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Coast Guard opening new facility in UP to research how to protect Great Lakes
Research performed at the Coast Guard National Center of Expertise in Sault Ste. Marie will be critical to protecting the Great Lakes from oil spills.
(FOX 2) - A surge in precipitation over the last month kept Lake Superior's water levels from falling the expected 2 inches that the Great Lake body usually sees every winter.
According to the US Army Corps of Engineers in Detroit, at a time when water levels should begin their seasonal decline in November, they instead remained steady. The lake levels are about two inches above the historic average.
"Lake Superior’s precipitation in November was around 40% above average, contributing to water supplies to the lake that were substantially high for November," the Detroit District wrote on Twitter. "Due to the significant water supplies, Lake Superior’s level remained steady in November, when it historically falls by an average of two inches. The levels of all the other Great Lakes fell in November."
Lake Superior's steady levels is an anomaly this fall. The other Great Lakes saw their typical declines.
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Lakes Erie, Michigan-Huron, and St. Clair are also above average and are expected to remain that way through the winter and spring of 2023.
Lake Ontario is the only Great Lake with below-average water levels.