scholarly journals VARIATION IN GREAT LAKES LEVELS IN RELATION TO ENGINEERING PROBLEMS

2000 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 17
Author(s):  
W. E. McDonald
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
High Water ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Natural Phenomena ◽  
Lake Levels ◽  
Water Demands ◽  
Property Owners ◽  
Engineering Problems ◽  
History Of ◽  
Conflicting Interests

Throughout the recorded history of the Great Lakes, the fluctuation in their water levels has created engineering problems generally unique in relation to coastal engineering. In periods of low water, demands are heard from navigation and power interests to raise the levels. In periods of high water appeals are made by shore property owners to lower the levels. Such conflicting interests present major engineering problems, the nature of which during a given period of time reflect the long-range upward and downward trend in lake levels due to natural phenomena.

scholarly journals ARTIFICIAL BREACHINGS OF BOT RIVER ESTUARY

1982 ◽  
Vol 1 (18) ◽  
pp. 148
Author(s):  
G.A.W. Fromme
Keyword(s):  
River Estuary ◽  
High Water ◽  
Coastal Engineering ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Freshwater Lake ◽  
Management Policy ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
National Research Institute ◽  
Conflicting Interests ◽  
Sand Bar

During the flood year of 1981 the "Bot River Vlei", one of the largest lagoons in the south-western Cape of the Good Hope was opened to the sea by two artificial breachings of the sand bar which were aimed at lowering the excessively high water levels in the lagoon, and at the re-establishment of estuarine conditions. The Coastal Engineering and Hydraulics Division of the National Research Institute for Oceanology of the CSIR surveyed and monitored the hydrological and sedimentological events in the Bot River lagoon and at the mouth channels in an attempt to formulate a future viable management policy, which had to take into account the conflicting interests of the defenders of continued artificial breachings and of those who advocate conditions of a closed estuary which will eventually change into a coastal freshwater lake.

scholarly journals Establishing Climate Change Resilience in the Great Lakes in Response to Flooding

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (01) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gwendolyn E Gallagher ◽  
Ryan K Duncombe ◽  
Timothy M Steeves
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
United States ◽  
Water Quality ◽  
Great Lakes ◽  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
High Water ◽  
The United States ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Storm Events ◽  
Freshwater Resource

Over the past decade, both the average rainfall and the frequency of high precipitation storm events in the Great Lakes Basin have been steadily increasing as a consequence of climate change. In this same period, cities and communities along the coasts are experiencing record high water levels and severe flooding events (ECC Canada et al. 2018). When cities are unprepared for these floods, the safety of communities and the water quality of the Great Lakes are jeopardized. For example, coastal flooding increases runoff pollution and contaminates the freshwater resource that 40 million people rely on for drinking water (Lyandres and Welch 2012, Roth 2016). Since the Great Lakes are shared between two nations, the United States and Canada, the region is protected by several international treaties and national compacts, including the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA) and the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI). In order to increase climate change resiliency against flooding in the region, we recommend the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) work with Environment and Climate Change Canada to relocate the GLRI under the GLWQA in order to guarantee consistent funding and protection efforts. We additionally recommend expansion of both agreements in their scope and long-term commitments to engender cooperative efforts to protect the Great Lakes against climate change.

Tree-Ring Dating of Extreme Lake Levels at the Subarctic–Boreal Interface

2001 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yves Bégin
Keyword(s):  
Summer Precipitation ◽  
High Water ◽  
Flood Frequency ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Reaction Wood ◽  
Lake Levels ◽  
Large Lakes ◽  
Air Masses ◽  
Wave Erosion

AbstractThe dates of extreme water levels of two large lakes in northern Quebec have been recorded over the last century by ice scars on shoreline trees and sequences of reaction wood in shore trees tilted by wave erosion. Ice-scar chronologies indicate high water levels in spring, whereas tree-tilting by waves is caused by summer high waters. A major increase in both the amplitude and frequency of ice floods occurred in the 1930s. No such change was indicated by the tree-tilting chronologies, but wave erosion occurred in exceptionally rainy years. According to the modern record, spring lake-level rise is due to increased snowfalls since the 1930s. However, the absence of erosional marks in a large number of years since 1930 suggests a high frequency of low-water-level years resulting from dry conditions. Intercalary years with very large numbers of marked trees (e.g., 1935) indicate that the interannual range of summer lake levels has increased since the 1930s. Increased lake-flood frequency is postulated to be related to a slower expansion of arctic anticyclones, favoring the passage of cyclonic air masses over the area and resulting in abundant snowfall in early winter. Conditions in summer are due to the rate of weakening of the anticyclones controlling the position of the arctic front in summer. This position influences the path of the cyclonic air masses, which control summer precipitation and consequently, summer lake levels in the area.

The California Storm of January 1862

1996 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wayne N. Engstrom
Keyword(s):  
Los Angeles ◽  
Mojave Desert ◽  
Middle Latitude ◽  
Heavy Precipitation ◽  
High Water ◽  
Meridional Flow ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Coastal Streams ◽  
History Of ◽  
Santa Ana River

The greatest storm in the written history of California struck the region in the winter of 1861–1862. The unusual weather began on Christmas Eve, 1861, and persisted for some 45 days as a series of middle-latitude cyclones made landfall along the California coast. Episodes of very cold and very warm temperatures occurred both during the storm and in the spring of 1862 as meridional flow prevailed. Heavy precipitation swelled the Santa Ana River to more than triple the highest estimated discharge in this century. High water levels in coastal streams between Los Angeles and San Diego persisted into the spring. Lakes were created in the Los Angeles Basin and the Mojave Desert. Arroyos were cut. Sediments from the flood may be preserved in offshore basins.

scholarly journals Managing High Water Levels in Florida’s Largest Lake: Lake Okeechobee

EDIS ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Karl Havens
Keyword(s):  
High Water ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Army Corps ◽  
Lake Okeechobee ◽  
Army Corps Of Engineers ◽  
Corps Of Engineers ◽  
Us Army ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
The Us ◽  
History Of

This 7-page fact sheet written by Karl E. Havens and published by the Florida Sea Grant College Program, UF/IFAS Extension, provides a history of Lake Okeechobee regulation schedules and an overview of the risks, constraints, and trade-offs that the US Army Corps of Engineers must consider when deciding to release flood water from the lake. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/sg154

scholarly journals Productivity of Osprey, Pandion haliaetus, Nesting on Natural and Artificial Structures in the Kawartha Lakes, Ontario, 1991-2001

2005 ◽  
Vol 119 (1) ◽  
pp. 58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela A. Martin ◽  
Shane R. De Solla ◽  
Peter J. Ewins ◽  
Michael E. Barker
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
High Water ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Pandion Haliaetus ◽  
Great Lakes Basin ◽  
South Central ◽  
Utility Poles ◽  
Nesting Sites ◽  
Breeding Seasons

Ospreys (Pandion haliaetus) declined throughout the Great Lakes basin during the 1950s to 1970s due to usage of organochlorine pesticides. Following the banning of DDT in 1972, artificial elevated nest structures were erected in the Kawartha Lakes region of south-central Ontario to aid in their recovery. As the population grew, large stumps of flooded trees, < 1 m above the surface of the water became important nesting sites, despite their propensity to flood in turbulent weather conditions. We compared the productivity of Ospreys among nest substrates and longevity of the nests in this area from 1991 to 2001. Of 260 individual nesting attempts made over the 11 years, 57% used man-made structures, primarily either quadrupod nesting platforms or utility poles. Of nests on natural substrates, stump nests accounted for 37% of total nesting attempts; elevated tree nests were relatively uncommon (6%). Productivity of stump nests was significantly greater than that of artificial or tree nests (1.48 versus 1.16 and 0.73 chicks produced per occupied nest, respectively). Nevertheless, survivorship of stump nests was less than that of platform nests after 3 years of age, as high water levels, storms or winter ice activity destroyed some of these low nests between breeding seasons. Ospreys were able to attain greater productivity in these stump nests than on man-made nesting substrates.

Great Lakes Shore Erosion

1988 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 19-25
Author(s):  
Michael Wysockey
Keyword(s):  
Fundamental Solution ◽  
Great Lakes ◽  
Lake Level ◽  
High Water ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Coastal Morphology ◽  
Solution Strategies ◽  
Shore Erosion

This paper presents the problem of high water levels that cause increased shore erosion in the Great Lakes. It will describe the pertinent hydrology and coastal morphology of the area and the three fundamental solution strategies being pursued—lake level reductions, shore stabilization measures, and legal building restrictions. The effectiveness of these strategies is discussed.

Patterns and processes of beach and foredune geomorphic change along a Great Lakes shoreline: Insights from a year-long drone mapping study along Lake Michigan

Shore & Beach ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 46-55
Author(s):  
Ethan Theuerkauf ◽  
C. Robin Mattheus ◽  
Katherine Braun ◽  
Jenny Bueno
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Sandy Beach ◽  
Lake Michigan ◽  
High Water ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Coastal Change ◽  
Dune System ◽  
Western Shore ◽  
Patterns And Processes ◽  
Topography Data

Coastal storms are an important driver of geomorphic change along Great Lakes shorelines. While there is abundant anecdotal evidence for storm impacts in the region, only a handful of studies over the last few decades have quantified them and addressed system morphodynamics. Annual to seasonal lake-level fluctuations and declining winter-ice covers also influence coastal response to storms, yet relationships between hydrodynamics and geomorphology are poorly constrained. Given this, the Great Lakes region lags behind marine coasts in terms of predictive modeling of future coastal change, which is a necessary tool for proactive coastal management. To help close this gap, we conducted a year-long study at a sandy beach-dune system along the western shore of Lake Michigan, evaluating storm impacts under conditions of extremely high water level and absent shorefast ice. Drone-derived beach and dune topography data were used to link geomorphic changes to specific environmental conditions. High water levels throughout the year of study facilitated erosion during relatively minor wave events, enhancing the vulnerability of the system to a large storm in January 2020. This event occurred with no shorefast ice present and anomalously high winter water levels, resulting in widespread erosion and overwash. This resulted in 20% of the total accretion and 66% of the erosion documented at the site over the entire year. Our study highlights the importance of both antecedent and present conditions in determining Great Lakes shoreline vulnerability to storm impacts.

Das waldreiche obere Theresiental (Transkarpatien, Ukraine) – geografisch-ökologische und sozioökonomische Beschreibung | The forest-rich upper Theresian Valley (Transcarpathia, Ukraine): a geographic-ecological and socio-economical description

2007 ◽  
Vol 158 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 14-21
Author(s):  
Vasyl Sabadosh ◽  
Oleg Suprunenko
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
High Water ◽  
The State ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Private Companies ◽  
Foreign Investors ◽  
Wood Processing ◽  
Job Opportunities ◽  
Orange Revolution

The upper Theresian Valley lies along the southwest-facing ridge of the Ukrainian Carpathians. Despite expansive forestation high water levels are frequent. The forest belongs to the state and is centrally administrated. Felling is sometimes outsourced to private companies and private companies have also been founded to process the timber. Job opportunities have become fewer and illegal work is increasing. A new democratic awareness has emerged since the «Orange Revolution» in 2004. With foreign investors, however, new risks emerge. The authors recommend giving monies from forest management to the communities, the founding of new wood processing enterprises and more transparent information.

Lake and inland dunes as interconnected Systems: The story of Lake Tresssee and an adjacent dune field (Schleswig-Holstein, North Germany)

The Holocene ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 095968362098168
Author(s):  
Christian Stolz ◽  
Magdalena Suchora ◽  
Irena A Pidek ◽  
Alexander Fülling
Keyword(s):  
Water Level ◽  
Bronze Age ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
High Water ◽  
Alluvial Fan ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Lake Area ◽  
Dune Field ◽  
The North ◽  
Sand Drift

The specific aim of the study was to investigate how four adjacent geomorphological systems – a lake, a dune field, a small alluvial fan and a slope system – responded to the same impacts. Lake Tresssee is a shallow lake in the North of Germany (Schleswig-Holstein). During the Holocene, the lake’s water surface declined drastically, predominately as a consequence of human impact. The adjacent inland dune field shows several traces of former sand drift events. Using 30 new radiocarbon ages and the results of 16 OSL samples, this study aims to create a new timeline tracing the interaction between lake and dunes, as well, as how both the lake and the dunes reacted to environmental changes. The water level of the lake is presumed to have peaked during the period before the Younger Dryas (YD; start at 10.73 ka BC). After the Boreal period (OSL age 8050 ± 690 BC) the level must have undergone fluctuations triggered by climatic events and the first human influences. The last demonstrable high water level was during the Late Bronze Age (1003–844 cal. BC). The first to the 9th century AD saw slightly shrinking water levels, and more significant ones thereafter. In the 19th century, the lake area was artificially reduced to a minimum by the human population. In the dunes, a total of seven different phases of sand drift were demonstrated for the last 13,000 years. It is one of the most precisely dated inland-dune chronologies of Central Europe. The small alluvial fan took shape mainly between the 13th and 17th centuries AD. After 1700 cal. BC (Middle Bronze Age), and again during the sixth and seventh centuries AD, we find enhanced slope activity with the formation of Holocene colluvia.

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