Lake Erie, Ontario
Published: November 9, 2009, 5:36 pm
Updated: November 9, 2009, 5:36 pm
This article has been reviewed by the following Topic Editor:
Mark McGinley Physical Attributes
- Altitude: 174 m above sea level
- Surface Area: 25,700 sq. km
- Mean Depth: 19 m
- Maximum Depth: 64 m
- Volume: 484 cu. km
- Shoreline Length: 1,400 km
- Drainage Basin: 84,500 sq km
General Description
Lake Erie is Canada's fifth largest lake and is the shallowest of the Great Lakes. The St. Clair River is the major source delivering water from Lake Huron. The Niagara River and the Welland Canal are the main outflows. Lake Erie has three basins with very different characteristics. The shallow Western Basin has a maximum depth of 5-10 m. It is eutrophic, has a high turbidity due to resuspended sediments, and has a productive fishery. The Central Basin is the largest basin and has a maximum depth of approximately 20 m. This mesotrophic area of the lake has a narrow hypolimnion that is often deficient of oxygen. The Eastern Basin is the deepest of the three basins. Although it is oligo/mesotrophic, it appears to have a high nutrient status because of the abundant growth of attached algae along the shorelines. Lake Erie is frequently in the path of storms producing seiches that can increase the water level up to 2.5 m at the downwind end of the lake. The lake is also notorious for producing waves with heights over 5 m. Lake Erie differs from the other Great Lakes because it often completely freezes over during the winter.
Lake Erie has had major pollution problems. The discovery of the role of phosphorus loading in the eutrophication of Lakes Erie and Ontario led to the 1972 Canada / United States Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. Another concern was the high mercury concentrations in fish caught in the 1970's. Although contaminant inputs into the lake have been greatly reduced, concentrations are still high in the sediments. Despite this, Lake Erie fish often have the lowest contaminant loads in the Great Lakes. The Lake Erie fishery is dominated by yellow perch, walleye, smelt and white bass.
Watershed
The drainage basin of Lake Erie contains some of the richest agricultural land in North America. The Central Basin's glacially-deposited sandy soils are easily eroded and are the source of much of the sediment in the lake. Over 13 million people live in the Lake Erie watershed. The extensive tracts of Carolinean forest and wetlands that once occurred along the shores of Lake Erie have mostly been cleared and drained for agricultural and industrial purposes. At present very little of the natural environment remains.
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Citation
Biodiversity Institute of Ontario, Paul D. N. Hebert (Lead Author);Mark McGinley (Topic Editor) "Lake Erie, Ontario". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth November 9, 2009; Last revised Date November 9, 2009; Retrieved May 21, 2013 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Lake_Erie,_Ontario>
The Authors
The Biodiversity Institute of Ontario (BIO) is an interdisciplinary research institute dedicated to improving the understanding of biodiversity at all scales, from the genetic to the macroecological. Based at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, BIO is host to more than 30 university faculty and their research groups representing a wide range of biological expertise. BIO also includes specialized support staff and unique research and outreach capabilities designed to foster both academi ... (Full Bio)
After receiving his Ph.D. in genetics at Cambridge University in 1972, Paul Hebert took up a Rutherford Fellowship at the University of Sydney. He returned to Canada in 1976, accepting a position at the University of Windsor where he was a professor in Biological Sciences and Director of the Great Lakes Institute. He moved to the University of Guelph in 1990 as Chair of the Department of Zoology. He has been a visiting professor at the Australian National University, the Czech Academy of Scienc ... (Full Bio)
Physical Attributes
- Altitude: 174 m above sea level
- Surface Area: 25,700 sq. km
- Mean Depth: 19 m
- Maximum Depth: 64 m
- Volume: 484 cu. km
- Shoreline Length: 1,400 km
- Drainage Basin: 84,500 sq km
General Description
Lake Erie is Canada's fifth largest lake and is the shallowest of the Great Lakes. The St. Clair River is the major source delivering water from Lake Huron. The Niagara River and the Welland Canal are the main outflows. Lake Erie has three basins with very different characteristics. The shallow Western Basin has a maximum depth of 5-10 m. It is eutrophic, has a high turbidity due to resuspended sediments, and has a productive fishery. The Central Basin is the largest basin and has a maximum depth of approximately 20 m. This mesotrophic area of the lake has a narrow hypolimnion that is often deficient of oxygen. The Eastern Basin is the deepest of the three basins. Although it is oligo/mesotrophic, it appears to have a high nutrient status because of the abundant growth of attached algae along the shorelines. Lake Erie is frequently in the path of storms producing seiches that can increase the water level up to 2.5 m at the downwind end of the lake. The lake is also notorious for producing waves with heights over 5 m. Lake Erie differs from the other Great Lakes because it often completely freezes over during the winter.
Lake Erie has had major pollution problems. The discovery of the role of phosphorus loading in the eutrophication of Lakes Erie and Ontario led to the 1972 Canada / United States Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. Another concern was the high mercury concentrations in fish caught in the 1970's. Although contaminant inputs into the lake have been greatly reduced, concentrations are still high in the sediments. Despite this, Lake Erie fish often have the lowest contaminant loads in the Great Lakes. The Lake Erie fishery is dominated by yellow perch, walleye, smelt and white bass.
Watershed
The drainage basin of Lake Erie contains some of the richest agricultural land in North America. The Central Basin's glacially-deposited sandy soils are easily eroded and are the source of much of the sediment in the lake. Over 13 million people live in the Lake Erie watershed. The extensive tracts of Carolinean forest and wetlands that once occurred along the shores of Lake Erie have mostly been cleared and drained for agricultural and industrial purposes. At present very little of the natural environment remains.
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(Source: Biodiversity Institute of Ontario)
(Source: Biodiversity Institute of Ontario)
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