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Another month, another high-water record set by Lakes Michigan and Huron

Lake Michigan waves crash onshore at a beach in Frankfort, Michigan. Lakes Michigan and Huron were almost three feet above the June water level average.
Dan Wanschura
/
Interlochen Public Radio
Lake Michigan waves crash onshore at a beach in Frankfort, Michigan. Lakes Michigan and Huron were almost three feet above the June water level average.

Water levels in the Great Lakes continue to remain high. 

Every month this year, Lakes Michigan and Huron have surpassed record-high water levels set in the 1980’s. In June, those lakes were nearly three feet above average. 

Lakes Ontario, Superior and Erie didn’t break any records last month, but were still between nine-to-29 inches above average.

Scientists claim changing weather patterns are causing more precipitation in the region, which leads to the high lake levels.

“If you think about the question in terms of what provides the best explanation for what’s happening right now, a warming planet would provide the best explanation,” says Drew Gronewald, a hydrologist at the University of Michigan.

Gronewald says precipitation across the Great Lakes has been well above average for the past decade.He says projections show the region will continue to get more rain and warmer temperatures in the future.

As a result, the Great Lakes are likely to remain high for the forseeable future.

 

High waves and erosion have terrorized many living along Great Lakes' shoreline. Here, a home in Manistee sits precariously on the edge of a sandy bluff.
Credit Gary Langley, FAA CERTIFIED SUAS PILOT / Interlochen Public Radio
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Interlochen Public Radio
High waves and erosion have terrorized many living along Great Lakes' shoreline. Here, a home in Manistee sits precariously on the edge of a sandy bluff.

“We do forecast water levels to stay above average for all of the lakes for the next six months,” says Deanna Apps, a scientist with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Major erosion and flooding continues in many communities on the Great Lakes. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is warning those affected by high water levels last year to prepare for similar or worse impacts in the coming months.

Dan Wanschura is the Host and Executive Producer of Points North.