2. Shareholders
Members/
Property Owners
Board of Directors

3. (quality and quantity)
Fisheries
Lands & Forests
Boating & Safety
Government Affairs
Water
(quality and quantity)

4. Members of Monitor and Comment on
Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement Advisory Panel
International Upper Great Lakes Study Board/
Public Interest Advisory Group
South Georgian Bay-Lake Simcoe
Source Water Protection Committee
Monitor and Comment on
Great Lakes Fisheries Commission
International Joint Commission
Great Lakes Protection Act

5. Water Levels Crisis

6. Weekly Water Levels as of April 26, 2013

7. Tiny Township
Key River
Go Home Bay
Manitoulin

8. Three reasons for this downward trend:
outflows at the St. Clair River are greater than in the past
evaporation is increasing
St. Mary’s river inflows can’t compensate
St. Clair River outflows have likely increased by over 15%
over their out flows in the late 1800’s.
Climatologists predict that there is a much higher (85%) likelihood
of lower water levels in the future than higher water levels.

9. (versus Current Levels)
Huron/Michigan are Worse off than Others
1993 Reference Study
(versus Current Levels)
Lake Levels in Feet
Lake
Low Level Action
Low Level Threshold
Current Level
Superior
599.80
599.00
600.30
Michigan/Huron
577.50
576.80
576.90
St Clair
572.60
573.59
Erie
569.00
571.13
Ontario
242.77
245.47

10. Cost of Doing Nothing - $$Billions
Shipping
Infrastructure
Cottaging
Marinas
Recreational Boating
Sports Fishing
Farming

11. IJC Response

12. Water Quality

13. A Regime Change is Underway
The Middle Lakes are in the midst of a dramatic move from one stable state to another brought about primarily by Invasive Species*.
1990s Stable State
Top of the food chain Salmon*
Top food source Alewife*
Diporeia Density High
Zooplankton Healthy Diversity
Status of Mussels Zebra* in nearshore
Offshore Phosphorous Medium
Offshore Biomass High
Aquatic Invasive Specie*

16. Alewife Density

17. A Regime Change is Underway
The Middle Lakes are in the midst of a dramatic move from one stable state to another brought about primarily by Invasive Species*.
1990s Stable State Current State
Top of the food chain Salmon* Lake Trout, Walleye
Top food source Alewife* Round Goby*, Cisco
Diporeia Density High Almost Gone
Zooplankton Healthy Diversity Low Diversity (large)
Status of Mussels Zebra* in nearshore Quagga* everywhere
Offshore Phosphorous Medium Low (equivalent to LS)
Offshore Biomass High Low
Aquatic Invasive Species*

18. Toxic Food Chain
Bacterial Substrate

19. Type C and E Botulism

20. ASIAN CARP

21. Current Status
The US Supreme Court has declined the latest request from a
number of states to put control nets in place.
The US is spending $51.5 Million this year to prevent the Asian
Carp from getting into Lake Michigan (eg. poison, trap nets,
shocking, new technology).
These measures will have to continue until past 2015 when the
US Coast Guard will publish its recommendation on possible
options.
Any option other than separating the basins will put at risk a
$7 billion fishery for a $150 million barging and tourist
businesses

22. Thank You