This article appeared in USA Today, March 17, 2013:
By Judy Keen
By Judy Keen
Communities and businesses all along the coasts of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron are wishing for rain as record-low water levels threaten the region's economic stability.
NEW BUFFALO, Mich. — This town has 1,884 residents and almost 1,000 boat slips filled by summer visitors, so low water levels in Lake Michigan threaten its economic stability and its identity as "the heart of harbor country."
No wonder Jim Oselka, who runs Oselka Marina, a family business founded here in 1957,says, "Every time I see it raining, I'm like 'Yes!' "
The water lapping against the marina's 150 boat slips is 15 inches lower than it was a year ago, forcing Oselka to consider dredging for the first time since the 1960s. He has to have enough clearance to accommodate sailboats with 5-foot keels.
"I'm anticipating a good season. And I'm hoping and praying that water levels have hit their low, and they're going to go back the other way," Oselka says.That wish is shared by communities and businesses all along the coasts of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron, which set record lows in January and are expected to stay 2 feet below long-term averages at least through August. Blame the extended drought and hot weather that speeds evaporation, says Keith Kompoltowicz, chief of watershed hydrology for the Army Corps of Engineers' Detroit district.
The mean water level in January was 576.02 feet above sea level, he says, breaking the previous record of 576.05 in March 1964. The corps started keeping records in 1918.
The mean water level in January was 576.02 feet above sea level, he says, breaking the previous record of 576.05 in March 1964. The corps started keeping records in 1918.
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