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121-538: The French Landing Dam is about 28 miles (45 km) from the river mouth at Lake Erie . It is the second-to-last of the 17 dams along the 130-mile-long (210 km) Huron River, approximately 7.9 miles (12.7 km) downstream from the Ford Lake Dam and 18.4 miles upstream from the Flat Rock Dam . When the dam was completed, the resulting reservoir created Belleville Lake and subsequently led to the destruction of

242-498: A Cleveland resident trying to measure the dock near his house became trapped but was rescued by a fire department diver from Avon Lake, Ohio : In a tug of war against the waves, the two were finally hauled out by rope. After being trapped for an hour-and-a-half, Baker was back on dry land, exhausted and battered but alive. Lake Erie is primarily fed by the Detroit River (from Lake Huron and Lake St. Clair ) and drains via

363-512: A change in Lake Erie's ecosystem make phosphorus pollution more intractable. Blue-green algae ( Cyanobacteria ) bloom, were problematic in August 2019. According to a news report in August, "scientists fully expect [it] to overwhelm much of western Lake Erie again this summer". By August 12, 2019, the bloom extended for roughly 50 kilometres (31 mi). A large bloom does not necessarily mean

484-409: A complex interaction of natural forces. As of the 2010s, much of the phosphorus in the lake comes from fertilizer applied to no-till soybean and corn fields, but washed into streams by heavy rains. The algal blooms result from growth of Microcystis , a toxic blue-green alga that the zebra mussels, which infest the lake, do not eat. Periodically, a dead zone , or region of low oxygen, occurs in

605-410: A decreasing trend, from 90% in 1974 to 66.9% in 2015. In contrast, the percentage of stocks fished at biologically unsustainable levels increased from 10% in 1974 to 33.1% in 2015, with the largest increases in the late-1970s and 1980s. In 2015, maximally sustainably fished stocks (formerly termed fully fished stocks) accounted for 59.9% and underfished stocks for 7% of the total assessed stocks. While

726-463: A fishery to recover from overfishing depends on whether its overall carrying capacity and the variety of ecological conditions are suitable for the recovery. Dramatic changes in species composition can result in an ecosystem shift , where other equilibrium energy flows involve species compositions different from those that had been present before the depletion of the original fish stock. For example, once trout have been overfished, carp might exploit

847-663: A fleet that burns 1.1 billion litres of fuel annually to maintain paltry catches of old growth fish from highly vulnerable stocks, while destroying their habitat in the process" – Pauly . "Eliminating global subsidies would render these fleets economically unviable and would relieve tremendous pressure on over-fishing and vulnerable deep-sea ecosystems" – Sumaila . Over 30 billion euros in public subsidies are directed to fisheries annually. Fishing techniques may be altered to minimize bycatch and reduce impacts on marine habitats. These techniques include using varied gear types depending on target species and habitat type. For example,

968-404: A given harvest." Another possible solution, at least for some areas, is quotas , restricting fishers to a specific quantity of fish. A more radical possibility is declaring certain areas of the sea " no-go zones " and make fishing there strictly illegal, so the fish have time to recover and repopulate. In order to maximise resources some countries, e.g., Bangladesh and Thailand, have improved

1089-412: A habitat for commercial fisheries species. This destruction alters the functioning of the ecosystem and can permanently alter species' composition and biodiversity . Bycatch , the collateral capture of unintended species in the course of fishing, is typically returned to the ocean only to die from injuries or exposure. Bycatch represents about a quarter of all marine catch. In the case of shrimp capture,

1210-933: A high rock from Pelee Island. In 1669, Frenchman Louis Jolliet was the first documented European to sight Lake Erie, although there is speculation that Étienne Brûlé may have come across it in 1615. Lake Erie was the last of the Great Lakes to be explored by Europeans, since the Iroquois who occupied the Niagara River area were in conflict with the French, and they did not allow explorers or traders to pass through; explorers followed rivers out of Lake Ontario and portaged to Lake Huron . British authorities in Canada were nervous about possible expansion by American settlers across Lake Erie, so Colonel Thomas Talbot developed

1331-411: A highly depleted state. Because government provided financial subsidies can make it economically viable to fish beyond biologically sustainable levels, several scientists have called for an end to fishery subsidies paid to deep-sea fisheries. In international waters beyond the 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zones of coastal countries, many fisheries are unregulated, and fishing fleets plunder

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1452-565: A large unfrozen lake. Lake-effect snow makes Buffalo and Erie the eleventh and thirteenth snowiest cities in the entire United States respectively, according to data collected from the National Climatic Data Center . Since winds blow primarily west to east along the main axis of the lake, lake-effect snowstorms are more pronounced on the eastern parts of the lake. Buffalo typically gets 95 inches (240 cm) of snow each winter and sometimes ten feet (3.0 m) of snow;

1573-427: A local TV station's Doppler weather radar detected millions of mayflies heading for Presque Isle in blue and green splotches on the radar in clouds measuring 10 mi (16 km) long. These insects were a sign of Lake Erie's move back to health, since the mayflies require clean water to thrive. Biologist Masteller of Pennsylvania State University declared the insects to be a "nice nuisance" since they signified

1694-459: A mean elevation of 571 feet (174 m) above sea level. It has a surface area of 9,990 square miles (25,874 km ) with a length of 241 statute miles (388  km ; 209  nmi ) and breadth of 57 statute miles (92 km; 50 nmi) at its widest points. It is the shallowest of the Great Lakes with an average depth of 10 fathoms 3 feet or 63 ft (19 m) and a maximum depth of 35 fathoms (210 ft; 64 m) Because Erie

1815-994: A net with larger holes will allow undersized fish to avoid capture. A turtle excluder device (TED) allows sea turtles and other megafauna to escape from shrimp trawls. Avoiding fishing in spawning grounds may allow fish stocks to rebuild by giving adults a chance to reproduce. Aquaculture involves the farming of fish in captivity. This approach effectively privatizes fish stocks and creates incentives for farmers to conserve their stocks. It also reduces environmental impact. However, farming carnivorous fish , such as salmon , does not always reduce pressure on wild fisheries, since carnivorous farmed fish are usually fed fishmeal and fish oil extracted from wild forage fish . The various species of Pacific salmon and Atlantic salmon are relatively easy to raise in captivity and such aquacultural operations have existed for more than 150 years. Largescale releases of salmon raised in captivity to supplement wild salmon runs will usually increase fishing pressure on

1936-462: A new harbor near Erie, Pennsylvania, in Elk Creek to accommodate shipments from its tube-plant site nearby. In 1913, a memorial to Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry was built on Put-in-Bay island featuring a Doric column. Steamships have operated on Lake Erie since the early 1800s. Large, opulent cruise liners carried passengers between Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo and other cities on the lake until

2057-502: A number of these. Many regulatory measures are available for controlling overfishing. These measures include fishing quotas , bag limits , licensing, closed seasons , size limits and the creation of marine reserves and other marine protected areas . A model of the interaction between fish and fishers showed that when an area is closed to fishers, but there are no catch regulations such as individual transferable quotas , fish catches are temporarily increased but overall fish biomass

2178-589: A restructuring of the ecosystem have been found to be major roles in an increase in jellyfish population in the Irish Sea in the 1990s. According to the 2019 Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services published by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services , overfishing is a primary driver of mass extinction in the world's oceans. A 2021 study published in

2299-400: A serious problem to all who have given it close attention ... the fisheries are being exhausted by the wasteful methods which are now in vogue ... it is still the custom of the pound fishermen about Sandusky to take fish of all sizes, and if they are too small to be marketable they are turned over to a fertilizer factory. If left undisturbed for two or three years more, these little fish would be

2420-436: A size that will allow maximum yield per recruit. Recruitment overfishing happens when the mature adult population (spawning biomass ) is depleted to a level where it no longer has the reproductive capacity to replenish itself—there are not enough adults to produce offspring. Increasing the spawning stock biomass to a target level is the approach taken by managers to restore an overfished population to sustainable levels. This

2541-689: A tropical bird with a 2 m wingspan, happened over the lake in 2008. Overfishing Overfishing is the removal of a species of fish (i.e. fishing ) from a body of water at a rate greater than that the species can replenish its population naturally (i.e. the overexploitation of the fishery 's existing fish stock ), resulting in the species becoming increasingly underpopulated in that area. Overfishing can occur in water bodies of any sizes, such as ponds , wetlands , rivers , lakes or oceans , and can result in resource depletion , reduced biological growth rates and low biomass levels. Sustained overfishing can lead to critical depensation , where

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2662-484: A very valuable product ... Predictions of the lake being over-fished in 1895 were premature, since the fishery has survived commercial and sport fishing, pollution in the middle of the 20th century, invasive species and other ailments, but state and provincial governments, as well as national governments, have played a greater role as time went by. Business boomed; in 1901, the Carnegie Company proposed building

2783-493: A vessel about 12 miles [19 km] up, 2 miles [3.2 km] from the Canada shore, with three men clinging to the masts, which alone were visible above the water–heard their cries and screams ... There were reports of disasters usually from sea captains passing information to reporters; in 1868, the captain of the Grace Whitney saw a sunken vessel with "three men clinging to the masthead," but he could not help because of

2904-621: Is Cleveland , anchoring the third largest U.S. metro area in the Great Lakes region , after Greater Chicago and Metro Detroit . Other major cities along the lake shore include Buffalo, New York ; Erie, Pennsylvania ; and Toledo, Ohio . Situated below Lake Huron , Erie's primary inlet is the Detroit River . The main natural outflow from the lake is via the Niagara River , which provides hydroelectric power to Canada and

3025-574: Is gained. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea treaty deals with aspects of overfishing in articles 61, 62, and 65. According to some observers, overfishing can be viewed as an example of the tragedy of the commons ; appropriate solutions would therefore promote property rights through, for instance, privatization and fish farming . Daniel K. Benjamin, in Fisheries are Classic Example of

3146-434: Is generally accomplished by placing moratoriums, quotas , and minimum size limits on a fish population. Ecosystem overfishing occurs when the balance of the ecosystem is altered by overfishing. With declines in the abundance of large predatory species, the abundance of small forage type increases causing a shift in the balance of the ecosystem towards smaller fish species. Examples of overfishing exist in areas such as

3267-414: Is less dense than cold air, the heated air rises. Rising air cools and water vapor condenses into cloud droplets ... the efficiency of snow production increases when the wind pushes the clouds over land. Friction with the ground causes air to pile up. This frictional convergence creates lift and enhances snowfall. Heavy lake-effect snowfalls can occur when cold air travels 60 miles (97 km) or longer over

3388-480: Is less than 4,000 years old, which is a short span in geological terms. Before this, the land on which the lake now sits went through several complex stages. A large lowland basin formed over two million years ago as a result of an eastern flowing river that existed well before the Pleistocene ice ages . This ancient drainage system was destroyed by the first major glacier in the area, while it deepened and enlarged

3509-502: Is one of the richest areas of Canada's fruit and vegetable production; this southernmost tip, particularly in the area around Leamington, is known as Canada's "tomato capital". The area around Port Rowan has special trees that grow because of the "tempering effect of the lake", and species include tulip trees , dogwood , sassafras , and sour gum . This area's many greenhouses produce a "variety of tropical plants rarely cultivated so far north", including some species of cacti, because of

3630-426: Is reduced, resulting in the opposite outcome from the one desired for fisheries. Thus, a displacement of the fleet from one locality to another will generally have little effect if the same quota is taken. As a result, management measures such as temporary closures or establishing a marine protected area of fishing areas are ineffective when not combined with individual fishing quotas. An inherent problem with quotas

3751-539: Is rich in nutrients and fish. Lake Erie is the shallowest of the Great Lakes because the ice was relatively thin and lacked erosion power when it reached that far south, according to one view. As many as three glaciers advanced and retreated over the land, causing temporary lakes to form in the time periods in between each of them. Because each lake had a different volume of water, their shorelines rested at differing elevations. The last of these lakes to form, Lake Warren , existed between about 13,000 and 12,000 years ago. It

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3872-432: Is smaller than the size that would produce the maximum yield per recruit. A recruit is an individual that makes it to maturity, or into the limits specified by a fishery, which are usually size or age. This makes the total yield less than it would be if the fish were allowed to grow to an appropriate size. It can be countered by reducing fishing mortality to lower levels and increasing the average size of harvested fish to

3993-640: Is that fish populations vary from year to year. A study has found that fish populations rise dramatically after stormy years due to more nutrients reaching the surface and therefore greater primary production. To fish sustainably, quotas need to be changed each year to account for fish population. Individual transferable quotas (ITQs) are fishery rationalization instruments defined under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act as limited access permits to harvest quantities of fish. Fisheries scientists decide

4114-447: Is the western basin where depths average only 25 to 30 feet (7.6 to 9.1 m); as a result, "the slightest breeze can kick up lively waves", also known as seiches . The "waves build very quickly", according to other accounts. The region around the lake is known as the "thunderstorm capital of Canada" with "breathtaking" lightning displays. Sometimes fierce waves springing up unexpectedly have led to dramatic rescues; in one instance,

4235-519: Is the Harvest Control Rule (HCR), which is a set of tools and protocols with which management has some direct control of harvest rates and strategies in relation to predicting stock status, and long-term maximum sustainable yields. Constant catch and constant fishing mortality are two types of simple harvest control rules. Fishing capacity can also be defined using an input or output orientation. Technical efficiency of each vessel of

4356-475: Is the fourth-largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and also has the shortest average water residence time . At its deepest point, Lake Erie is 210 feet (64 m) deep, making it the only Great Lake whose deepest point is above sea level. Situated on

4477-829: Is the oldest biological field station in the United States. Stone Laboratory was donated to the Ohio State University by Julius Stone in 1925 as part of the university's Ohio Sea Grant College program. The Great Lakes Institute of the University of Windsor has experts who study issues such as lake sediment pollution and the flow of contaminants such as phosphorus . Other invasive species in Lake Erie include spiny water fleas , fishhook water fleas , sea lamprey , and white perch . The invasive plant species in Lake Erie consist mainly of Eurasian milfoil , Trapa natans and purple loosestrife . The shore of

4598-441: Is the shallowest, it is also the warmest of the Great Lakes, and in 1999 this almost became a problem for two nuclear power plants which require cool lake water to keep their reactors cool. The warm summer of 1999 caused lake temperatures to come close to the 85 °F (29 °C) limit necessary to keep the plants cool. Also because of its shallowness, it is the first to freeze in the winter. The shallowest section of Lake Erie

4719-574: The Windsor Star reported that the lake experienced record-breaking water temperatures, reaching 81 °F (27 °C) in mid-August and compared the lake to a "bath tub". Lake Erie has a complex ecosystem with many species in interaction. Human activity, such as pollution and maritime ship traffic, can affect this environment in numerous ways. The interactions between new species can sometimes have beneficial effects, as well as harmful effects. Some introductions have been seen as beneficial such as

4840-537: The British Colonial government . These primarily concerned political reforms and land allocation issues. Some of the rebels stationed themselves in the U.S. and crossed the ice from Sandusky Bay to Pelee Island wearing "tattered overcoats and worn-out boots", and carrying muskets, pitchforks, and swords, but the islanders had already fled. Later, there was a battle on the ice with the Royal 32nd Regiment, with

4961-538: The Cuyahoga River and into the lake. A report in Time magazine in 1969 described the lake as a "gigantic cesspool" since only three of 62 beaches were rated "completely safe for swimming". By 1975 the popular commercial fish blue pike had been declared extinct, although the declaration may have been premature. By the 1980s, there were about 130 fishing vessels with about 3,000 workers, but commercial fishing

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5082-665: The International Boundary between Canada and the United States , Lake Erie's northern shore is the Canadian province of Ontario , specifically the Ontario Peninsula , with the U.S. states of Michigan , Ohio , Pennsylvania , and New York on its western, southern, and eastern shores. These jurisdictions divide the surface area of the lake with water boundaries. The largest city on the lake

5203-477: The Mary Stewart ... He first struck the water about 25 miles below Long Point ... During this time Mr. Steiner says he thinks his balloon bounded from the water at least twenty times. It would strike and then rebound, like a ball, going into the air from twenty to fifty feet, and still rushing down the lake at railroad speed ... Mr. Steiner then abandoned the balloon, leaping into the water and swimming towards

5324-606: The Neutrals (also known as Attawandaron) lived along the northern shore. The tribal name "erie" is a shortened form of the Iroquoian word erielhonan , meaning "long tail". The name may also come from the word eri , meaning "cherry tree". Near Port Stanley, there is an Indigenous village dating from the 16th century known as the Southwold Earthworks where as many as 800 Neutral Indigenous peoples once lived;

5445-584: The North Sea , the Grand Banks of Newfoundland and the East China Sea . In these locations, overfishing has not only proved disastrous to fish stocks, but also to the fishing communities relying on the harvest. Like other extractive industries such as forestry and hunting, fisheries are susceptible to economic interaction between ownership or stewardship and sustainability , otherwise known as

5566-552: The Oak Openings Region in Northwest Ohio . There, the sandy dry lake bed soil was not sufficient to support large trees with the exception of a few species of oaks, forming a rare oak savanna . At the time of European contact, there were several Indigenous peoples living around the shores of the eastern end of the lake. The Erie tribe (from whom the lake takes its name) lived along the southern edge, while

5687-551: The United States . In 2008, a large-scale study of fisheries that used ITQs compared to ones that did not provide strong evidence that ITQs can help to prevent collapses and restore fisheries that appear to be in decline. China bans fishing in the South China Sea for a period each year. Several countries are now effectively managing their fisheries. Examples include Iceland and New Zealand . The United States has turned many of its fisheries around from being in

5808-608: The World Bank and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), asserts that half the world's fishing fleet could be scrapped with no change in catch. In addition, the biomass of global fish stocks have been allowed to run down to the point where it is no longer possible to catch the amount of fish that could be caught. Increased incidence of schistosomiasis in Africa has been linked to declines of fish species that eat

5929-406: The tragedy of the commons . Overfishing not only causes negative impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, but also reduces fish production, which subsequently leads to negative social and economic consequences. According to a 2008 UN report, the world's fishing fleets are losing US$ 50 billion each year due to depleted stocks and poor fisheries management . The report, produced jointly by

6050-465: The wood warbler , which had population declines around 60% in 2008. Possible causes for declines in bird populations are farming practices, loss of habitats, soil depletion and erosion, and toxic chemicals. In 2006, concerns arose of possible avian influenza (bird flu) after two wild swans on the lake were found diseased, but they did not contain the H5N1 virus . Sightings of a magnificent frigatebird ,

6171-558: The 'Tragedy of the Commons' , cites research by Grafton, Squires and Fox to support the idea that privatization can solve the overfishing problem: According to recent research on the British Columbia halibut fishery, where the commons has been at least partly privatized, substantial ecological and economic benefits have resulted. There is less damage to fish stocks, the fishing is safer, and fewer resources are needed to achieve

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6292-472: The Buffalo District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers determined that the eutrophication was caused by point sources such as industrial outfalls and municipal sanitary and storm sewer outfalls, as well as diffuse sources, such as overland runoff from farm and forest land. All of these sources contribute nutrients, primarily phosphorus, to the lake. Growth of organisms in the lake is then spiked to

6413-479: The Canadian mainland, is located on a peninsula extending into the lake. Lake Erie has 31 islands ( 13 in Canada, 18 in the U.S. ), located generally in the western side of the lake. The largest of these is Pelee Island . Lake Erie has a lake retention time of 2.6 years, the shortest of all the Great Lakes. The lake's surface area is 9,910 square miles (25,667 km ). Lake Erie's water level fluctuates with

6534-480: The Eastern Central Pacific, Northeast Pacific (Area 67), Northwest Pacific (Area 61), Western Central Pacific and Southwest Pacific had the lowest proportion (13 to 17%) of fish stocks at biologically unsustainable levels. Daniel Pauly , a fisheries scientist known for pioneering work on the human impacts on global fisheries, has commented: It is almost as though we use our military to fight

6655-504: The Great Lakes Commission, the compact aims to prevent diversion of water from Great Lakes to distant states, as well as to set standards for use and conservation. It had support from both political parties, including United States Senator George Voinovich of Ohio and Governor Jennifer Granholm of Michigan, but is not popular in the southwestern states because of frequent drought conditions and water scarcity . Like

6776-461: The MSC's environmental standard. This enables consumers to play a part in reversing the decline of fish stocks. As of February 2012, over 100 fisheries around the world have been independently assessed and certified as meeting the MSC standard. Their where-to-buy page lists the currently available certified seafood. As of February 2012, over 13,000 MSC-labelled products are available in 74 countries around

6897-554: The Niagara River and Niagara Falls into Lake Ontario. Navigation downstream is provided by the Welland Canal, part of the Saint Lawrence Seaway. Other major contributors to Lake Erie include Grand River , Huron River , Maumee River , Sandusky River , Cuyahoga River , and Buffalo River . The drainage basin covers 30,140 square miles (78,100 km ). Point Pelee National Park , the southernmost point of

7018-710: The Ontario area around Port Rowan burning towns and villages. Generally, however, with the exceptions of the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812—which involved conflicts between the U.S. and the United Kingdom —relations between the U.S. and Canada have been remarkably friendly with an "unfortified boundary" and an agreement "that has kept all fleets of war off the Great Lakes." In 1837, rebellions broke about between Canadian settlers and

7139-553: The Purple Gang . The Coast Guard attempted to interdict the Canadian liquor with its Rum Patrol , and a casino operated on Middle Island . During the 20th century, commercial fishing was prevalent but so was the boom in manufacturing industry around the lake, and often rivers and streams were used as sewers to flush untreated sewage which ended up in the lake. Sometimes poorly constructed sanitary systems meant that when old pipes broke, raw sewage would spill directly into

7260-500: The Put-in-Bay Ice Yacht Club prints them on a map ... On a normal winter day, the ice is dotted with 2,000 fishing shanties. Strong winds have caused lake currents to shift sediment on the bottom, leading to shifting sandbars that have been the cause of shipwrecks. But winds can have a peaceful purpose as well; there have been proposals to place electricity–producing wind turbines in windy and shallow points in

7381-444: The Sea , certify seafood fisheries as sustainable. The Marine Stewardship Council has developed an environmental standard for sustainable and well-managed fisheries. Environmentally responsible fisheries management and practices are rewarded with the use of its blue product ecolabel . Consumers concerned about overfishing and its consequences are increasingly able to choose seafood products that have been independently assessed against

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7502-607: The Talbot Trail in 1809 as a way to stimulate settlement to the area; Talbot recruited settlers from Ireland and Scotland, and there are numerous places named after him in southern Ontario, such as Port Talbot , the Talbot River , and Talbotville . During the War of 1812 , Oliver Hazard Perry captured an entire British fleet in 1813 near Put-in-Bay, Ohio , despite having inferior numbers. American soldiers swept through

7623-713: The U.S. as it spins huge turbines near Niagara Falls at Lewiston, New York , and Queenston, Ontario . Some outflow occurs via the Welland Canal , part of the Saint Lawrence Seaway , which diverts water for ship passages from Port Colborne , Ontario, on Lake Erie, to St. Catharines on Lake Ontario , an elevation difference of 326 ft (99 m). Lake Erie's environmental health has been an ongoing concern for decades, with issues such as overfishing , pollution , algae blooms , and eutrophication generating headlines. Lake Erie (42.2° N, 81.2W) has

7744-564: The algal bloom heading toward Pelee Island. Two two-year, $ 2 million studies are trying to understand the "growing zone", which was described as a 10-foot-thick layer of cold water at the bottom, 55 feet (17 m) in one area, which stretches 100 miles [160 km] across the lake's center. It kills fish and microscopic creatures of the lake's food chain and fouls the water, and may cause further problems in later years for sport and commercial fishing. Algal blooms continued in early 2013, but new farming techniques, climate change, and even

7865-417: The animals in the ocean. We are gradually winning this war to exterminate them. And to see this destruction happen, for nothing really – for no reason – that is a bit frustrating. Strangely enough, these effects are all reversible, all the animals that have disappeared would reappear, all the animals that were small would grow, all the relationships that you can't see any more would re-establish themselves, and

7986-650: The archaeological remains include double earth walls winding around the grass-covered perimeter. Europeans named the tribe the Neutral Indians since these people refused to fight with other tribes. Both the Erie and Neutrals were colonized and assimilated by their hostile eastern neighbors, the Iroquois Confederacy , between 1651 and 1657 during the Beaver Wars . For decades after those wars,

8107-440: The area had "made it over the hump" in terms of enduring repeated snowfalls which required much shoveling. Being the shallowest of the Great Lakes, it is the most likely to freeze and frequently does. In contrast, Lake Michigan has never completely frozen over since the warmer and deeper portion is in the south, although it came close to being totally frozen during three harsh winters over the past century. In past years, lake ice

8228-469: The asylum I sought," he once told an interviewer. "I was afraid to inquire where (Canada) was, lest it would betray such a degree of ignorance as to excite suspicion at once." Many fugitives also had to overcome fears instilled by their former masters ... Prior to modern radar and weather forecasting , merchant ships were often caught up in intense gales: A violent gale is blowing on Lake Erie ... The schooner Stranger came in this morning and reports seeing

8349-409: The availability of family planning services. The resulting smaller populations have a decreased environmental footprint and reduced food needs. Controlling consumer behavior and demand is critical in mitigating action. Worldwide, a number of initiatives emerged to provide consumers with information regarding the conservation status of the seafood available to them. The "Guide to Good Fish Guides" lists

8470-401: The boat, which speedily reached him ... In 1885, lake winds were so strong that water levels dropped substantially, sometimes by as much as two feet, so that at ports such as Toledo, watercraft could not load coal or depart the port. During the history of the lake as a fishery, there has been marked battling by opposing interest groups: The preservation of the fisheries of Lake Erie has become

8591-482: The change in competitive equilibria and take over in a way that makes it impossible for the trout to re-establish a breeding population. Since the growth of global fishing enterprises after the 1950s, intensive fishing has spread from a few concentrated areas to encompass nearly all fisheries. The scraping of the ocean floor in bottom dragging is devastating to coral , sponges and other slower-growing benthic species that do not recover quickly, and that provide

8712-483: The clouds of mayflies have caused power outages and roads to become slippery with squashed insects. Zebra mussels filtering extra nutrients from the lake allows the mayfly larvae to thrive. Incidents of birds dying from botulism have occurred, in 2000 and in 2002. Birds affected included grebes , common and red-breasted mergansers , loons , diving ducks, ring-billed gulls , and herring gulls . One account suggests that bird populations are in trouble, notably

8833-473: The cyanobacteria ... will produce toxins", said Michael McKay, executive director of the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research at the University of Windsor . "Not enough is being done to stop fertilizer and phosphorus from getting into the lake and causing blooms," he added. Water testing was being conducted in August. The largest Lake Erie blooms to date occurred in 2015, exceeding

8954-558: The depths with state-of-the-art technology. In a few hours, massive nets weighing up to 15 tons, dragged along the bottom by deep-water trawlers , can destroy deep-sea corals and sponge beds that have taken centuries or millennia to grow. The trawlers can target orange roughy , grenadiers , or sharks. These fish are usually long-lived and late maturing, and their populations take decades, even centuries to recover. Fisheries scientist Daniel Pauly and economist Ussif Rashid Sumaila have examined subsidies paid to bottom trawl fleets around

9075-462: The eastern end of the lake. Storm-driven seiches can cause damage onshore. During one storm in November 2003, the water level at Buffalo rose by 7 feet (2.1 m) with waves of 10–15 feet (3.0–4.6 metres) for a rise of 22 feet (6.7 m). Meanwhile, at the western end of the lake, Toledo experienced a similar drop in water level. Lake Erie was carved out by glacier ice and in its current form

9196-421: The ecological destruction of the oceans, movements have sprung up to encourage abstinence —not eating any seafood—or eating only "sustainable seafood". Sustainable seafood is a movement that has gained momentum as more people become aware of overfishing and environmentally destructive fishing methods . Sustainable seafood is seafood from either fished or farmed sources that can maintain or increase production in

9317-447: The entire breeding cycle of the fish, with fish being bred in captivity. Some fish prove difficult to breed in captivity and can be caught in the wild as juveniles and brought into captivity to increase their weight. With scientific progress, more species are being made to breed in captivity. This was the case with southern bluefin tuna , which were first bred in captivity in 2009. As global citizens become more aware of overfishing and

9438-485: The fish population is no longer able to sustain itself. Some forms of overfishing, such as the overfishing of sharks , has led to the upset of entire marine ecosystems . Types of overfishing include growth overfishing, recruitment overfishing, and ecosystem overfishing. Overfishing not only causes negative impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, but also reduces fish production, which subsequently leads to negative social and economic consequences. The ability of

9559-546: The fleet is assumed necessary to attain this maximum catch. The degree of capacity utilization results from the comparison of the actual level of output (input) and the capacity output (input) of a vessel or a fleet. In order to meet the problems of overfishing, a precautionary approach and Harvest Control Rule (HCR) management principles have been introduced in the main fisheries around the world. The Traffic Light color convention introduces sets of rules based on predefined critical values, which can be adjusted as more information

9680-481: The future without jeopardizing the ecosystems from which it was acquired. In general, slow-growing fish that reproduce late in life, such as orange roughy, are vulnerable to overfishing. Seafood species that grow quickly and breed young, such as anchovies and sardines , are much more resistant to overfishing. Several organizations, including the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), and Friend of

9801-511: The gale and high seas. A balloonist named John Steiner of Philadelphia made an ambitious trip across the lake in 1857. His voyage was described in The New York Times : He arose to the height of about three miles, and started off at a slow but steady rate ... The lake could be seen from one end to the other nearly ... At one time Mr. Steiner counted 38 sail vessels, all in sight, and far below him. The hands on board several of

9922-492: The ice to clear before proceeding. Since slavery had been abolished in Canada in 1833 but was still legal in southern U.S. , a Lake Erie crossing was sometimes required for fugitive slaves seeking freedom: When Kentucky fugitive Lewis Clarke arrived in Cleveland, he had no idea how to find Canada. "I went out to the shore of the lake again and again, to try and see the other side, but I could see no hill, mountain, nor city of

10043-499: The increased population and size of smallmouth bass in Lake Erie. In 2008, concerns arose that the "newest invader swarming in the Great Lakes", the bloody-red shrimp , might harm fish populations and promote algal blooms . Environmentalists and biologists study lake conditions via installations such as the Franz Theodore Stone Laboratory on Gibraltar Island . The lab, which was established in 1895,

10164-562: The introduction of Pacific salmon . Occasionally there have been mass die-offs of certain species of fish, sometimes for reasons unknown, such as many numbers of rainbow smelt in May 2010. The lake has been plagued with a number of invasive species , including zebra and quagga mussels, the goby , and the grass carp . One estimate was that 180 invasive species are in the Great Lakes, some having traveled in ballast water in international ships. Zebra mussels and gobies have been credited with

10285-533: The journal Nature asserted that the "primary cause" of ocean defaunation is overfishing. Other studies have shown that overfishing has reduced fish and marine mammal biomass by 60% since the 1800s, and is currently driving over one-third of sharks and rays to extinction. The notion of overfishing hinges on what is meant by an "acceptable level" of fishing. More precise biological and bioeconomic terms define acceptable level as follows: A model proposed in 2010 for predicting acceptable levels of fishing

10406-589: The lake and along the coast. Steel Winds , a former steel mill site in Buffalo, has been developed as an urban wind farm housing 14 turbines capable of generating up to 35 megawatts of electricity. A plan by Samsung to build an offshore wind farm on the north shore of the lake, from Port Maitland to Nanticoke for a distance of 15.5 mi (24.9 km), has been met with opposition from residents. Canadians near Leamington and Kingsville have organized protest groups to thwart attempts to bring wind turbines to

10527-446: The lake in the 1970s. The conservation practices are not monitored and have not been kept up. One recent account suggests that the seasonal algal blooms in Lake Erie were possibly caused by runoff from cities, fertilizers, zebra mussels, and livestock near water. A second report focuses on the zebra mussels as being the cause of dead zones, since they filter so much sediment that this produces an overgrowth of algae. One report suggests

10648-558: The lake is also host to invasive species of the Phragmites reed genus. An ongoing concern is that nutrient overloading from fertilizers and human and animal waste, known as eutrophication , in which additional nitrogen and phosphorus enter the lake, will cause plant life to "run wild and multiply like crazy". Since fewer wetlands remain to filter nutrients, and greater channelization of waterways, nutrients in water can cause algal blooms to sprout, with "low-oxygen dead zones" in

10769-428: The lake's return to health after 40 years of absence. Each is 1.5 in (38 mm) long; the three main species of mayflies are Ephemera simulans , Hexagenia rigida , and H. limbata . The insects mate over a 72-hour period from June through September; they fly in masses up to the shore, mate in the air, then females lay up to 8,000 eggs each over the water; the eggs sink back down and the cycle repeats. Sometimes,

10890-463: The lake's tempering effect. Along the southeastern shore of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York is an important grape -growing region, as are the islands in the lake. Apple orchards are abundant in northeast Ohio to western New York. According to one estimate, 34 to 36 inches (860 to 910 mm) of water evaporate each year from the surface of the lake, which allows for rainfall and other precipitation in surrounding areas. Reports are conflicting about

11011-579: The lake, the location of which varies. Scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have been studying the lake's blue-green algal blooms and trying to find ways to predict when they are spreading or where they might make landfall; typically, the blooms arrive late each summer. This problem was extreme in the mid- and late 1960s, and the Lake Erie Wastewater Management Study conducted by

11132-443: The lake. They also race iceboats , which resemble sailboats on skates ... Many people drive to other islands for dinner with friends. They ride in cars with the roofs and doors chopped off so they can escape if the vehicles fall through the ice. Islanders stab evergreen trees into the ice every 50 yards [46 m] to mark a route ... Even in the coldest winters, there are dangerous patches of thin ice. The cracks are so predictable that

11253-459: The lake; reasons against the turbines include spoiling lake views. Plans to install turbines in Pigeon Bay, south of Leamington were met with opposition as well. The notion that bird and bat migration may be hurt by the wind turbines has been used to argue against the wind turbines as well. The lake is responsible for microclimates that are important to agriculture. Along its north shore

11374-415: The land around eastern Lake Erie was claimed and utilized by the Iroquois as a hunting ground. As the power of the Iroquois waned during the last quarter of the 17th century, several other, mainly Anishinaabe , displaced them from the territories they claimed on the north shore of the lake. There was a legend of an Indigenous woman named Huldah, who, despairing over her lost British lover, hurled herself from

11495-419: The lowland areas, allowing water to settle and form a lake. The glaciers were able to carve away more land on the eastern side of the lowland because the bedrock is made of shale which is softer than the carbonate rocks of dolomite and limestone on the western side. Thus, the eastern and central basins of the modern lake are much deeper than the western basin, which averages only 25 feet (7.6 m) deep and

11616-409: The mass of bycatch is five times larger than that of the shrimp caught. A report by FAO in 2020 stated that "in 2017, 34 percent of the fish stocks of the world's marine fisheries were classified as overfished". Mitigation options include: Government regulation, removal of subsidies , minimizing fishing impact, aquaculture and consumer awareness . Overfishing has stripped many fisheries around

11737-411: The much less abundant wild salmon runs. Aquaculture played a minor role in the harvesting of marine organisms until the 1970s. Growth in aquaculture increased rapidly in the 1990s when the rate of wild capture plateaued. Aquaculture now provides approximately half of all harvested aquatic organisms. Aquaculture production rates continue to grow while wild harvest remains steady. Fish farming can enclose

11858-531: The optimal amount of fish ( total allowable catch ) to be harvested in a certain fishery. The decision considers carrying capacity, regeneration rates and future values. Under ITQs, members of a fishery are granted rights to a percentage of the total allowable catch that can be harvested each year. These quotas can be fished, bought, sold, or leased allowing for the least-cost vessels to be used. ITQs are used in New Zealand , Australia , Iceland , Canada , and

11979-418: The other Great Lakes, Erie produces lake-effect snow when the first cold winds of winter pass over the warm waters. When the temperatures of the relatively warm surface water and the colder air separate to at least 18 °F (10 °C) to 23 °F (13 °C) apart, then "lake-effect snow becomes possible:" As cold air flows over the warm water, the lake warms and moistens the air. Since warm, moist air

12100-427: The overall effect of global warming on the Great Lakes region, including Lake Erie. One account suggests that climate change is causing greater evaporation of lake water, leading to warmer temperatures, as well as thinner or nonexistent ice in winter, which is fueling concerns that "Erie appears to be shrinking" and is the most likely candidate among the five Great Lakes to "turn into a festering mud puddle." In 2010,

12221-433: The oxygen-poor zone began about 1993 in the lake's central basin and becomes more pronounced during summer, but is somewhat of a mystery why this happens. Some scientists speculate that the dead zone is a naturally occurring phenomenon. Another report cites Ohio's Maumee River as the main source of polluted runoff of phosphorus from industries, municipalities, tributaries and agriculture, and in 2008, satellite images showed

12342-429: The point that oxygen levels are depleted. Recommendations were made for reducing point-source outflows, and reducing farm contributions of phosphorus by changing fertilizer usage, employing no-till farming, and other conservative practices. Many industrial and municipal sources have since been greatly reduced. The improved farming practices, which were voluntary, were followed for a while, resulting in remarkable recovery of

12463-555: The proportion of underfished stocks decreased continuously from 1974 to 2015, the maximally sustainably fished stocks decreased from 1974 to 1989, and then increased to 59.9% in 2015. In 2015, among the 16 major statistical areas, the Mediterranean and Black Sea had the highest percentage (62.2%) of unsustainable stocks, closely followed by the Southeast Pacific 61.5% and Southwest Atlantic 58.8%. In contrast,

12584-559: The public, but the surrounding area along Haggerty Road has been organized as the French Landing Park, which is a popular destination for picnickers and shore fishermen. This Wayne County, Michigan location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about a dam or floodgate in the United States is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Lake Erie Lake Erie ( / ˈ ɪr i / EER -ee ; French : Lac Érié )

12705-416: The rebels being driven to retreat. Settlers established commercial fisheries on the north coast of the lake around the 1850s. An important business was fishing. In the pre-Civil War years, railways sprouted everywhere, and around 1852 there were railways circling the lake. Maritime traffic picked up, although the lake was usually closed because of ice from December to early April, and ships had to wait for

12826-519: The rise of the automobile in the 1950s drastically cut demand for their services. The Detroit and Cleveland Navigation company was one of the largest and most renowned of these companies. During the Prohibition years from 1919 to 1933, a "great deal of alcohol crossed Erie" along with "mobster corpses" dumped into the Detroit River which sometimes washed up on the beaches of Pelee Island. Notable rum runners included Thomas Joseph McGinty and

12947-532: The seasons as in the other Great Lakes. Generally, the lowest levels are in January and February and the highest in June or July, although there have been exceptions. The average yearly level varies depending on long-term precipitation. Short-term level changes are often caused by seiches that are particularly high when southwesterly winds blow across the length of the lake during storms. These cause water to pile up at

13068-506: The severity index at 10.5 and in 2011 at a 10, according to the NOAA. In early August, the 2019 bloom was expected to measure 7.5 on the severity index, but could range between 6 and 9. At that time, satellite images depicted a bloom stretching up to 1,300 square kilometres (500 sq mi) on Lake Erie, with the epicenter near Toledo, Ohio . The Lake Erie water snake, a subspecies of the northern water snake ( Nerodia sipedon ), lives in

13189-452: The snails carrying the disease-causing parasites. Massive growth of jellyfish populations threaten fish stocks, as they compete with fish for food, eat fish eggs, and poison or swarm fish, and can survive in oxygen depleted environments where fish cannot; they wreak massive havoc on commercial fisheries. Overfishing eliminates a major jellyfish competitor and predator, exacerbating the jellyfish population explosion. Both climate change and

13310-422: The snowiest city is Syracuse, New York , which can receive heavy snowfall from both the lake effect process and large coastal cyclones. A storm around Christmas in 2001 pounded Buffalo with 7 feet (2.1 m) of snow. The effects of the warmer lake water is reduced when the lake freezes over. In January 2011, for example, residents of Cleveland were glad when Lake Erie was "90 percent frozen" since it meant that

13431-534: The species, making them more susceptible to disease, and less likely to adapt to their stressors and the environment. Additionally, catching smaller fish leads to breeding of smaller offspring, which can be problematic for fish. In many species, the smaller the female, the less fecund it is, impacting the fish population. There are three recognized types of biological overfishing: growth overfishing, recruit overfishing, and ecosystem overfishing. Growth overfishing occurs when fish are harvested at an average size that

13552-622: The system would re-emerge. According to the Secretary General of the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development , "Overfishing cannot continue, the depletion of fisheries poses a major threat to the food supply of millions of people." The fishing down the food web is something that occurs when overfishing arises. Once all larger fish are caught, the fisherman will start to fish the smaller individuals, which would lead to more fish needing to be caught to keep up with demand. This decreases fish populations, as well as genetic diversity of

13673-410: The vessels saw him, and rightly apprehending that he was an aeronaut, cheered him heartily ... He neared the Canada shore a little below Long Point ... he was accordingly driven towards Buffalo ... Night was drawing on and it became apparent that he could not, with this current, get away from the water before dark, and after nightfall it would not be safe to come down. Seeing a propeller (powered boat) ...

13794-525: The vicinity of Ohio's Put-in-Bay Harbor and had been placed on the threatened species list. By 2010, the water snake population was over 12,000 snakes. While they have a nonvenomous bite, they are a key predator in the lake's aquatic ecosystem since they feed on mudpuppies , walleye , and smallmouth bass . The snake is helpful in keeping the population of goby fish in check. They mate from late May through early June and can be found in large mating balls with one female bunched within several males. In 1999,

13915-403: The village of Rawsonville . When completed, the powerhouse had a hydroelectric generating capacity of 12.7 kilowatt hours . The powerhouse was decommissioned in 1962. In 1981, the property was donated to the township, restored, and put back into service in 1988 and is still operational. The powerhouse currently has a capacity of 1.7 MW . The powerhouse facility and the dam are off limits to

14036-544: The world of their stocks . The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization estimated in a 2018 report that 33.1% of world fish stocks are subject to overfishing. Significant overfishing has been observed in pre-industrial times. In particular, the overfishing of the western Atlantic Ocean from the earliest days of European colonisation of the Americas has been well documented. The fraction of fish stocks that are within biologically sustainable levels has exhibited

14157-420: The world. Fish & Kids is an MSC project to teach schoolchildren about marine environmental issues, including overfishing. The Monterey Bay Aquarium 's Seafood Watch Program, although not an official certifying body like the MSC, also provides guidance on the sustainability of certain fish species. Some seafood restaurants have begun to offer more sustainable seafood options. The Seafood Choices Alliance

14278-440: The world. They found that US$ 152 million per year are paid to deep-sea fisheries. Without these subsidies, global deep-sea fisheries would operate at a loss of US$ 50 million a year. A great deal of the subsidies paid to deep-sea trawlers is to subsidize the large amount of fuel required to travel beyond the 200 mile limit and drag weighted nets. "There is surely a better way for governments to spend money than by paying subsidies to

14399-795: Was declining rapidly, particularly from the American side. In 2005, the Great Lakes states of Ohio , Michigan , New York , Pennsylvania , Illinois , Indiana , Wisconsin , and Minnesota and the Canadian Provinces of Ontario and Quebec endorsed the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Sustainable Water Resources Compact. It was signed into law by President George W. Bush in September 2008. An international water-rights policy overseen by

14520-509: Was deeper than the current Lake Erie, and its shoreline existed about eight miles (13 km) inland from the modern one. The shorelines of these lakes left behind high ground sand ridges that cut through swamps and were used as trails for Native peoples and later, pioneers. These trails became primitive roads which were eventually paved. U.S. Route 30 west of Delphos, Ohio , and U.S. Route 20 west of Norwalk and east of Cleveland were formed in this manner. The ancient sand dunes are visible in

14641-533: Was so thick that it was possible to drive over it or go sailing on iceboats . Many lake residents take advantage of the ice and travel; some drive to Canada and back: The first ice usually forms in late November, and by January it locks into place. For islanders in the Western Basin, it is the equivalent of summer vacation ... Once the lake freezes, islanders organize impromptu ice rallies. Families gather to drink hot wine and race all-terrain vehicles across

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