Windsor water levels dropping

By Madison Jean

Windsor area water levels have been dropping recently.

Water levels in the area have been below the normal water level by three or four inches this year and Windsor Port Authority Harbour master Peter Berry said there are different reasons why.

“There are several causes for the low water and most recently the most important cause we had is last year we didn’t get a lot of snow,” said Berry. “Then we had a beautiful summer, where we had a great deal of evaporation.”

However, natural occurrences are not the only reason that the water levels are low. Berry said there are also areas of historical dredging where the water adjusts to the depth that is dredged and the water comes away from the shoreline.

“Increased water use as we now urbanize our shorelines and we come to greater tourism use. We’re now taking more water from the lakes as well,” said Berry.

Losing water means getting longer beaches. Waterfront homeowner Leeann St. Amour said she has noticed the low water levels and isn’t too thrilled.

“I wouldn’t be able to put my Sea-Doo in the water right now without pushing it half way out, just to hit the water,” said St. Amour “I’m really hoping that the water rises by the time good weather comes along, cause what’s the point of living on the water if you can’t go in it.”

Historically there have been times when our water levels are low. In the 1920s and 1960s the water level was significantly lower than the norm.

“We have approached the historical lows of the 1920’s. We have surpassed the low of 1964,” said Berry.

Some people believe global warming is to blame for the low water levels. Berry agreed that it is one reason.

“The global warming component of less ice pack, more sunlight, more evaporation, more heat and I hate to say it but we need more snow. We need more rain,” said Berry.

The normal water level for the Great Lakes is around 567 feet above sea level. We are around 562 feet above sea level, which is significantly lower than normal, according to Berry. There are certain conditions that we need to get to for the water levels to go back to normal.

“We need several things, we need cold winters, we need long winters, lots of snow,” said Berry. “We need a very slow spring so that the snow in the upper lakes such as Huron, Superior and Michigan comes into the lakes slowly.”

The recovery period for the Great Lakes isn’t going to be an overnight process or done with just one rainfall, said Berry.

“It’s going to take a long time to recover,” said Berry. “We also have to look at how we manage the lakes.”