sturgeon, all of Isaw several hundred taken inthis which spawn in headwater streams and marshes. manner within a few hours, and over Imagine a 250-pound sturgeon ascending the 1000 were also taken with hook and Maumee River on its way to Pt. Wayne, Indiana, line." to spawn. Encountering even the smallest of these dams,itcould progress no further and In 1825, Kirtland wrote that the smallmouth therefore could not reproduce.Other species bass were so abundant in the Cuyahoga River came to the same fate: the smallmouth bass, the [Cleveland] during the spawning run that they pike, the muskellunge, migratory populations of were captured for commercial sale using guns. He channelcatfish, and even smallerspecies of alsostatedthatmuskellungeandsturgeon suckers and minnows. We had, in one crushing ascended the Cuyahoga River for many miles. blow, effectively blocked the spawningruns of These writings are also valuable reference dozens of species and denied themaccess to points for the environmental conditions of the critical upstream riffles, creeks and marshes. lake and its tributaries. Numerous referencesto To add insult to injury, many of the head- sighting fishes in the clear waters of Lake Eric water swamps and marshes which still servedas arc presentinthese early writings.One in spawning grounds for some of these specieswere particular describes watching walleye and pike in drained during this period.Streams formerly the Maumee River at the present location of used by suckers,sturgeons, and others were History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery/ 119 channelized into muddy ditches and canal-like almost equally as favorable a fish.In this case, and tributaries.These three factors were so effective the loss of muskellunge, pike and sturgeon in eliminating reproduction in the centralbasin the decline in smallmouth bass and catfish was that Kirtland wrote in 1850 that the sturgeon offset by abundant populations ef walleye,white- rivers to fish, cisco and sauger.Thus, shifts in attention and muskellunge no longer ascended the of the spawn. He further statedthat, to alternate species or alternate areas lake kept people from realizing the full extentof " All the migratory species have been the impact on the fishery. excluded from the...river by the con- By the end of 1855, serious problems were struction of dams..." developing because of the blockage of spawning migrations, butinspite of the warnings of By 1850, the population of Ohio hadin- Kirtland they went largely unnoticed. Thefishery creased fourfold, to nearly 2 million.Since the of the western basin seemed largelyunchanged, constructin of the Ohio Canal, Clevelandhad and even in Cleveland the lake wasteeming with In contrast to its meager fine food fishes.In 1853 Kirtland wrote that become a boom town. black with population of 150 in 1820, it now boastednearly the water of thelake was often walleye, 22,000 citizens. Added to the streamobstructions boats, and fine catches were made of of the mill dams came the clearing of stream- bass, lake trout and other species.Soon, how- be over. banks,increasederosion, and muddy waters. ever, the honeymoon would Soon the remnants of marshy habitatin the Beginningin1850, two events occurred lower Cuyahoga River were gone, andthe pollu- simultaneously which proved to be perhaps the central basin fishery tion loadings of 22,000 persons floweddirectly greatest adversities that the has never fully into the river.Sawdust, coal dust and cinders, has faced, ones from which it wheat chaff and flour,slaughter houseoffal recovered. In many areas such as Cleveland, (including entire animal carcasses), and human Lorain and Toledo, industrialization ofthe lake- waste covered the river from bank tobank.1- shore had continued.Effects from pollution had typhoid become noticeable. By 1863 the conditionsbegan 1851, what was fmally recognized as a shoreline, and in that epidemic in Cleveland was directlyassociated to effect the Lake Erie with drinking water contamination.The city year Kirtland wrote, responded, after much deliberation, not by clean- ing the river of wastes, but by placingthe city's "Formerly [in Cleveland Harbor] it was bass and water intake 400 feet out into LakeErie. not unusual to capture 100 It seems ccrtain that by 1855, theproduction walleye by hook and line in a few of sturgeon in the tributaries of LakeErie had hours, now this is no longer possible ceased.However, since the species lives more at all." than 50 years, the effects of the milldams would 1868, the Cleveland Plain Dealer not be fully realized until theearly 1900s. On May 6, Muskellunge and pike fared better, since stated in an editorial that, the Sandusky and Maumee Baysstill contained abundant marshlands and clear waters.Declines "...fromthefilthy looking conditions were only observed inthe central basin where of the [Cuyahoga] river we imagine natural shoreline marshlands and estuaries were that but a short time will be required beauty and almost nonexistent. Other species such assmall- to remove all evidences of mouth bass and walleye did not yetdemonstratc cleanliness from there." drastic declines, since the shoreline ofthe lake Although the sawdust, animal carcasses, sewage was still clean andclear.Thus began a scenario in the and refuse of now nearly 600,000people were that would be repeated over and over addressed history of the fishery: the disappearanceof one also present, this particular reference countered by a new pollutant,oil. species in one area of the lake was polluted the abundance of the same speciesin another By 1869, streams were increasingly its replacement by another with oil and brine.Oil contaminated Lake Eric area of the lake or mile at the species which was an untapped resourceand from top to bottom for nearly a 120 / History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery mouth of the Cuyahoga River.Muskellunge and extinct or extirpated from Lake Erie and its sturgeon were now all but gone, and the walleye tributaries during this period included the pad- and smallmouth occurredingreatlyreduced dlefish, spotted gar, gilt darter, and the harelip numbers. sucker. Concerning the conditions in the western basin, Potter stated,

"The wonder is that there are so many fishes left as there are." (1877).

and Kirsch, speaking of the Maumee Bay in 1892, wrote,

'Local sportsmen told me that formerly sturgeon were very abundant at this place while now one is seldom taken, also that pike and walleye are rapidly decreasing in number." Figure 133.Walleye Stizostedkm vitreurntitre- urn. (University of Wisconsin Sea Second, a commercial fishery began which Grant Institute) would soon be harvesting adult fishes ata phen- omenal rate, often wasting numbers equal toor Inthe western basin, an area relatively greater than the landings for lack of markets. unaffected until1850, similar events occurred. Simultaneously, the harvest of species by sports- First, the Great Black Swamp, hundreds of square men increased.Fish species could not reproduce miles of marshlands that were formerly occupied fast enough to replace the huge numbers of by glacial Lake Maumee, began to be drained and adults being removed from the lake.In 1877, converted into agricultural lands. This conversion Sterling wrote to the Ohio Fish Commission that to croplands had several adverse effects: increased hook and line catches of 750 smallmouth bass runoff accompanied by increased erosion of soils, per day by a single person was excessive and loss of valuable spawning habitat for pike and that they should be protected. By 1901 the other fish, increased flooding, a lowered water combined effects of environmental degradation, table, and the loss of vegetation in downstream stream obstruction, commercial and sport fishing, areas due to high turbidity.By 1875, much of draining and diking, pollution and siltation left the draining had been completed and most of the bass population in Lake Erie so depressed northeast Ohio and portions of Indiana hadcome that the harvest of the species was regulated. under cultivation.By 1900, the Maumee and Today it has still not recovered toits former Sandusky Bays were nearly devoid of aquatic status; in 1977 when it was stated in advertise- vegetation. ments that the western basin was the "smallmouth The few remaining marshes adjacentto capital of the US," the average catch of small- Sandusky Bay had now been diked, effectively mouth bass was less than 1.0 per hour. blocking spawning runs of many species, and During this period, exotic species were also siltation began to cover the gravels and sands of introduced into the ecosystem.Two of them, the western basin.In 1978 we collected a core the carp and goldfish, reproduced and soon be- sample of sediment from near the mouth of came plentiful, to the detriment of the remaining Maumee Bay and found that nine feet of mud areas of vegetated shallows. The carp, spawning overlaid the original gravel and sand bottom. in late May and early June, uprooted vegetation This seriously affected the production of gravel- and created turbidity which smothc red theeggs spawning species such as sauger, walleye and of nesting species, especially sunfish, crappie and smallmouth bass. High turbidities may also have bass. Other exotics,including salmon, were resulted in the reduction of the populations of unsuccessfully introduced. many sight-feeding species and species preferring Pollutioninthecentralbasinincreased clear, unsilted waters.Species which became dramatically. In 1882, the City of Cleveland History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery/ 121

0 1950 1960 1880 1890 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 Year

Cisco Yellow Perch Whitefish Walleye

species, 1880-1960. (Adapted fromMarks, 1962) Figure 13.4.Changes in the commercial catch of selected tion, was blue pike, yellow perch,freshwater experienceditsfirstalgal bloom in the water intake, now located 6,200 feet fromthe lake drum, whitefish, carp and walleye. Thus, the combined effect of streamobstruc- shore. By 1890 the city'sfirst sewage system effectively collected all human waste anddumped tion,draining and diking marshlands, extreme Later, the water pollution of streams and harbors, lossof rooted it,untreated, into the river. incrcascd intake would again be moved, thistime to a aquaticvegetation,heavysiltation, introductionof location nearly 2.5 miles into the lake.Similar flooding,overfishing and the in Tole- exotic species had resulted in thereduction of pollution loadings were probably present perhaps shoreline cities. the populations of many native fishes to do, Lorain, Ashtabula and other These species The fishery in the central basinbecame 20% of their former abundance. increase in the populations even more depressedthan that in the western were replaced by an of others, especially carp, goldfish,bullhead and basin.By 1900 the sturgeon, muskellunge,pike, smallmouth other less valuable species. lake trout, cisco, whitefish, sauger, of and brook trout were rare orabsent from the The period from 1900 to 1940 was one relative stability in the fishery.The low levels central basin shoreline arcas.Across the entire depressed. of walleye, smallmouth bass, saugerand others lake, the walleye populations were very The lost populations of The commercial catch had gonefrom a peak of now became the "norm." less than 2 lake trout, brook trout, muskellungeand northern nearly 13 million pounds in 1893 to grandfather Other commercially fished spe- pike became the "fish stories" told by million in 1900. other hand, the In1895 the but not really believed. On the cies also declined dramatically. numbers and in harvest was dominated by cisco, bluepike, stur- blue pike seemed to maintain its and walleye, and in that most years produced more than10 million pounds geon, sauger, whitefish It was a valuable food and sport order. By 1930 the harvest, in orderof contribu- of harvest. 122 / History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery

harvest of ten to fo...irteen million poundswas made annually, and it was considered one of the finest food species in Lake Erie. All of the adverse conditions present during the late 1800s continued, and indeed, worsened. But the worst was yet to come.The steady increase in the human population (and its sewage) and the steady increase in the use of agricultural fertilizers were coupled with the introduction of phosphate detergents. The already-depressed fishery was now faced with a tremendous increase in nutrient loadings resulting in more extensive Figure 13.5.Yellow Perch Pemcaflavescens. algal blooms in the lake. Temporarily, thepopu- (University of Wisconsin Sea Grant lations of blue pike, yellow perch and walleye Institute) increased in the early 1950s, but in 1957 the populations of walleye and blue pike crashed. fish and, once again, supplanted and substituted From a production of nearly 20 million pounds of for lost species.The only major change in the blue pike and 15.5 million pounds of walleye in fish fauna was the nearly complete loss of the 1956, the 1960 blue pike yield waszero and cisco.This species produced nearly 39 million walleye had dipped to less than 3 million pounds. pounds in 1890, and 21 million pounds in 1924. Production fell abruptly to 2 million pounds in 1925, and by 1929 only 127 thousand pounds were taken. Yellow perch now became a valuable food species and was soughtafter by commercial fishermen and sportsmen alike.It alone tells the story of shifting preferences due to the loss of higher quality fishes.In 1877, Klippart wrote of the yellow perch in the first annual report of the Ohio State Fish Commission.In this report he declared that, "!-ar 4.mt 4,1 "...itsflesh is soft, rather coarse and insipid; at best itis a third rate pan- fish. The writer'sopinionisthat perch make better glue than food." Figure 116. Commercial beach seine operation. Sterling also commented on the yellow perch in (Andrew White) the late 1800s when he wrote to a fellow fisheries biologist. Yellow perch increased, partiallyas a result of the lack of competition from blue pike and "...perch are a most worthless animal. walleye, and production skyrocketed to nearly 28 You can have all you want from fish million pounds. These numbers may notnecessar- dealersfor the trouble of carrying ilyreflect a yellow perch population increase, them away.I once saw three tons but may have resulted from space in the boats sold for manure,...for as many dol- forever-increasingnumbersofthespecies. lars." Since the species had already been acceptedas a food species,it compensated for the lack of the Prior to 1925, less thau 4 million pounds of other two, but this time not entirely. Finally, perch were landed annually, mostly asan inciden- after nearly 150 years, consumers and sportsmen tal catch.In the years between 1929 and 1935a had exhausted all available acceptable substitute History of Changes in (he Lake Erie Fishery/ 123 species. The extinction of the blue pike and the of oil and grease. No wonder there were nofish lossof the walleye had now leftthe yellow in the lower river. perch, white bass, catfish, carp, shcepsheadand smelt (accidentally introduced in the mid1930s) as food fish.None of these were acceptable substitutes for the walleye and blue pike. The 1960s were a period of what mightbe termed ''what happened?"Lake Erie is deadwas the cry from the media.Actually this was far from the truth. Lake Erie,as Dr. Robert Sweeney of Buffalo aptly described it, was"A .LA1 Living Corpse." Inall respects, the lake was just exactly that.Species which were tolerant of all the modifications made by humansruled Lake Eric, while the others (usually the more desirable ones) were all but gone.Still, the lake produced 52 million pounds of fish per year. But River. what species were being produced? According to Figure 13.7. A steel mill on the Cuyahoga the list of commercial harvest for 1885,cisco, (Andrew White) blue pike, sturgeon, sauger, whitefish andwalleye The were the top six producingspecies.Changes by Other rivers suffered similar fates. 1930 yielded a list in which three of the topsix Grand River had a measured conductivityof conduc- list:carp, drum and 23,000 micromhos on one day in 1973 (the were new species to the nearly zero), and the yellow perch.However, the other three were tivity of pure wateris walleye, blue pike and whitefish.In 1969 the Black River was truly black, covered formiles Little matter top six producing species contained noneof the at.d for months with waste oils. of original six.Cisco was replaced by yellow perch; here though, for dissolved oxygen at the base blue pike were extinct and had been replacedby an upstream riffle was zero,the result of a lack So also with smelt.The number three species in 1885, stur- of sewage treatment upstrcam. gcon, was now all but extinctand was replaced othercentralbasin streams which once had by carp. The next, sauger, had been replacedby spawned smallmouth bass, walleye and pike. The all the drum.Whitefish were also nearly extinct Grand, Cuyahoga, Ashtabula and Black Rivers and white bass, a species not even marketedin experienced annual anoxic (deoxygenated)condi- the late 1800s, had taken over its habitat.Final- tions which lasted for days and sometimes weeks. ly, and perhaps the greatest insult, the walleye, The western basin did notsuffer from number six in 1885, was replaced by a new com- industrial pollution as much as the central basin suffi- mercial category, miscellaneous scrap. did, but siltation and fertilizer runoff were fauna. By 1972,publicity had convincednearly cient to seriously affect much of the fish everyone that Lake Erie was dcad, anexample of Algal blooms became an annual event. Thenin an environmental disaster. Databecame available 1973 the final blow occurred.Algal productivity from research. The ncws was incredible. Chlor- and sewage reached such proportions thattheir ide levelsin the Great Lakes should be low, decomposition in the hypolimnion (near the bot- perhaps less than 5 milligrams per liter.How tom) of the lake produced anoxia throughout In wasitthen that levels of more than 23,000 much of the western and central basins. milligrams per liter existed in the Portage River 1974, more than 50% of these areas wereanoxic. suf- as early as 1904 and wentunnoticed?In 1966, Now even the offshore, deep water species loadings of some pollutants from the Cuyahoga fered.Formerly unaffected by riverine pollution, River alone into Lake Erie were measured. The drainage of marshes or damming of streams, annual input from this single source included these species had two choices: either enterthe 60,000 tons of iron, more than 2,000 tonsof shallows of the lake where water temperatures phosphorus and 2,620 tons of nitrogen.Add to were in excess of 78° F, orremain in the cooler this about 250,000 tons of solids and 17,200 tons depths and suffocate. The loss of major popula- 124 / History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery

tions of deep water, bottom dwelling species bottom material in most harbors is now composed between 1965 and 1975 can partially be attributed of fine clay and silt.In 1973, total extinction tothislack of oxygen. Burbot, trout-perch, of light was measured at three inches below thc silver chub, mooneye and others nearly disap- surface in the Ashtabula Harbor of Lakc Eric. In peared from the lake.The commercial fishery 1976, divers working in 22 feet of water needed collapsed and sportsmen went elsewhere to fish. radio contact from above so they could be dir- In 1973 we reported to the USEPA that ected by the movement of theirair bubbles. more than 50% of the central basin fish fauna Economic pressures have resultedin different near Cleveland were to be considered rare, en- farming practices along the shoreline.The high dangered or extirpated and that the community cost of fuel reduced the fall plowing of fields, was now largely composed of carp, gizzard shad, no-till planting began to occur, and in many goldfish, yellow perch, drum and smelt. By 1979 instances farms collapsed and soils returned to even the smelt began to decline.Thus ends the old field communities. Fewer new housing proj- sad portion of my tale. ects and less road construction in recent ycars But this fish story is not fmished, for now also contributed to less runoff of silt.Today, it continues on a better note.In 1973 we had visibilityisnearly tenfeetinthe Ashtabula alsoreportedthatnearlyeveryspeciesthat Harbor, and light penetrates more than 20 feet. formerly inhabited the central basin wasstill Stocking programs of thevariousstates present, albeit in restricted areas and often in surrounding Lake Erie have also been successful. very limited numbers.One can hardly imagine Coho salmon, brown trout and rainbow troutare the resilience of these fishes, nor their ability to now populous in Lake Erie, and a lake trout survive extreme adversity. We had blocked their restoration program isin progress in Pennsyl- migrations, drained their spawning grounds, mud- vania.Walleye populations have also increased died the waters, removed all vestiges ofvegeta- dramatically.Slightly more than 100.(XX) walleye tion, heated and polluted their waters, captured wcre caught by Ohio anglers in 1975; almost 4.5 them by the billions for food and, asalast million were taken in1986. The commercial attempt to kill them all off, we had taken away catch for many species has increased beyond thc their oxygen. But still they persisted. numbers caught in the 1960s, even though itis The actions taken by various governmental now more strictly regulated today. agencies, growing public awareness, the "environ- Nutrient control through sewage treatment mental movement," and quirks in theeconomy and decreased farm runoff have resulted ina throughout the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s have reduction of algal blooms. Anoxia in the central resulted in a most remarkable recovery of the basin has been greatly reduced and certain species lake and its fish fauna.The USEPA and thc such as the burbot have made partial comebacks. Ohio EPA provided funds for research and for Silver chub and trout-perch populations have also pollutioncontrol. Levels of pollutants have made good recoveries. dropped dramatically in rivers, so loadings to the In the streams, the response has been even lake have become much less.The Grand River, more striking.The removal of the dam in the for example, once was contaminated by organic Grand River now allows walleye, white bass, solvents, phenol, raw sewage, salt brine, caustic smallmouth bass and many other species access soda, hexavalent chromium and anoxic conditions. to stream spawning habitat.Increases in young This was all hidden beneath nearly a foot of of these species in this drainage is very evident. soap suds.Today the river is clear, contains 72 ',. he smaller species, intolerant of pollution and species of fishes, and produces angler catches of siltation, have suddenly reappeared.Silver shin- brown trout, salmon and walleye. Legislation, ers, sand darters, brook lampreys, brindled mad- monitoring, public pressures, and often litigation toms and bigeye chubs are now becoming common and fines have resulted in greatly reduced pollu- in the Ohio tributary streams of Lake Eric. tion levels. With success, however, sometimes comes a little Thc economy also has played an important adversity.The sea lamprey, a predatory invader role in the restoration of the lake.Siltation is through the Welland or Eric canals, had destroyed one of the most critical problems in the lower the salmonid (lake trout) and coregonid (cisco rivers and the lake.Ninety-nine per cent of the and whitefish) fishery in thc upper Great Lakes. History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery / 125

However, because of the heavily polluted, dammed series of ecological disruptions, and "they are in and silted conditions of Ohio tributaries, it could fact "we." not successfully reproduce here.With stream Itis hoped that this discussion has been improvement, lamprey are now increasing rapidly enlightening, but more than that, that some of in numbers. A population in Conneaut Creek the hard lessons which we have learned from (Ohio and Pennsylvania waters) today is estimated Lake Erie may prevent history from repeating Also impera- tocontain nearly1,000,000larvalindividuals. itself in other freshwater systems. With the lamprey's food source stocked and/or tive is that we who live in the Lake Erie drain- re-established and cleaner rivers available, the age basin dnot spend too much time basking in lamprey is becoming a serious problem in the the glory of this partial restoration of the lake. lake.Efforts are currently underway by the US Fishing is better than in 1965 and many species Fish and Wildlife Service and surrounding states have demonstrated remarkable recoveries, but to control the population. fishing is not better than ever.Mill dams re- Whether you are a resident of the Great placed by flood control dams are still in place, Lakes community or not, whether you are in- no siltation control legislationisavailable and timately familiar with the fishery of Lake Erie remaining marshlands are in a precarious position or not, the history of thefishery of the lake for their survival.Poor land management is still stands as a great lesson in the response of a common and toxic substancescontinue to enter freshwater ecosystem to the multitudes of pres- thelakefrom groundwaters, resuspension of sures placed upon it by the demandsof society, sediments, and the atmosphere. We have made a its people and its use of the land as well as the beginning, but there is yet much to be done. waters. Some of these lessons have beenlearned too late; the blue pike is probably extinct,and several other species have been extirpated from References Lake Erie. Some ofthesedisastrousenvironmental Anonymous. 1970. Commercial Fishery Occurring modifications to the Lake Erie ecosystem would in Lake Erie Fronting on Cuyahoga County have been done even if the effects had been in 1969.Ohio Department of Natural Re- known.Indeed, the draining of the Great Black sources. Swamp and its subsequent conversion into some Applegate, Vernon.1951. The Sea Lamprey in of the richest corn and soybean cropland in Ohio the Great Lakes.The Scientific Monthly. and Indiana would have been done sooner or May, pp. 275-282. 1970. A later. One cannot "have the cake and eatit Applegate, Vernon and H. Van Meter. too." We simply cannot expect to raise tonsof Brief History of Commercial Fishing in Lake soybeans and corn and produce pike and muskel- Erie. Fishery Leaflet #630, U.S. Department lunge as well.Other changes, however, need of the Interior. never have occurred. Sewage andchemical pollu- Baker, Carl.1979.Ohio's Lake Erie Creel Cen- tion of rivers could have been controlled and sus. Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources, marshlands could have been protected.Siltation study F-35-R. Columbus, Ohio. from farming and construction need not have Baldwin, Norman and R. Saalfeld. 1962. Commer- been as rampant, and shoreline development cial Fish Production inthe Great Lakes, could have been made more compatible with the 1867- 1960. Technical Report #3, Great needs of the fishery. Lakes Fishery Commission. Most of us have a tendency to accept easy Brown, Samuel. 1815.Views of the Campaigns answers to complex problemsand are quick to of the North-western Army; "Views of the place blame for problems on either the easiest LakeCoast fromSanduskytoDetroit." target (commercial fisheries, for example) orthe W.G. Murphey, Philadelphia, PA. 1868. Volume anonymous "they."How often have we heard, Cleveland Daily Plain Dealer. "They raised the level of Lake Erie," or "They XXIV, #110, May 6, page 3. Records of Alewife and killed all the fish."Rather, the deterioration of Dymond, John. 1932. thc Lake Erie fishery was due to a complex Steelhead (Rainbow) Trout from Lake Erie. Copeia. 1:32-33.

1 126 / History of Changes in the Lake Erie Fishery

Garlauskas, A. 1974. Water Quality Baseline Potter, Emery.1877.Report of the Superinten- Assessment for Cleveland Area-Lake Erie. dent of Hatchery.First Annual Report, Volume I-synthesis.USEPA-905-9-74-005. Ohio State Fish Commission, Nevins and NTIS, Springfield, VA. 158 pp. Meyers, Columbus, Ohio. pp. 27-30. Hartman, W.1972.Lake Erie: Effects of Ex- Schneider, J. and J. Leach. 1979. Walleye Stocks ploitation, Environmental Changes and New in the Great Lakes, 1800-1975: Fluctuations Species on the Fishery Resources. Jour. of and Possible Causes.Tech. Report #31, Fish. Research.Board of Canada.29:899- Great Lakes Fish. Commission. 51 pp. 912. Smith, S.H. 1976. Historic Informationon Great Hildreth, S.P.1848.Pioneer History: Being an Lakes Fish.In Workshop on Environmental Account of the First Framinations of the Mapping of theGreat Lakes,eds. D.R. Ohio Valley, and Early Settlement of the Rosenberger and A. Robertson,pp. 109-114. Northwest Territory. Historical Society of International Joint Commission, Windsor, Cincinnati, H.W. Derby and Co. Pub. Ontario, Canada. Howe, Henry. 1900.Historical Collections of Sterling, E. 1884.Notes on the Great Lakes Ohio.C.J. Krehbeil and Company, Cincin- Fisheries,Depletion of Blackbass. Bull. nati, Ohio. Vol. I and Volume II. U.S. Fish. Comm. 4:218-219. Jones, David.1774. A Journal of Two Visits to Sterling, E.1877. Commenk in: Records of the Some Nations of Indians on the West Side Cleveland Academy of Natural Science. May of the River Ohio, in the Years 1772 and 21. 1773. Isaac Collins Publ., New York. Thayer, Mary.1965. The Development of Cleve- Kirsch, Philip.1895. A Report Upon the Inves- land Ohio from 1818 to 1850 as Reflected tigations in the Maumee River Basin During in the Newspapers of the Period.Unpubl. the Summer of 1893.Bull. U.S. Fish. Com- Ph.D. diss., Columbia University. mission. 14(1894):315-337. Trautman, Milton B.1957.The Fishes of Ohio. Kirtland, Jared. 1830-1860.Personal letter files. The Ohio State University Press. 683pp. Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio. Van Oosten, John. 1937. The Dispersal of Smelt, Kirtland, Jared. 1847. Descriptions of the Fishes Osmerus mordax, in the Great Lakes Region. ofthe Ohio River anditsTributaries. Trans. Am. Fish. Soc. 66:160- 171. Boston J. Natural History.Article # 25, White, Andrew M., F. Moore, N. Alldridge, and D. 4(1845):21, pls. 7-9. Loucks. 1986. The Effects of Natural Kirtland, Jared.1851.Piscatoria.The Family WinterStresses ontheMortality of the Visitor. # 63, 2(11):87. Eastern Gizzard Shad Dorosoma cepedianum, Lewis, Donald.1969. Some Factors Associated in Lake Erie. John Carroll University, with the Decline of the Lake Erie Commer- Report 78. 209 pp. cial Fishing Industry in Ohio.In Proceed- White, Andrew M., M.B. Trautman, M.P. Kelty, E. ings, 12th Conf. Great Lakes Research,pp. Foell, and R. Gaby. 1975.Water Quality 834-842. Baseline Assessment for the Cleveland Area- Marks, William.1962. Summary Review of the Lake Erie; Volume II,The Fishes of the Lake Erie Commercial Fish Catch Since the Cleveland Metropolitan Area Including the Beginning of Records. Michigan Water Lake Erie Shoreline.USEPA-905-9-75-001. Resources Commission, August. NationalTechnicalInformationService, Ohio Department of Natural Resources.1980. Springfield, VA. 181 pp. Commercial Fish Landings-Lake Erie-1980. Whittlesey, Charles. 1867. Early History of Columbus, Ohio. 16 pp. Cleveland Ohio. 456 pp. Pease, Seth. 1797. Personal journal of the Moses Cleaveland Survey intheWestern Reserve. Western Reserve Historical Society Archives. Cleveland, Ohio. 14/ Recovering fromPhosphorus Enrichment

by Charles E. Herdendorf

Lake Erie, as one of the Great Lakes of of the central basin were anoxic, beingtotally North America, represents a significant sourceof depleted of oxygen in the late summer months. fresh water for the people of the United States At this time many of the recreationalbeaches coli- and Canada.The shallowest and southernmost along the lake were closed because of high Great Lake, it was furthest along in the process form counts from sewage discharges, or were not of eutrophication, the natural aging oflakes, used because of objectionable algal debris. even prior to settlement.In the early 1800s During the latter1960s, remedial actions human activities began accelerating this process, were planned and by thelate 1970s, many of the until by the middle of this century the lake had plans were at least partially implemented. In the early 1980s the first signs of lake recovery were aged alarmingly.The early settlers drained the vastcoastalwetlands and stripped away the observed; the extent of algal blooms had been natural protective cover from the rich uplands. greatly reduced.Today, the area of summer Lake Erie's tributaries then carried high amounts anoxia is reduced significantly from that of the of sediment to the lake, silting over fish spawn- early 1970s, the concentration of dissolved solids prized ing reefs in the shallow western basin.Industry is down to 1950s values, and production of followed agriculture along the banks of the lake's fish species (such as walleye) is at a record high. main tributaries: Detroit, Maumee and Cuyahoga Rivers giving rise to the large cities of Detroit, Toledo, Cleveland, and along the Niagara River Nutrients in Lake Erie giving rise to Buffalo.Industry and increased Nitrogen and phosphorus, the most frequent- populations,along withtheuseofartificial nutrients,enter the lakes fertilizerson farmlands,broughtnutrients, ly discussed of all primarily nitrates and phosphates, that hurried from many sources, including municipal andin- the lake's aging process.Because the process is dustrial wastewater discharges, agricultural fields, affected by wastes that arise from human ac- highways, parkinglots,shoreline erosion, and These nutrients within the lake itis referred to as cultural eutrophica- precipitation. tivities, fertilizers on lawns. tion.Not only is the aging process sped up, it act in the same fashion as is altered as well due to the nature and con- The three major nutrients in fertilizer thathelp phosphorus, and centration of introduced nutrients. grass to grow arenitrogen, The nitrate and phosphate pollution nour- potassium. Similarly,thesenutrientsinthe plants, ishedthealgae,creating mats of blue-green water cause phytoplankton (microscopic organisms that blanketed most of the western or algae) to grow. Thisis important since phyto- basin and large reaches of the centralbasin's plankton represents the base of the foodchain south shore in the early 1960s.As the algae in lakes: zooplankton (microscopic animals) eat spread, bottom oxygen, needed to support other phytoplankton; small fish eat the zooplankton; The growth forms of life,was consumed bydecomposers and, large fish eat the smaller fish. primary breaking down the algae. By 1970, largeportions of algae or phytoplankton is often called of the hypolimnion, the bottom layer of watcr, productivity of a lake.To a degree, the more

ri) 128 / Recovering from Phosphorus Enrichment algae produced, the more productive a lake will food for decomposers, resulting in higher numbers be. However, there arc limits beyond which of decomposers.The process of decomposition algal growth becomes detrimental to other aquatic and respiration requires oxygen, which is gradual- life. ly depleted in bottom waters under such cir- Like other gjeen plants, algae, in thepres- cumstances. The situation favors organisms that ence of light, produce more oxygen than they can survive under stressed conditions (Figure consume. An algae population in a lake is impor- 14.1). Bottom invertebrate species tolerant of tant in at least two ways: they are the primary low oxygen levels are: the tubificid worms (e.g. food source for other lake life and they produce Limnodrilus hoffmeisteri, L. cervix, and L. mau- oxygen which other lake life needs to survive. meensis) and midge (Chironomidae) larvae. Once At night, however, photosynthesis stops; and if abundant in the western basin, the burrowing an algae population is too large, it will use all mayfly, Hexagenia limbata, unable to tolerate low the oxygen in the water through its own respira- oxygenlevels,disappeared as anoxia became tion.Algae can also indirectly cause a reduction more widespread. in the amount of oxygen when they die because In addition to changes in the composition the bacteria which decompose the dead algae of the invertebrate community as a result of require oxygen to accomplish this task. phosphorus pollution, the algal community also changes. Cladophora, a filamentous attached green algae,prospers with excessive nutrient The phosphorus problem loading.Becoming quite abundant, it washes up on recreational beaches causing odor problems Though phosphorus once naturally occurred and interferences with swimmers and sunbathers. in very small quantities in Lake Erie, high phos- After nitrogenstartsto become depleted by phorus loadings into the lake began tooccur fast-growing algae, a shift in species composition after World War II, when phosphorus-based deter- favoring blue-green algae results, because this gents replaced soap for household uses.Once particular algal type can extract nitrogen from phosphorus was introduced, large algal blooms the air and convert it into a usable form. Low were noticed in areas around outfalls of municipal pollutiontolerantspeciessuchas Dinobryon wastewater treatment plants. divergens and Ochromonas scintillans are replaced by blue-greens such as Microcystis, Aphanizome- non, and Anabaena and other greens such as Limiting factor Melosira granulata, Stephanodiscus tenius, and S. niagara (Figure 14.2). Scientists declared phosphorus to be the main culprit (over nitrogen compounds) behind cultural eutrophication. Phosphorus is recognized Entry into the Lake as a limiting nutrient, because when it is present in small amounts, despite nitrogen levels, algal Phosphorus enters Lake Erie in many forms, growth is limited. Consequently high phosphorus notall of which are usable by phytoplankton. levels ultimately lead to the abundant growth of Therefore, reducing total phosphorus input is not blue-green algae. The typical nitrogen and phos- as important as reducing the input of usable phorus scenario is as follows: upon entrance into (bio-available or soluble reactive) phosphorus.It the aquatic system, an initial increase in growth is also known that detergents, sewage and agri- occurs in all aquatic plants, including algae. As culturalfertilizers are major sources of phos- the algae reproduce and spread, they overshade phorus ina form capable of stimulating the areas with submerged aquatic plants. With insuf- growth of algae, with phosphorus-based detergents ficient solar radiation, the photosyntheticprocess being 100% bioavailable, sewage from municipal of aquatic plants is inhibitcd, to their detriment. sources 80% bioavailable, and agricultural runoff As more and more algae continue to grow and about 50% bioavailable. Phosphorus entering the multiply, higher amounts of organic debris sink lakes from the atmosphere is estimated to be to bottom waters and become available to micro- about 50% bioavailable. Because total phophc s bial decomposers. More dead algae meansmore concentrationisincludedinannualloading Recovering from PhosphorusEnrichment / 129

,--,...

-4e re. -....,.... . - ,le. nymph

adult

and b) indicative of oxygen levels inLake Erie: a) Lirnnodrilus sp. Figure 14.1. Benthic invertebrates intermediate oxygen require- aironomus, both tolerant oflow oxygen; c) Peloscolex sp., ment, d) Ilexagenia,requiring high oxygen. areas such asagricultural fic'ds, highways,and estimates, it is not an accurate measurein terms parking lots.Point sources of phosphorusarise of the effects on biota. from the discharge ofmunicipal and industrial Most phophorus istransported into the lake events when river wastewater. The major non-point sources are during high flow or storm agricultural and urbanrunoff, shoreline erosion highest phosphorusloadings. waters have the and atmospheric deposition(precipitation). Phosphorus thatis resuspended in the water from bottom sediments maybe in the form of strongly bound to clays, fine apatite grains or Seasonal stratification effects but recent work hasshown that western Lake significant bioavailable Erie sediments have a Lake Erie is surroundedby four states and fraction (34-60% of totalphosphorus). miles into Lake Erie is two countriesand is approximately 240 The entry of phosphorus Itis divided into 3 being from point sources long and 57 miles wide. usually categorized as separate basins: ashallow western basin with an or non-point sources.Point sources are pipes, 24 feet and containingthat points from which average depth of culvertsorsimilarsingle water west of animaginary line from Cedar phosphorus is released.Non-point sources arc deep eastern basin with a Here the phosphorus enters Point to Pelee Point; a just the opposite. maximum depth of 210feet and containing all lakes and streams fromlarge, poorly defined 130 / Recovering from Phosphorus Enrichment

heavier water settles to the bottom.Eventually the lakestratifies and two distinctlayersof water form: an upper, warm layer called the "epilimnion" and a cool, bottom layer called the "hypolimnion." The narrow band of rapid temperature change between the upper and lower layers oP is called the "thermocline." The western basin is too shallow to allow two layers to form so there usuallyis no thermocline there. However, a strong thermocline does develop in the central and eastern basins, usually at a mean depth of approximately 45 feet. Once the thermocline isestablished, the upper and lower layers will not mix until the upper layercoolsto the temperature of the lower layer in the fall.During this time of stratification,new oxygen cannotgettothe lower layer because it is too deep to be affected by the wave action or to be penetrated by light (allowing photosynthesis and oxygen production to occur). As a result, by the end of the summer, all the oxygen which was originally present in the spring and early summer has been used by bacteria to decompose algae. As much as 90% of the bottom water (in worst years such as 1973) in the central basin of Lake Erie becomes anoxic each summer. In 1930, by comparison, only 10% was anoxic.This watcr remains anoxic until the upper layer of warm water cools in the autumn to the temperature of the cool, bottom water and then surface and bottom mixingoccurs.It was in these cold, bottom waters that thc cisco and lake trout once lived.The loss of oxygen Figure 14.2.Lake Erie algal species.Pollution kills many of the aquatic organisms which live in tolerant forms (green): a) Melosira, the bottom sediment and are normally eaten by b) Stephanodiscus, c) Cladophora; fish. Oxygen loss also causes bottom-dwelling (blue-green) d) Microcystis, c) Aph- species, such as yellow perch, to move shoreward anizornenon, 1) Anabaena. Pollution in search of more oxygen and food. intolerant form: g) Ditwbryon.

water east of an imaginary line from Erie, PA, Reducing phosphorus in Lake Erie to Long Point; and a central basin with an average depth of 60 feet and containingallthe Most experts agree that by reducing the water between the western and eastern basins amount of availablephosphorus entering the (Figure 13.1).Phosphorus loadings into the lake lake, algae populations would be reduced and the vary for each basin and subsequently vary in oxygen problem in the central basin would be their effects upon the biota of each basin. slowly eliminated. Cultural eutrophicationof The process of lake stratification is depicted Lake Erie is being combated by programs to in Figure 14.3.Stratification is a natural occur- decrease phosphorus loading from all sources and rence in many lakes and usually only presents is proceeding on three fronts: improved sewage problems in eutrophic (very fertile) lakes.Each treatment plants, no-till or reduced-till farming, summcr, the warmer water rises and the cooler, and the implementation of detergent phosphorus Recovering from Phosphorus Enrichment / 131

LAKE STRATIFICATION (Layering) and TURNOVER. Heat from the heat is lost from the surtace. In summer, stratification is caused sun and changing seasons cause water in large lakes tostratify by a warming of surface waters which form a distinct layer called or form layers. In winter, the ice cover stays at 0 degreesC (32 the epilimnion. This is separated from the cooler and denser waters degrees F) and the water remains warmer below the ice than in of the hypolimnion by the thermocline, a layer of rapid temperature the air above. Water is most dense at 4 degrees C (39 degrees transition. Turnover distributes oxygen annually throughout most F). In the spring turnover, warmer water rises as the surface heats of the lakes. up. In fall, surface waters cool, become denser anddescend as

HE AT iNIG (2" 22' 8° I 11:11:1 t

F ALL WINTER SPRING SUMMER ournovO,) dave,ff,(11 Iturnove0

Figure 143.Sequence of events in thermal stratification of a lake. bans.Such programs were first initiated under ily as a result of improvements to the Detroit the 1972 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, a wastewater treatment plant. binational effort by both the Canadian and United Phosphorusconcentrationsintheopen have States'governments. Each country appoints waters of Lake Erie are highly variable and three members to the IIC (International Joint not decreased along with reductions in phosphorus Commission) to oversee the compliance of both loadings, except along the north shore of the parties to the Agreement. western basin. Here, in response to reduced The 1978 Great Lakes Water Quality Agree- loading from the Detroit River, concentration of ment contains the basic requirement toreduce phosphorus in Ontario waters decreased approxi- the phosphorus concentrations in municipal dis- mately 40% in the ten-year period from 1970 to charges to 1.0 mg/I in all the Great Lakes Basin. 1979.Similarly, in the 15-year period from 1968 Italso calls for other programs or additional to 1982, the annual mean phosphorus concentra- requirements needed to reduce point and nonpoint tions in the central basin epilimnion have fallen sources in order to achieve targetloads of 11,000 from 21.3 to 12.0 Ag/1 (44% decline). metric tonnes/year for Lake Erie (1 tonne = 1.1 tons).A reduction to this level is expected to eliminate anoxic conditions in the central basin Municipal discharge hypolimnion. However, if all municipal treatment plants in the Lake Erie Basin were discharging Phosphorus from municipal dischargesis phosphorus at 1.0 mg/1, the total phosphorus load primarily orthophosphate, which is one of the to the lake would still exceed the targetload. formsreadilyavailableforalgalproductivity. Further reductions from other sources are re- Therefore, itis important that phosphorus from quired. municipal sources be reduced. Remedial programs Total phosphorus loading to Lake Eric from for reducing phosphorus loadings from municipal Lake allexternal sources declined from a peak of wastewater treatment plants (MWTP) in the 28,000 tonnes in 1968 to 12,400 tonnes in 1982. Eric Basin have resulted in a substantial decrease This represents a 56% decline over the 15-ycar in phosphorus loading to the lake.In the early period. Thc Detroit River, which supplies about 1970s, the concentration of phosphorus in influent 90% of the inflowing water to Lake Erie, has wastewater to municipal treatment plants averaged shown a remarkable improvement; phosphorus about 10 mg/I within the Lake Eric drainage loadings decreased 60% from 1971 to 1980, primar- basin and the mean effluent concentration was 132 / Recovering from Phosphorus Enrichment approximately 7 mg/I for each MWTP. In 1981, duced by 170 tons per year. If levels were about half of the 40 major wastewater treatment decreased to 0.5 percent, the amount discharged plants in the Great Lakes Basin did not meet could be reduced by up to 730 tons per year. phosphorus requirements of 1.0 mg/I. Since the installation of phosphorus removal Table 14.1. Detergentphosphoruslimitations systems by many plants by 1980, an average (% P) in Great Lakes basin jurisdic- effluent concentration of 1.6 mg/1 for all Ohio tions. plants resulted by 1982.Concentrations as low as 0.6 mg/1 for the Detroit sewage treatment Jurisdiction %P Implemented plant were exhibited. Likewise, municipal loading of phosphorus to Lake Erie has declined from Ontario 2.2 1973 over 15,000 tonnes in 1972 to about 2,500 tonnes Chicago, Ill 0.5 1972 in 1983, a reduction of over 83% (Figure 14.4). Indiana 0.5 1973 By 1984, only 25% of the wastewater treatment Michigan 0.5 1977 plants in the Great Lakes basin exceeded the Minnesota 0.5 1977 target concentration.Unfortunately, 6 of the 10 New York 0.5 1973 violators are in the Lake Erie Basin: (1) Wyan- Wisconsin 0.5 1979 dotte, Michigan, (2) Toledo, Ohio, (3) Akron, Ohio 0.5 1990 Ohio, (4) Cleveland, Ohio, (5) Euclid, Ohio, and Pennsylvania 0.5 (6) Erie, Pennsylvania.It should be noted that 1989 the average loading objective of 1.0 mg/I applies NOTE: This table was updated in 1993. to major wastewater treatment plants only (i.e., those plants discharging one million gallons per day or more).For example, the average phos- Agricultural phosphorus phorus concentration of minor wastewater treatment plants in Ohio isstill approximately 4.0 Agricultural cropland phosphorus is estimated mg/I. to account for 65% of the phosphorus entering Lake Erie, of which approximately 50% is bioavailable. To achieve the target loading of Detergent phosphorus 11,000 tonnes/year, Ohio's portion of the goal is a reduction of 1,385 tonnes, of which about 900 All of the Great Lakes jurisdictions, with tonnes is assigned to cropland phosphorus reduc- the exception of Ohio and Pennsylvania, have tion.Many agencies are currently involved in legislative controls limiting the phosphorus con- programs to reduce loads through comprehensive tentof laundry detergents to 0.5percent by land treatment, residue management, and livestock weight (Table 14.1). The results have been amaz- waste management. Although these programs are ing with reductions of up to 60 percent in the resultinginsteadyincreasesinconservation amount of phosphorus entering the lakes and tillage acreage and increased knowledge of fer- streams. InOhio,theInternationalJoint tilizer management, they will not be enough to Commissionin1980 estimatesthatdetergent meet the target load reduction. phosphorus accounts for 20 to 35 percent of Conservationtillageincludingno-tillor phosphorus in municipal discharges, or 490 to 850 reduced-till farming involves cultivation (plowing) tons per year.Although Ohio does not have a of the fields which reduces runoff and erosion. state-wide ban, the city of Akron has a local This practice requires the use of special equip- ban. Presently, Canada's limitis2.2 percent. ment to seed the fields and to distribute her- In areas without bans, detergent manufacturers bicides for weed control.However, on certain have reduced phosphorus from 10.8% to an aver- soil types, some of which are present in north- age of 5.5% by weight.If phosphorus levels in west Ohio, this method is more economical than detergent were decreased to 2.2% by weight in traditional cultivation.The use of this practice Ohio, the amount of phosphorus discharged by is currently increasing in 22 northwestern Ohio municipal sewage treatment plantg could be re- counties. Recovering from Phosphoms Enrichment/ 133

14000 United States 12000 LAKE ERIE Canada

10000

8000

6000

4000 LU.S. Load at 1 mg/L. 2000

Ult. Load at.1 ing/L. Li. 0 '82'83'84 '85 72'75'76'77'78'79'80'81 Year

Figure 14.4.Municipal phosphorus loadings toLake Erie. From 1980 through 1984 Current estimates indicate thatconservation and algal biomass. oxygen depletion rateshave decreased and are tillageincreaseswillresultina phosphorus Existing erosion less variable. reduction of 71 tonnes by 1988. In the central basin of LakeErie, the rate and animal waste control programs(other than depletion more than cropland management) will reducephosphorus of hypolimneticoxygen doubled between 1930 and themid-1970s. In loads by another 120 tonnes. Becauseonly 14% 1930, the volumetric rate hasbeen estimated at of the goal can be achieved usingexisting erosion 0.05 mg/l/day, while in 1974it was measured at control and water quality protection programs, 0.13 mg/l/day. During the sameperiod the area the vast majority of the reductionmust be met The Ohio En- of the basin subjected toanoxic conditions rose with new programs and funding. 10,250 km2 in 1974. estimates that from 300 km2 in 1930 to vironmental Protection Agency 1982 show that utilize Studies conducted from 1980 to nearly 2,000,000 acres of cropland must of 0.10 phosphorus goal. the demand rate dropped to an average conservation tillage to meet the mg/l/day and the arca of anoxia wasreduced to 4,870 km2.This improvement in bottom water quality can be attributed todecreased amounts Response to phosphorus due to nutrient reduction of sedimented organic material reduction. Dissolved oxygen in the hypolimnion Algal response has suffered The central basin hypolimnion concentra- least 40 ycars. In response to lower phosphorus seasonal anoxic conditions for at planktonic blue-green variability in oxygen tions basin-wide, blooms of Taking into account natural and factors, the algae(e.g.Microcystis,Aphanizomenon, depletion rates due to meteorological and massive highest oxygen depletion rates occurredduring Anabaena) in western Lake Erie, growths of attached filamentous greenalgae (e.g. the 1960s and 1970s.This was when Lake Erie in the mid- the height of culturaleutrophication, Cladophora) which were so prevalent was at 1960s decreased in intensityand numbcr during exhibiting the highest phosphorusconcentrations

I d 5 134 / Recovering from Phosphorus Enrichment

the 1970s, and no basin-wide blooms have been angler harvest of fish in Ohio waters, improve- reported in recent years. Open lake phytoplank- ments have been attributed to good young-of-the ton analysis between 1970 and 1980 indicatesa year recruitment and international management reduction in total phytoplankton biomass anda approaches. Any assumptions relating the effects composition shifttowardmoreoligotrophic of decreased nutrient loadings into Lake Erieto species.Eutrophic species were less abundant in fishery improvements are premature at this time. 1979 than in 1970, and oligotrophic specieswere first observed in 1979.With the recent trend of high lakelevels,the dilutioneffect of more A note about nitrates upper Great Lakes water flowing into Lake Erie, coupled with greater submergence of algal attach- Nitrogen is the only major dissolvedcon- ment sites, is thought to be partially responsible stituent in the waters of Lake Erie which has for the absence of basin-wide algal blooms and shown a dramatic increase in the past decade. massive growths of Cladophora thatwere so Increased use of chemical fertilizers andgaseous prevalent in the mid-1960s. emissionsof nitrogen compounds withinthe lake's drainage basin are majorcauses. Combined nitrate and nitrite loading from the Detroit River Benthos response more than doubled in the period 1967 to 1979. T'ie composition of the benthic macroinver- tebr communities of western Lake Erie has Database improved since 1967.Samples taken in 1979, when compared with 1967 data, showed that the In many respects Lake Erie has one of the bottom isstill dominated by pollution tolerant longest and most complete historical databases in tubuficid worms; however, otherless tolerant the Great Lakes.Early studics of Lake Erie tubificids (e.g. Peloscolex spp., Figure 14.1)were focused mainly on bacterial contaminationin also common.The density of tubificid worms nearshore water.The first detailed limnological declined sharply at the mouth of the Detroit surveys on Lake Erie were completed in 1928- River between 1967 (13,000/m2) and 1979 (2,400/ 1930, and in the 34 years following that there in-7), while the number at the mouth of the were occasional surveys of limited geographical Maumee River has remained constant.Midge and temporal scope.The next major study was (Chironomidae) larvae represented only 6% of the completed by the Federal Water Pollution Control western basin benthic population in1967 but Administration in 1963-4.A notable research rose to 20% by 1979, replacing some of the tubi- and surveillance effort was undertaken by Burns ficids. in 1970. This was followed bya series of studies A modest reestablishment of the burrowing by Herdendorf from 1973 through 1977, then by mayfly (Hexagenia limbata) has been observedat two years of binational intensive studies.Addi- the mouth of the Detroit River and in adjacent tional annual surveys and reports representyears areas of western Lake Erie.This species was of nearly continuous effortstodetermine the extirpated from the western basin in the mid- impact of culturally induced eutrophication and 1950s following periods of ancrda in this normally contamination from toxic substanxs and toaccess unstratified portion of the lake.Prior to 1953, the success of efforts to reduce those impacts. bottom sediments yielded about 400 nymphsper Recently,Burns,Rathke and Edwards have square meter in the Bass Islands region. Follow- attempted to document the status of Lake Erie ing the catastrophic kills of the 1950s,no Hera- and trace its long- and short-term water quality genia nymphs were found in Lake Erie sediments trends. for over 20 years.In 1979, 20 nymphs were collected near the mouth of the Detroit River and for the past several years a small emergence Summary of adults has been observed on South Bass Island. Though itis too early to determine all of In summary, during the late 1970s changes the causes of the recent increase in annual sport began to occur which are continuinginthe

G Recovering from Phosphorus Enrichment / 135

1980s:nutrientloading decreased, phosphorus decade. CLEAR Tech. Rept. No. 219, 162 concentrations in the lake dropped, sources of pp. contamination by several toxic substances have Fay, LA.1982.Final report of 1982 main lake been checked, levels of certain contaminants in waterqualityconditions for LakeErie. lake sediments and biota are subsiding, "clear CLEAR Tech. Rept. No. 254-F. 102 pp. water" forms of plankton and benthos are showing Federal Water Pollution Control Administration modest signs of recovery, and fish populations (FWPCA). 1968a. Lake Erie environmental are rebounding.However, cause and effect rela- summary 1963-1964. U.S. Departmentof the tionships of all of these changes are not obvious, Interior,Great Lakes Region, Cleveland most of the improvements have been small,and Programs Office, 170 pp. for many parameters, conclusive trends have yet Federal Water Pollution Control Administration to be established. But evidence for improvement (FWPCA). 1968b.Lake Erie surveillance is beginning to mount and it is becoming obvious data summary 1967-1968.U.S. Department to scientists, fishermen, and shoreline dwellers of the Interior, Great Lakes Region, Cleve- alike that Lake Erie is recovering from nutrient land Programs Office, 65 pp. overload, but faces still a difficult challengethe Fish, C. (Editor)1960.Limnological survey of control of twdc substances. The extent of future eastern and central Lake Erie,1928-1929. improvements will depend on continuing efforts S. Fish and Wild. Serv. Spec. Sci. Rept. to control loading of nutrients and toxic sub- Fish No. 334, 198 pp. stances to the lake, particularly those associated Herdendorf, C.E. (Editor) 1980. Lake Erie nutri- with industrial and agricultural practices. Sur- entcontrol program. EPA-600/3-80-062. veillance of Lake Erie water, biota, and sediment 354 pp. conditions must continue if we are to establish Herdendorf, C.E.1983. Lake Erie water quality clear relationships between remedial actions and 1970-1982: Amanagementassessment. lake quality. CLEAR Tech. Rept. No. 279. 144 pp. International Joint Commission. 1918. Final report of the IJC on pollution of boundary References waters reference. 56 pp. Rathke, D.E. and CJ. Edwards. 1985. A review Becton, A.M. 1963. Limnological survey of Lake of trends in Lake Erie water quality with Erie,1959 and 1960. Great Lakes Fish. emphasis on the 1978-1979 intensive study. Comm. Tech. Rept. 6. Ann Arbor, MI, 32 International Joint Commission, Surveillance pp. Work Group. 129 pp. Burns, N.M. and C. Ross.1972.Project Hypo: Rathke, D.E. and L.A. Fay. 1985. 1983-1984 An intensivestudy of Lake Erie central Lake Erie oxygen depletion study. CLEAR basin hypolimnion and related surface water Tech. Rept. No. 291. 109 pp. phenomena. Canada Centre forInland Reutter,J.M.,F.R.Lichtkoppler,andC.E. Waters Paper No. 6, U.S. Environmental Herdendorf.1983.Lake Erie: Phosphorus Protection Agency Technical Report TS-05- and eutrophication, Ohio Sea Grant Fact 71-208-24. Ottawa, Ont. 182 pp. Sheet #15, Ohio Sea Grant Program, The Burns, N.M.1985.Erie the Lake That Survived. Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio. Rowman and Allanheld Publications, Totowa, NJ., 320 pp. Chandler, D.C. and O.D. Weeks. 1945. Limnolo- gical studies of western Lake Erie. V. Relation of limnological and meteorological conditions to the production of phytoplankton in 1942. Ecol. Monogr. 15:435-457. Fay, LA. and C.E. Herdendorf. 1981. Lake Erie water quality: Assessment of 1980 open lake conditions and trends for the preceding

; 15/ Toxics in Lake Erie

by Clayton J. Edwards

The story of toxic substances in Lake Erie is straight forward. Raw materials are generally is also a story of human reliance on the element extracted from theearth through mining or chlorine. Our agriculture depends on chlorinated drilling. These basic materials are then combined compounds, which are used to control insects in the manufacturing process and the finished and weeds.The wood in our houses is treated product is consumed. with chlorinated chemicals to discourage termites The extraction process hasitsassociated and our plumbing is made of chlorinated vinyl environmental hazards, such as asbestos pollution polymers. We put sodium chloride on our roads resulting from iron ore mining or oil spills occur- during winter to melt the ice.In the summer ring at the well head or during transportation. we chlorinate our swimming pools.Chlorine is The manufacturing processcreatesunwanted added to our sewage to kill the bacteria.As byproducts, e.g. dioxin, that enter the environ- much as we depend on compounds containing ment from industrial wastewater pipes, smoke chlorine to sustain our standard of living, weare stacks or hazardous waste dump sites.Product wielding a two-edged sword. consumption closes the cycle and involves appli- The back side of this sword is, of course, cation of the product on the land, such as in pollution.The recent history of the toxic con- farming; ingestion; or simply discarding the prod- tamination of Lake Erieistestimony to the uct after use, as is frequently done with plastic dangers of living in a chemical world, especially bottles.Whether through the air, through thc one dominated by chlorine. For instance, DDT is tributary network or through the subsurface flow almost 50% by weight chlorine.Toxaphene, a of groundwater, the lake ultimately receives these generalpurposepesticidecreatedtoreplace chemicals. DDT, ischlorinated camphene or pine pitch. Some particular traits of a chemical deter- The C in PCB represents chlorine, which com- mine whether it will pose an environmental haz- prises about 50% by weight of the commercial ard.These traits are its toxicity, its persistence formulation of this substance.One of the most and its affinity for water.Generally, the worst toxic compounds known is 2,3,7,8, tetrachlorodi- combination is high toxicity, long persistence and benzo-p-dioxin or TCDD, which, as the name low water affinity. The DDTs, TCDDs and PCBs implies, contains four chlorine atoms per molecule. allfall into this category.Such chemicals will Historians will probably mark the mercury accumulateinlivingtissue through a process pollution in Lake Erie as the forerunner of thc known as biomagnification.If a chemical has a toxics legacy whereby the fish were so contamin- low affinity for water itwill generally have a ated that they posed a threat to human health. high affinity for lipids (fatty substances).The But where did the mercury in Lake Erie come chemical combines with the lipid and, if persis- from? It came from the chlor-alkali industry tent, remains with the organism untilit dies or that uses chlorine to bleach wood pulp in the is consumed. A single celled alga (phytoplank- making of paper. ton), for example, might accumulate one molecule The route by which chemicals support our of a chlorinated chemical, and a small inverte- standard of living and influence our environment brate (zooplankton) might consume 10 of these Toxics in Lake Erie / 137

100.000 47

10.000 2.0

1.000 0.32

0.100

0.01 0.010 0.003

0.001 Fisheating Birds Phytoplankton Zooplankton Forage Fish Predator Fish Food Web Level

Figure 15.1.Total PCB concentration (mg/kg) in the food web of theWestern Basin of Lake Erie.(Data sauces: D.M. Wattle, Department of Fisheriesand Oceans, Burling(on, Ontario; D.V. Weseloh, Canada Wildlife Service, Burlington, Ontario) phytoplankton before it in turn is consumed by a thesefiguresarc accurate and representthe small fish.If the small fish consumes 10 zoo- baseline to which future monitoring data will be plankton before itis consumed by a larger fish, compared. there arc now 100 molecules of the chemicals Beforescientists had thestate-of-the-art transmitted to the next consumer, which might techniques to accurately detect contaminants in be a walleye.If the walleye consumes 10 of water, they took advantage of thebiomagnifica- these fish before it is caught, then the fisherman tion phenomenon and measured contaminant is exposed to 1000 molecules of the chemical. levelsinbiologicaltissue,suchasfishand The data in Figure 15.1 depict this food chain herring gull eggs, as surrogates for water quality. biomagnifieation process. These surrogates, measured over time, are used Itfollows from this description that the toevaluatetrendsinorganiccontaminants. longer an organism remains in a contaminated They determine the effectiveness of or need for system, the higher the degree of exposureand government programs to reduce pollution from hence the accumulation of chemicals.This rela- toxic contaminants. The results from two of tionship is depicted in Figure 15.2.It explains these programs appear in Figures 15.3 and 15.4. why fish consumption warnings typically apply to Itis obvious from these data that environ- the larger (older) members of species. mental levels of PCB are declining. The data for Untilrecentlyourabilitytoaccurately DDT, dioxin and mercury show similar declines quantify the levels of organic contaminants in for Lake Erie and the Great Lakes in general. water has been deficient. However, a 1986 survey Some compounds, however, have not declined by Canadian scientists to evaluate organochlorines even though their use orproduction have been in Lake Erie water showed PCB concentrations eliminated.Dieldrin, a compound containing six of 0.70 g/L in the open waters of the lake with chlorine atoms per molecule (56% chlorine by the Detroit, Maumee and Grand (Ontario) Rivers weight) and a degradation product of the pesticide as major tributary sources.Since the data in aldrin, is an example of such a chemical. Dieldrin Table 15.1 reflect state-of-the-art collection and and aldrin were widely used as pesticides from analyticaltechniquesitisfairlycertainthat 1950 to 1974 when uses of both were cancelled. 138 Toxics in Lake Erie

undetermined. 2.5 Because there are more than 50,000 chemicals in the Great Lakes ecosystem,

2.00 the process of evaluating each one would be overwhelming. The governments of Canada and 1.70 the United States, through the tic, are therefore 1.02 working on procedures to reduce thelistby 1.5 focusing on chemicals that are most likely to

El 1 cause environmental harm.

3.5 0.50 0.5 3

2.5

0 2

t$4" C. C. 1.5 Figure 15.2.PCB concentration (mg/kg) in five age groups of walleye from the 0.5 Western Basin of Lake Erie. (Data 0 '78 '79 source: D.M. Whittle, Department of '80 '81 '82 83 84 135 Fisheries and Oceans,Burlington, Year Onttaio) Figure 153. PCB concentration in age 3+ walleye from Lake Erie.(Data source: DM. Table 15.1. Organo-chlorine contaminants from Whittle,Departmentof Fisheries LakeEriesurfacewater,1986. arul Oceans, Burlington, Ontario) (Data source: R.Stevens,Inland Waters Directorate, Burlington, Ontario) 100

MEAN + STANDARD 80 DEVIATION MINIMUM HAXIMUN

a-811C 3.33 / 0.81 2.17 5.48 60 Undone 7.90 / 0.38 0.49 2.15 Dieldrin 0.34 / 0.16 0.07 0.93 I -- Heptachlor Epoxide 0.14 I 0.04 0.09 0.26 a-Chlordane 0.04 1 0.03 4 0 0.01 0.09 1 y-Chlordane 0.03 / 0.02 0.01 0.09 P.W-DDE 0.03 0.02 0.01 0.08 PCBs 1.16 0.151 0.29 2.95 20 1.3-dichlorobenzene 0.20 / 0.13 0.05 0.46 r 2 0.54 1 101-dichlorobenzene 0.96 ..1.02 0.26 4.18 1.2-dichlorobenzene 0.18 .. 0.21 0.03 0.98 1 1.3.5-trichlorobenzene 0.03 1 0.03 0.02 0.14 -1 1.2,4-trichlorobenzene 0.30 0.14 0.04 0.60 '74 '75 '76 '77 '78 '79 '80 '81 '82'83'84 155 '86 1.2.3-trichlorobenzene 0.04 1 0.01 0.02 0.06 1.2.3.4-tetrachlorobenzene 0.04 0.02 0.02 0.08 Year Pentachlorobenzene 0.05 1 0.02 0.02 0.07 Nexachlorobenzene 0.07 / 0.06 0.01 0.22 Figure 15.4.PCB concentrations (mg/kg) in Lake 11.8. Hean and standard deviations calculated only with data greater than detection limit. Erie Western Basin herring gull eggs, 1974-1986.(Data sauce: D.V. Weseloh, Canada Wildlife Service, The environmental levels for dieldrin,as shown Budington, Ontario) by herring gull eggs, have not changed apprecia- bly since 1974 (Figure 15.5). There are some areas in the Great Lakes Other dangerous chemicals have been detec- that are so grossly polluted that they have been ted in the environment but they lack long-term singled out by the IJC as deserving special atten- data to make an evaluation of their trends.For tion.The Water Quality Board of the IJC has such chemicals, the need for or effectiveness of identified 42 of these areas within the Great programs to reduce or eliminate their input are Lakes basin (Figurc 15.6).Within the Lake Erie Toxics in Lake Erie / 139

Table 15.2. Summary contaminant information from the Lake Erie Areas of Concern.(Data source: J. Hartig LTC Great Lakes Regional Office, Windsor, Ontario)

Toxics Area of Identified Consumption Presence Concern in Sediments Advisory of Tumors

River Raisin PCBs No consumption Gizzard shad Trace metals of carp

Maumee Trace metals None No data

Black M tals No consumption - Brown bullhead PI-kHs all species

Cuyahoga Metals None White suckers, PCBs, DDT, PAHs brown bullhead

Ashtabula Metals No consumption - No data PCBs all species

Wheatley Harbour Metals Yellow perch No data PCBs, DDT

Detroit River PAH, metals Restrictions on Bullheads PCBs rock bass, walleye, freshwater drum, carp

Niagara River Metals Restrictions on Freshwater PCBs white sucker, drum, white eel, trout, sucker salmon, white perch

watershed there are eight such areas: the River Progress in reducing the threat of toxic Raisin in Michigan; Wheatley Harbour in Ontario; substances in Lake Erie has been positive but the Maumee, Black, Cuyahoga and Ashtabula slow. More stringent enforcement of point source Rivers in Ohio; and the Detroit and Niagara dischargepermitsystems,strongerlawsand Rivers.Even with limited data, itis clear that enforcement to reduce airborne sources of toxics, sediments are severely contaminated, fish con- and a rigorous toxic waste site clean-up program sumption warnings are commonplace and tumors will be needed to achieve the goals set forth by in fish are prevalent (Table 15.2).In Wheatley thc governments of Canada and the United States. Harbour, the suspected source of pollution is the Preventing a repetition of contamination from accumulation of waste from the fish processing new chemicals will require a strict andvigorous plant.The other seven areas represent a legacy application of the existing laws and programs from the industrial heartland production of steel, designed to curb such pollution,i.c. the Toxic automobiles and chemicals. Substances Control Act (TSCA), the Federal 140 / Taxies in Lake Erie

Insecticide FungicideandRodenticideAct References (FIFRA) and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Eisenreich, S.J.1987. Toxic fallout in the Great Lakes.Issues in Science and Technology. IV(1):71-75. Fall. International Joint Commission. 1987. Report on Great Lakes Water Quality. Windsor: UC. 0 5 Keating, M.1986.To the Last Drop. Toronto:

0 4 Macmillan Canada. 260 pp. Nriagu, JA. and MS. Simmons. (eds.) 1984. S0 Toxic contaminants in the Great Lakes. New

11 02 York: John Wiley and Sons. Thomas, R.L., Di. Williams, D.M. Whittle, J.E. 0 I Gannon, and J. Hartig. 1986. Contaminants in Lake Ontario: A case study. In Proceed- 74 75 '70 77 78 8 '80 "81 112 63 64 85 '66 Yeolt ings, World Large Lakes Conference. Mack- inac Island, MI. Figure 15.5.Dieldrin concentrations (nig/kg) in Williams, Di. 1985.Toxic substances in the Lake Erie Western Basin herring Great Lakes. Environmental Health.(Pub- gull eggs, 1974-1986.(Data source: lication of the Canadian Public Health In- D.V. Weseloh, Canada Wildlife Ser- spectors). vice, Burlington, Ontario)

LAKE SUPERIOR 1.6100.6111.1 LAKE ERIE (I) Peninsula Harbour MINNESOT '46 Greot Lakes Basin (22) Clinton River (2) Jackfish Bay (23) Rouge River (3) Nipigon Bay Dividing Line (24) Raisin River (4) Thunder Bay (25) Maumee River (5) St. Louis River s. (26) Black River (6) Torch Lake (27) Cuyahoga River (7) Deer Lake-Carp Creek (28) Ashtabula River -Carp River (29) Wheatley Harbour

LAKE MICHIGAN LAKE ONTARIO (8) Manistique River QUEBEC (30) Buffalo River (9) Menominee River (31) Eighteen Mile Creek (10) Fox River/Southern GreenBay (32) Rochester Embayment (I I) Sheboygan (33) Oswego River (12) Milwaukee Estuary WIStINSIN (34) Bay of Quinte (13) Waukegan Harbor all (35) Port Hope (14) Grand Calumet River (36) Toronto Waterfront /Indiana Harbor Canal (37) Hamilton Harbour (15) Kalamazoo River (16) Muskegon Lake CONNECTING CHANNELS (17) White Lake (38) St. Marys River (39) St. Clair River I.AKE HURON (40) Detroit River (18) Saginaw River/Saginaw Bay YOli0(41) Niagara River (19) Collingwood Harbour (42) St. Lawrence River (20) Pcnetang Bay to Sturgeon Bay (21) Spanish River Mouth Sir s ILLINOIS INDIANA 46, OHIO PENNSYLVANIA Figure 15.6Great Lakes Areas of Concern.

% r , BEii/ 1 V tiC.4 IiiLeAur 16/ Governing the Great Lakes Basin

by Kathleen L. Barber

of Popular and scientific concerns about gradual Great Lakes was an unintended consequence deterioration of water quality and fish supply in governmental decisions made far from thebasin the Great Lakes in the 1970s led to arenewed .to subsiain and encourage private commerce. of interestinthe question, "Who isin charge? In order to understand the complexities Who is making the decisions about the usesand governance,onemustidentifyinternational, local great resource?" The abrupt national, state and provincial as well as abuses of this and pieces of emergence in the 1980s ofthe issue of diversion government bodies, all with bits of Great Lakes water to arid regionsof the responsibility for human impacts on the function- interjurisdic- countrysharplyescalateddiscussionsofthe ing of the natural ecosystem. Four tional agencieschargedwithcoordinating adequacy of the governmental system. also be Traditionally,decisions about both water activitiesof various governments will quality and water quantity in the regionhave explored. Once the institutional outlines are been made on an ad hoc basis by bothprivate sketched in, the need for integrativemechanisms and publicauthorities withlittleconsultation can be addressed. among affected parties.Public indifference to the natural ecosystem had to be converted to public concern before the problems of theinsti- The international setting tutional ecosystem could be addressed. The critical characteristics of the mechan- History teaches us that bodies of water as convenient isms for making and implementingpublic policy havetraditionally been viewed Rivers, lakes and seas have in the Great Lakes Basin are first, thecomplexity political boundaries. secondly, the been used for purposes of defense anddemarca- of the institutional framework; and whether of fragmentationof power inherent in that com- tion, providing limits to settlements plexity. A significant boundary for the purpose communities or nations; so with the GreatLakes, boun- of ecosystem management is the outlineof the four of which encompass an international dary. The United States and Canada assovereign Great Lakes Basin.Many people are astounded portion of the land and independent nations share possessionof and to learn that only a small While area of the regionactually lies within the basin. responsibility for the water of the lakes. is tran- Lake Michigan is not legally aninternational Yet even that significant basin boundary territory, scended by external influences.The discovery, lake, being totally surrounded by U.S. for example, that water quality in thelakes is itis an integral part of the hydrological system carried great of flows and levels.It has best been described impacted by airborne pollutants Lake Huron; the waters flow distances by natural atmospheric currents proves as a cul-de-sac of downstream from Superior through Huron toErie how difficult it is to draw geographicalboundaries and Ontario, and into the St. LawrenceRiver on to our governmental concerns.The introduction of the sea lamprey, a predatory fishthat attacks the way to the Atlantic Ocean. commercially importantfishspecies,into the 142 / Governing the Great Lakes Basin

The International Joint Commission however, remains within the sovereign power of the two nations. Binational responsibility for the Great Lakes system was recognized and formalized by the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909, in which Canada Great Lakes Fisheries Commission and the United States agreed to settle differences over allocation and use of boundary waters by Similar to the IJC in organization is the negotiation.Domestic supply of water was given Great Lakes Fisheries Commission (GLFC), es- thehighestpriority,with navigationnextin tablished in 1955 as a binational body to recom- importance.Significantly, the two nations agreed mend means to manage the fish stocks of the toprohibitdiversion of streams crossing the lakes for maximum sustained productivity, and to boundary, and not to pollute in such a way as to eradicate the sea lamprey.Like the LTC, its cause injury to the other nation, an early recog- researchfindingsareaccorded highrespect, nition of the major issues of today. The Treaty while its effectiveness depends on the commitment established the International Joint Commission of the respective sovereign powers to carry out (IJC) to carry out the provisions of the agree- its recommendations. ment.This binational authority was given actual decision-maldng power in limited areas of water allocation at the border.With respect to all The sovereign nations other policies and actions, the IJC was given advisory power only.Its authority to investigate United States problems and recommend policyislimited to questions referred toit by the two sovereign Within the American government, respon- governments in a formal "reference." This passive sibilityforthesemattersiswidelyshared. institutional character means that the only inter- Congress sets the broad parameters of public national body governing the Great Lakes is sub- policy, but must secure executive assent.Action ject to two national wills. is often impeded by lack of agreement between The IJC is composed of six commissioners, President and Congress,or between the two three of whom are appointed by the Canadian houses of Congress. Delay in the renewal of the government for fixed terms, and three of whom Clean Water Act is a case in point. The Renewal are appointed by the U.S. President, confirmed Act contains the much-discussed Great Lakes by the Senate, and serve at the pleasure of the Amendment, whose purposes include coordination President.This method of appointment is only of state and federal efforts to meet the standards one of many differences between the two nations of the Water Quality Agreement with Canada. ingovernmental practices which hampers the Ironically, the Amendment remains in limbo be- effectiveness of a joint public enterprise. cause of lack of consensus among the multiple However, most of the work of the Commis- power centers of the American federal govern- sion is carried out by binational boards staffed ment. When both houses of Congress finally by civil servants "seconded" (or borrowed) from agreed on its provisions and passed the Clean agencies of the respective governments. Such Water Act in October 1986, President Reagan groups as the Water Quality Board, the Science used his pocket veto power to kill the legislation, Advisory Board, the Pollution from Land Use citingexcessivecoststoexpand and update Activities Reference Group (PLUARG) are res- municipal sewage treatment systems. pected for the impartial and professional charac- Many departments of the federal government ter of the studies they have produced.Since share authority to implement environmental policy. the adoption by the two nations of the Great Only the State Department may issue a reference Lakes Water Quality Agreement of 1972, revised totheIJC,sinceinternationalrelationsare and renewed in 1978, these boards have persuaded involved. Responsibilitiesforairand water the IJC to support an ecosystem approach to the quality, navigation, commerce and fisheries are management of the natural resources of the shared by the Departments of State, Defense, region.Implementation of its recommendations, Commerce, Interior and Transportation, the En- Governing the Great Lakes Basin / 143 vironmental Protection Agency and other units falls and new elections must be held.Unity and scattered through the federal bureaucracy.The accountabilityarethereforestrengthsofthe U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plays a key role parliamentary system, rather than checks and because of its responsibility for maintaining the balances, as in the United States. channelsof navigation and forregulationof The principal Canadian federalagencies levels in some lakes.The Corps co-chairs with responsible for management of Great Lakes Basin Canada's Departments of Environment and Trans- activitiesareExternalAffairs,Environment port the Lake Superior and St. Lawrence River Canada, Transport Canada, and the Department of Boards of Control. Fisheries and Oceans.Each of these executive Not surprisinglyina nation where the agencies is headed by a member of the Cabinet practice of judicial supremacy is deeply rooted, who must be a member of Parliament, and who is even the U.S. Supreme Court is an ever-present usually a member of the Prime Minister's party. decision maker in the Great Lakes region. Under Therefore, the kind of executive-legislative stale- its original jurisdiction, where itsits as a trial mate which is familiar to Americans is unknown court for disputes among the states, the Supreme across the northern border. Court regulates the amount of water that can be Furthermore, Canadian courts havelittle diverted from the system through the Chicago policy-making power, seldom exercising judicial Canal.This diversion of Lake Michigan water, review. There is little or no private environmen- created in1848 to protect Chicago's drinking tal litigation in Canada, so the Canadian courts' water by flushing its sewage down the Mississippi opportunities to become involved in questions of River, has been litigated over the years by other pollution and policy are significantly restricted. affected states and is carefully controlled by the Class action suits and contingency fees for law- Supreme Court. yers,practices which haveledtoimportant Interpreting the interstate commerce power judicial involvement in environmental policy in of Congress under the U.S. Constitution, the the United States through interpretation of the Supreme Courtactsalso under itsappellate laws, are unknown in Canada. jurisdiction to shape state management of natural resources. For example, its famous 1982 decision, Sporhase v. Nebraska, 458 U.S. 941, declared What's left for the water to be an article of commerce and therefore States and Provinces? beyond the absolute control of the states.States cannot forbid export of water out of the state, Because both Canada and the United States unless damage to public health and welfare could are federal systems, their powers in the Great be shown to be threatened by such export. Such Lakes Basin are shared with two provinces (On- an interpretation of the Constitution has massive tario and Quebec) and eightstates(Illinois, potential implications for the ecosystem manage- Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, ment of the Great Lakes Basin. Pennsylvania and Wisconsin).In both nations the navigable waters of the lakes are under federal jurisdiction, but the states and provinces Canada own the submerged lands under their portions of thelakes. Beyond thissimilarity,thereare In contrast, Canada's system of parliamen- significant differences between the two systems tary supremacy concentrates power rather than withrespecttointerjurisdictionalrelations. dispersing it.The Prime Minister, a member of These differences will be discussed and illustrated Parliament himself, is the leader of the majority by recent initiativesto overcome such institu- party in Parliament, and his Cabinet is composed tional complexities. entirely of members of Parliament. Thcre can be no conflictsbetween executive andlegislative initiatives such as are experienced in the United Provincial responsibilities States, because there is no separation of these powers. Ifa parliamentary majority fails to Ontario's presence in the Great Lakes Basin support theCabinet'spolicy,the government so outweighs Quebec's that there arefew inter- 144 / Governing the Great Lakes Basin

provincial problems.But usually a cleaner line ment to governmental solutions of environmental of demarcation between federal and provincial and economic problems.For many years, how- responsibilities is drawn in Canada, with environ- ever, on a bipartisan basis, the states have inter- mental and natural resource responsibilities devol- mittently pursued interstate consensus on Great ving more substantially on the provinces.The Lakes issues through the Great Lakes Commission Canadian Constitution confirms provincial juris- (GLC). diction over exploration, development, conserva- Organized by interstate compact in 1955, tion and management of non-renewable resources. the Great Lakes Commission was not approved by For this reason, Canada uses more formal Congress until 1968.This 13-year delay was mechanismstoallocateresponsibilities. The caused by the states' plan to include the Canadian Ministries of Natural Resotr.ces and Environment provinces of Ontario and Quebec in the Commis- in Quebec and Ontario a- e dominant in natural sion. Congress resisted this inclusionary approach resource matters. In :act,in ordcr even to because of reluctance to allow states to conduct negotiate an agreement with the U.S. about foreignrelations. When the states withdrew Great Lakes water quality, Canada first signed their insistence on a binational regional approach, an internal agreement with Ontario to guarantee Congress ratified the compact. the implementation of terms to be negotiated The purpose of the GLC is "to promote the externally. The Canada-Ontario Agreement Res- orderly, integrated, and comprehensive develop- pecting Great Lakes Water Quality (COA) was ment, use and conservation of the water resources first signed in 1971 and revised in 1976 and of the Great Lakes Basin."Headquartered in 1982. One of the key provisions of COA was Ann Arbor, Michigan (the only state lying totally the specification that only minimum standards of within the Basin), the Commission has quietly water quality would be binding on Ontario, leav- addressedbothenvironmentaland economic ing the province free to adopt more stringent issues, particularly the welfare of lake shipping. standards if it so desires. While the Commission can adopt issues by majority vote, its role remains advisory to the states. The Commission's structural weakness lies Powers of the States in its lack of authority to act: itis not a supra- state, regional government. Methods for choosing Thisprovincialdominance contrastssig- its members (three to five commissioners from nificantly with the U.S., where Congress retains each state) are designated by state statute, with the power to set maximum as well as minimum at least one appointed by the Governor of each standardsforcompliancewithenvironmental state. The variety of selection methods and laws. (However, individual states can control proisionsforaccountabilitytotherespective and prescribe environmental standards with ap- states leads to differing degrees of state commit- proval from U.S. EPA). Federal supremacy is a ment to this interstate enterprise.Even under more powerful tool under the U.S. Constitution this limited authority the Commission has never for the enactment and implementation of environ- exercised its total potential of regional advocacy mental policy.Although the Tenth Amendment and coordination of policy. reserves to the states those powers not delegated in the Constitution to the federal gov ernment, the dividing line between federal and state res- Regional alliances ponsibilities is imprecise and permeable.. Further- more, that line is subject to judicial intervention A relatively new and rapidly evolving region- in cases and controversies, as, for example, in alinstitutionisthe Council of Great Lakes the Sporhase decision mentioned earlier. Among Governors (CGLG), formally established in 1982 the American states, responsibility is dispersed in by the governors of six states (Illinois, Indiana, a variety of ways.With eight state legislatures Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin). New and governors at work to make and implement York, Pennsylvania, Ontario and Quebec par- policy,diffcrcntapproachestopublicissues ticipate as voting members of the Council's com- inevitably develop.Partisan differences among mittees. The Council's risc to prominence in the the states reflect contrasting levels of commit- 1980s and its significant achievements demonstrate Governing the Great Lakes Basin / 145 how political leadership can overcome fragmenta- Structure and function tion imposed by state boundaries.Although the Council, like the Great Lakes Commission, lacks It is difficult to generalize about the struc- the authority to implement its recommendations, tures of governance within the statesbeyond the the Governors have provided a dramatic focus commonality of the separation of powers into for addressing policy issues in several key areas. executive,legislativeandjudicialbranches. The Great Lakes Charter, signed in 1985 by Within the state bureaucracies, agency respon- eight governors and two premiers, marked a sibilitiesdiffer. Typically, however, parks and historic breakthrough in interjurisdictional coop- recreation, water planning, wildlife and fisheries eration. The states and provinces agreed on management and coastal zone protection are consultation and cooperative management of the allocated to Departments of Natural Resources, water resources of the Great Lakes Basin to whileair, water and land pollution control is prevent damaging diversions and consumptive assigned to state Environmental Protection Agen- uses. Under the leadership of GovernorAnthony cies.Significant overlap of duties may result, as Earl of Wisconsin, Chairman of the Council of when land uses degrade the quality of water in Great Lakes Governors, thc Council's Task Force coastal wetlands and affectfishhabitat. In on Water Diversion and GreatLakes Institutions Canada, a similar overlap is apparent among the worked its way through the institutional maze to Ministry of the Environment, Environment Canada develop an integrated approach to water quantity and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. problems which respected the legal and political Even within a single department in a state, diversityofthe many governmentsinvolved. conflicting goals may present management chal- The Charter is non-binding for legal and consti- lenges. For example, within Departments of tutional reasons which have already been dis- Natural Resources, expansion of shoreline parks cussed, but the good faith of the signatories is for recreational use ma) undermine efforts to demonstrated by the prompt establishment of a preserve the remaining wetland areas.Public working group of technical experts to develop a policy is difficult to make and even more difficult common data base on current usesof the region's to implement under these pressures.Efforts to fragmentation have been water supplies. overcomeintrastate Little more than a year later, another land- made in states such as Ohio where in 1984 Gov- mark interstate commitment to manage the lakes ernor Richard Celeste appointed aninteragency as an integrated ecosystem wasmade.In May committee on water to coordinate policy initia- 1986 a Toxic Substances Control Agyeement was tives and to prevent duplication of effort.Thc signed by thc governors of the eight Great Lakes "Water Cluster" is composed of cabinet directors states.Because this agreement was formulated of Natural Resources, Environmental Protection, within the framework of U.S. regulatory law, the Health, Agriculture and Transportation.Its first premiers did not sign, but expressed their support responsibility was to develop a strategic plan for for the plan and promised to issue a similar the state's natural and physical environment.Its official commitment to toxic cleanup in the near attention is now directed to ground water plan- future. A key feature of this Agreement is the ning. explicit determination to dcal with the movement of pollutants through the system: in the air, in surface water and in ground water.Not only The grass roots are common goals defined, butspecific actions accompanied by deadlines are agreed upon for The institutional labyrinth which has been implementation. described from state and provincial to interna- The effectiveness of these bold regional tional levels is not yet complete.There is yet measures clearly depends on theability and will another maze of overlapping governments to be of the individual states and provinces to develop taken into account in the region: the local level. and pursue management plans, both for water Although the impact of each local government quantity under thc Charter and for water quality may be small, taken together thedecisions of under thc Toxic Substances Control Agreement. counties, municipalities and special districts are Here again, institutional diversity takes over. consequential indeed.Soil conservation districts 146 / Governing the Great Lakes Basin

BOUNDARY WATERS TREATY OF 1909

LCANADA - IUNITEDSTATE;1 Great Laks Water Quaky Agreement of 1972, 1978 PARLIAMell

IiTERNA TIONAL JOINT]. -FPRESIDENT [ U S. SUpREME COURT COMMISSION

4FISHGREAT CAKi'i ERIESCOMMISSION}

. 1 211EXTERNAL-I [ENVIRONMENT] LTRANSPORTj I DEPARTMENT OF 1 AFFAIRS CANADA CANADA FISHERIES I OCEANS ESTATE] FIEPT. OF1 [NiTERNDIJ[ DEPT. OF [ DEPT. OF-1 [EPA] OEPT. DEFENSE DEPT. TRANSPORTATION COMMERCE oit ,1 Z' [ ONTARIO 1 [QUEBEC ] [ ILLINOIS] [INDIANA [ [MICHIELq [re2!csor.,...] riudatio_iirnizrti km54 .t. COUNCIL OF . - ar ICIREAT LAKES'''. GOVERNORS ie117/11CIAL PARLIATilEIT11-1' STATE LEGISTUINE]LA STATE I -1GOVERNOR 1 --T [ 1 SENATE HOU-SE SUPREME COURT [ =41:140E: .1* -I I _1 L I ,j o.sj Lo_o.mitIcf.j LT TATIOH riwrno.-40-T3 IFTIANSP7iin l_RESOLINCESj SUB - STATE AGENCES COUNTIES SEWER DISTRICTS SUB PROVINCIAL AGENCES SOIL CONSERVATION DISTRICTS CONSERVATION DISTRICTS MOSQUITO CONTROL DISTRICTS MUNICPALITES GARBAGE DISPOSAL DISTRICTS REGIONAL PLANNING COMMISSONS MUNICPALITES

Figure 16.1.Simplified diagram of relevant governmental units in the Great LakesBasin.

may affect amounts of non-point source pollu- No comprehensive inventory is available for tion. Municipalities or special sewer districts localgovernmental unitsin the Great Lakes are responsible for wastewater treatment. Erosion Basin, but the numbers are in the hundreds. from construction sites and other urban runoff These decision-making entities arecriticalfor into tributary streams are local matters. Counties the overall management of the region's ecology, bordering the lakes may perform solidor liquid yet they deal with significantly differinglocal waste disposal functions. conditions and operate under the eagleeyes of Generally land use planning is a localgov- local residents whose preferences are driven bya ernmental function on both sides of the interna- multitude of private motives.In some instances, tional boundary.There are few more fervently the nations, states and provinces can mandate protected local powers than planning and zoning. action by these local authorities,or can induce Here indeed is government that is close to the them toact by providing significantfinancial people.Subregional attempts to coordinate land incentives.What the higher authorities cannot use planning among communities are often re- doisto stay with the local governments for sisted as unwarranted intrusions on local auton- every step to ensure compliance.Some degree omy. These are political culture attributes which of cooperation from below is necessary if regional create the fragmented base for all other govern- goals are to 1-attained. mental attempts at coordination of policy.

1 Governing the Great Lakes Basin / 147

Conclusion References

This brief survey of governmental complexity Barber, Kathleen L.1984. Alert on Great Lakes in the Great Lakes region has identified the diversions, Lake Erie Letter of the League rolesinresource management played by two of Women Voters' Lake Erie Basin Commit- nations, two provinces, eight states, four regional tee, Painesville, Ohio. institutions and hundreds of local governmental Center for the Great Lakes.1984.Directory of units. In the 1980s a significant breakthrough Great Lakes Natural Resource Agencies and has occurred in public awareness of the ines- Organizations, 1984-85. Chicago, Illinois. timable importance of the vast freshwater system Center for the Great Lakes. 1984. The Canada- we appropriately call the Great Lakes.Support Ontario agreement respecting Great Lakes for environmental values isrising, and in the waterquality: An Overview. Chicago, Great Lakes region this includes an appreciation Illinois. both of water supply and of the quality of that Center for the Great Lakcs.1987.Great Lakes water. water quality laws and programs: A bina- The surge in public interest and concern is tional inventory.Vol& Canada; Vol. 2: The reflected in the creation of new private organi- United States. Chicago, Illinois. zations such as Great Lakes United and the Center for the Great Lakes.1987.Clean water, Center for the Great Lakes, the former for ad- cleanwater:Current programs and future vocacy and the latter for research andpolicy strategies for managing Great Lakes water development.These groups offer expertise and quality. Chicago, Illinois. encouragement to policy-makers to act aggressive- Cowden, James. 1975. Non-structural waste- ly to develop management strategies for repair water management strategies for the Lake of the damage human beings have done to the Erie basin, Part VI, Current Institutional system, and for sustainable resource use in the Arrangements. Center for Urban Regional- future. ism, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio. Some experts have argued that we need to Curtis, Kenneth M. and John E. Carroll.1983. create new institutions for regional management CanadianAmerican Relations. Lexington of this precious resource.Others find existing Books, Lexington, Massachusetts. institutions underutilized and advocate "building Derthick, Martha.1974. Between State and Na- new relationships among existing institutions: tion: Regional Organizations of The United "Political will," Donahue wrote in 1985, "is States .The Brookings Institution, Washing- the overriding determinant of the success of a ton, D.C. given regional institution.When present, it can Donahue, Michael J.1984.Institutional arrange- transcend even the most restrictive institutional ments for Great Lakes management. Univer- form.When absent, even the most innovative sity Seminar on the Great Lakes, Racine, form can become impotent." Wisconsin, July 1984. The sense of urgency which is widely felt Donahue, Michael J.1985.Institutional ecology: today grows out of perceived crises: the danger political/institutional mechanisms for change to human health from toxic contamination in the in Great Lakes management. Symposium on water supply; the threat of water supply depletion Social Assessment of Fisheries Resources, if arid regions should use their political power to Kettunen Center, Michigan. divert the lakes' water to the south and wcst. Great Lakes Basin Commission.1975. Great These particular crises may be dealt with in the Lakes Basin Framework Study, Appendix F ncxt decade, butitis of vital importance to 20: Federal Laws, Policies and Institutional educate future generations to care about the lakes Arrangements. Ann Arbor, Michigan. forthe long range so that we need not go International Joint Commission. 1982. First Bien- through alternating cycles of intense activity and nial Report Under The Great Lakes Water indifference,crisis and neglect.As educators, Quality Agreement. IJC, Windsor, Ontario. communicators and concerned citizens we need to International Joint Commission, Science Advisory nourish sustained attention and active concern Board. 1980. The Ecosystem Approach. for the ecosystem. UC, Windsor, Ontario. 148 / Governing the Great Lakes Basin

International Joint Commission, Water Quality Board. 1983. Nonpoint Source Pollution Abatement In The Great Lakes Basin.IJC, Windsor, Ontario. Keating, Michael. 1986. To the last drop: Canada and theworld'swatercrisis. Toronto: Macmillan of Canada. Milbrath, Lester W.1984. A governance structure designed to learn would better protect the Great Lakes.University Seminar on the Great Lakes, Racine, Wisconsin, July 1984. Van Loon, Richard J. and Michael S. Whittington. 1981.The Canadian Political System: Envi- ronment, Structure, and Process.McGraw- Hill Ryerson Ltd., Toronto, Ontario.

1 T H E OHIO SLATE UNIVERSITY

Ohio Sea Grant College Program The Ohio State University 1314 Kinnear Road Columbus, OH 43212-1194 TEL 614/292-8949 FAX 614/292-4364

" " .1. 6 1,1. BESTwe