Lake Erie Basin

Lake Erie Basin

Another perspective on the Lake Erie Basin's situation within the Great Lakes Basin

Lake Erie Basin consists of Lake Erie and surrounding watersheds, which are typically named after the river, creek, or stream that provides drainage into the lake. The watersheds are located in the states of Indiana, Michigan, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania in the United States, and in the Province of Ontario in Canada. The basin is part of the Great Lakes Basin and Saint Lawrence River Watershed, which feeds into the Atlantic Ocean. 80% of the lake's water flows in from the Detroit River, with only 9% coming from all of the remaining watersheds combined. (The remainder (11%) is derived from direct precipitation into the lake.) A littoral zone serves as the interface between land and lake, being that portion of the basin where the lake is less than 15 feet (4.6 m) in depth.^[1]

History

The Wisconsin glaciation formed the Great Lakes basin

The Lake Erie Basin was formed at the end of the Wisconsin glaciation. The basin was part of Glacial Lake Maumee until an eastern drainage opened at Niagara, at which point the Maumee River Watershed reversed its flow eastward. The Great Black Swamp is thought to be a remnant of the glacial lake.

Geography

Indiana

Maumee Watershed (Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Noble, Steuben, and Wells counties) (see Ohio)

Michigan

Detroit River

Michigan's drainage basin consists of 5,808 square miles (15,040 km²).

Belle Watershed (Lapeer, Macomb, Oakland, and St. Clair counties)
- Belle River
Black Watershed
- Black River
Clinton Watershed (Lapeer, Macomb, Oakland, and St. Clair counties)
- Clinton River
Detroit Watershed (see also Ontario)
Huron Watershed (Livingston, Monroe, Oakland, Washtenaw, and Wayne counties)
- Huron River
- Portage River
Pine Watershed
- Pine River
Raisin Watershed
- River Raisin
Maumee Watershed (see Ohio)
- Tiffin River becomes Bean Creek in northern Ohio and Michigan

New York

Mouth of Cattaraugus Creek where it enters Lake Erie

New York's drainage basin covers 2,300 square miles (6,000 km²).

Buffalo River Watershed (Erie, Genesse, and Wyoming counties)
- Buffalo Creek, Little Buffalo Creek, and Buffalo River
- Cayuga Creek
- Cazenovia Creek
- Hunter Creek
Cattaraugus Creek Watershed (Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, and Wyoming counties)
- Cattaraugus Creek
Chautauqua Creek - Lake Erie Watershed (Chautauqua County) (see also Pennsylvania)
- Beaver Creek
- Chautauqua Creek
- Crooked Brook
- Hyde Creek
- Scott Creek
- Silver Creek
- Twentymile Creek
- Walnut Creek

Ohio

Mouth of Conneaut Creek where it empties into Lake Erie

Ashtabula-Chagrin Watershed (Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, and Portage counties) (see also Pennsylvania)
- Ashtabula River
- Chagrin River
Auglaize Watershed (Allen, Auglaize, Defiance, Mercer, Paulding, Putnam, and Van Wert counties)
- Auglaize River
- Ottawa River
Black-Rocky Watershed (Ashland, Cuyahoga, Huron, Lorain, and Medina counties)
- Black River
- Rocky River
Blanchard Watershed (Allen, Hancock, Hardin, Putnam, and Wyandot counties)
- Blanchard River
Cedar-Portage Watershed (Hancock, Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky, and Wood counties)
- Cedar Creek
- Crane Creek
- Packer Creek
- Portage River
- Rusha Creek
- Toussaint River
- Turtle Creek
Chautauqua-Conneaut Watershed (Ashtabula County) (see also Pennsylvania)
- Conneaut Creek
Cuyahoga Watershed (Cuyahoga, Geauga, Portage, and Summit counties)
- Cuyahoga River
Grand Watershed (Ashtabula, Geauga, Lake, Portage, and Trumbull counties)
- Grand River
Huron-Vermilion Watershed (Ashland, Crawford, Erie, Huron, Lorain, Richland, and Seneca counties)
- Huron River
- Vermilion River
Maumee Watershed (Defiance, Fulton, Hancock, Henry, Lucas, Putnam, Williams, and Wood counties) (see Michigan)
- Bad Creek
- Beaver Creek
- Brush Creek
- Maumee River
- Swan Creek
- Tenmile Creek
- Tiffin River becomes Bean Creek in northern Ohio and Michigan
- Turkeyfoot Creek
Ottawa-Stony Watershed (Fulton and Lucas counties) (see also Michigan)
- Ottawa River
Sandusky Watershed (Crawford, Erie, Hardin, Huron, Marion, Ottawa, Richland, Sandusky, Seneca, and Wyandot counties)
- Sandusky River

Pennsylvania

The mouth of Duck Run, in Erie Bluffs State Park

Ashtabula-Chagrin Watershed (Erie County) (see also Ohio)
- Ashtabula River
Chautauqua-Conneaut Watershed (Crawford and Erie counties) (see also Ohio)
- Conneaut Creek
- Turkey Creek
Lake Erie Watershed (Crawford and Erie counties)

Ontario

Landsat photo shows Lake St. Clair, with the Detroit River connecting southward to Lake Erie and the St. Clair River connecting northward to Lake Huron

Detroit River Watershed (see also Michigan)

Map of Grand River

Grand River Watershed is the largest drainage in southern Ontario at 2,600 sq mi (7,000 km²)
- Grand River
Lynn River Watershed
- Lynn River

Economy

Agricultural, industrial, and residential land use are the primary nonpoint sources of pollution in the Lake Erie Basin. National and state environmental agencies, as well as interstate and binational cooperative efforts, focus on water quality, especially since the freshwater lake is used extensively for drinking water, recreation, and the fishing industry. Habitat and flow alteration cause siltation and sedimentation issues which can require dredging. Fertilizer runoff from farms and residences and unplanned releases from sewage treatment plants promote eutrophication through nutrient and organic enrichment, bacterial contamination, and the appearance of ammonium hydroxide. Industrial land use adds metals that flow into the basin and cause sediment contamination.^[2]

References

External links