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Clear Water Revival “It is even more necessary than ever for mankind as a whole to have an intelligent knowledge of the environment if our complex civilization is to survive, since the basic laws of nature have not been repealed.” I sat in my grandmother’s kitchen, captivated by the natural phenomenon unfolding beyond her picture window: A resplendent sunset of purples, pinks and oranges painted the sky in broad streaks, as the sun, a ball of fire, slowly, and then quickly, disappeared behind the blue-gray veil of rippling water. As a child, I believed such a site was only possible in this very special place. Even now, though I’ve witnessed picturesque sunsets in other locales, the impact of a Lake Erie sunset is extraordinary. For lake lovers, the shore is a sanctuary, the fish and wildlife supported by the lake a form of sustenance, sport and spectacle. For the budding geologist sifting through the rocks and sediment left by the tide, or the amateur ornithologist, the lake is essential. Lake Erie was an integral part of my grandparents’ lives, both as a source of income and enjoyment. They judged the seasons by the mood of the lake, just as scientists judge the health of the Great Lakes ecosystem by the changes in its waters. “Lake Erie is the bellwether,” says Dr. Robert Heath, Kent State professor of biological sciences and head of the Water Resources Research Institute. Because of its size, depth and location, he says, Lake Erie serves as a crystal ball — scientists who peer into its waters glimpse the future of the other Great Lakes. Lakes offer sustenance, sport Approximately 12 million people live in the Lake Erie watershed; the lake provides drinking water for about 11 million of these inhabitants and boasts more fish production than all of the other lakes combined. Sport fishing in Lake Erie is a multimillion-dollar industry. Of the Great Lakes, Erie is second only to Lake Michigan in sport fishing, and its western basin is known as the Walleye Capital of the World. “It’s a huge economic resource because of its commercial appeal,” says Kent State research assistant and doctoral candidate Tracey Meilander. Most importantly, the Great Lakes, which formed as glaciers scraped the Earth during the last ice age, now constitute the largest body of freshwater on the planet, providing 20 percent of the total supply.
Pollution threatens Despite the importance of the lake as a source of drinking water, water quality did not become an express concern to the public until the 1960s. At that time, the lake was “dying” — like a person with an undetected terminal disease — as excessive phosphorus from agricultural runoff, detergent-laden wastewater and insufficiently treated sewage entered the lake. Together, these posed a health threat to swimmers and wildlife and stimulated the growth of algae and bacteria. The rapid growth of these organisms created oxygen-starved, or eutrophic, conditions, Heath says. The Great Lakes share their borders with states that relied heavily upon industry for growth and prosperity. With industrial prosperity came industrial pollution in the form of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which often were discharged into tributaries or lake waters. Though their use has been banned, PCBs are hearty organic chemicals that don’t degrade well — they remain in the ecosystem, accumulated in sediment near harbors and industrial sites. As invasive species of plants and microbial life-forms jockeyed for position within the lake ecosystem, a similar battle played out on the lake’s shores, as the fishing industry, shipping industry, residents and politicians campaigned for lake management policies to satisfy their special interests. Everyone would lose if something wasn’t done to stop the cycle of nature set in motion by human activity. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
