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Climate Change and Water Diversion Won’t Leave Much “Great” in the Lakes

We’ve all heard that climate change will only exacerbate lower lake levels and lengthening shore lines in the Great Lakes over the coming years. These are serious threats that, unfortunately, are not too shocking for those of us who have watched as the ice that once reached near to Canada continues to retreat each year and as water temperatures rise, allowing kids to start swimming in the lakes earlier each summer. Climate Change and Great Lakes Water Resources, a new report prepared for the National Wildlife Federation confirms our observations. But what is most interesting about this report is not so much what is and will be happening in the Great Lakes, as what is expected to happen out West and in the Southeast and how climate change will increase demand for fresh water endangering the Great Lakes all the more. When you think about it, between climate change and the prospect of diverting water to the parched west and south there won’t be any “great” left in the lakes.

A considerable portion of the report by Noah D. Hall, professor of law at Wayne State University and Bret B. Stuntz a Michigan attorney and geologist, focuses on a quickly shrinking ice cap in the Rockies and the melting of Greenland and the polar caps. These simultaneous events will significantly deplete the available fresh water.

In a story that appears today in the Buffalo News, Hall says:

“The Great Lakes are facing the one-two punch of global warming and water diversion,” said Noah Hall, an environmental law professor at Wayne State University in Detroit and a co-author of the report. “We have known for many years that existing laws are inadequate to protect the Great Lakes from diversions and overuse. Now we know that climate change is certain to put additional stress and pressure on the Great Lakes.”

The snow in the Rockies is expected to diminish as the climate warms and we experience more droughts and shorter more intense rain and snow storms. When the snow melts in the spring months it swells rivers and tributaries - such as the Colorado River- which is the major source of water for the Western states. By the end of this century, climatologists expect only 20 percent of the current snow pack to exist in the Rockies. That means thirsty industries and people will be looking for other sources of water.

Along the eastern seaboard freshwater will be replaced with saltwater as Greenland and our ice caps melt forcing the ocean to rise and move inland overtaking freshwater sources. Again, this means parched people and farm lands will need to find another source of fresh water.

Pretty soon all divining sticks will be pointing toward the Great Lakes. With climate change in mind, the report’s authors recommend supporting and approving the Great Lakes Compact to protect the lakes and begin creating a sustainable water policy in the United States–a point driven home in a story in today’s Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

“Water shortages and the pains and the strife they create are only likely to worsen,” said Molly Flanagan of the National Wildlife Federation, which funded a study released Tuesday evaluating existing regional water laws in light of the predicted effects of climate change on the Great Lakes. “We have a remarkable opportunity in the Great Lakes region to act before crises hit,” she said.

Speaking of crisis, Governor and Presidential hopeful Bill Richardson put voice to what a lot of people have been thinking when he suggested that Wisconsin is “awash in water.” After reading this report, I’m convinced Richardson’s gaff is just the first salvo in a long-winded debate that will be held over the coming decades as the west and south continue to dehydrate. So, without further ado, to our policymakers please, keep the Great Lakes Great, pass the compact.