Climate Variability and Change in the Great Lakes Watershed

$12.00 (U.S.) per cubic yard on average.  Therefore, in a situation where 7,500,000 to

12,500,000 cubic yards (5,730,000 to 9,560,000 cubic metres) are being removed from federal

harbours on an annual basis, it is reasonable to assume that annual expenditures of $75 to $125

million (U.S.) could be expected as a minimal investment in Great Lakes shipping

infrastructure.

2.2.2   Impacts of Lake-Effect Snow

Lake-effect snow is a common cold season phenomenon in the Great Lakes region, occurring

most frequently in late autumn and early winter.  This type of snow results from the rapid

warming and moistening of Arctic air masses that pass over lakes that are still relatively warm.  

The Arctic air becomes unstable and the resulting convection forms clouds and precipitation.

The precipitation falls over and downwind of the lakes.  For very cold air masses, temperatures

remain below freezing even after passage over the warmer lakes, causing the precipitation to fall

as snow.  Lake-effect snow causes considerable enhancement of snowfall in narrow snowbelts

along the downwind lakeshores.  For example, Detroit, Michigan on the western (upwind) shore

of Lake Erie receives an average of 1.1 metres (42 inches) of snow per year, while Buffalo, New

York, on the eastern (downwind) shore of Lake Erie, receives an average of 2.3 metres (92

inches) per year.  Toronto, Ontario, on the northwestern (upwind) shore of Lake Ontario,

receives about 1.4 metres (54 inches) per year, while Syracuse, New York, located to the

southeast (downwind) shore of Lake Ontario, receives 2.8 metres (109 inches) per year and is

the snowiest metropolitan area in the United States.

Lake-effect snow creates transportation problems and results in additional costs to keep roads

clear.  A major transportation artery, Interstate 90, passes along the southern shore of Lake Erie

and is vulnerable to lake-effect snow storms.  Increased property damage, injuries, and deaths

due to accidents and exertion accompany such events.  Major airports, such as those in Buffalo

and Cleveland, are also vulnerable to disruptions.  The roofs of buildings in the snowbelts must

be built to support heavier loads of snow than for locations away from the snowbelts (Schmidlin

et al., 1992).  Retail sales may drop temporarily.  A single lake-effect snowstorm near

Cleveland, Ohio in November 1996 resulted in eight deaths, hundreds of human injuries,

widespread power outages, damage to numerous buildings, and over $30 million (U.S.) in

economic losses (Schmidlin and Kosarik, 1999).  On the positive side, there is a large private

snow removal business sector that benefits from the snowfall.  Sales of winter-related products

may increase.  Lake-effect snowfall also supports an important winter recreational industry in

some parts of the Great Lakes.  Although there is not a large downhill ski industry in the Lake

Erie snowbelt, many of the Midwest’s premier downhill ski resorts are located in the snowbelts

of the other lakes in the region.

Abnormally light snowfall amounts during the winter season have also created significant

negative impacts, particularly when snowfall deficiencies have been widespread and the

associated losses have affected many locations throughout the Great Lakes region.  Such was

the case over most of the Great Lakes region during the 1997-1998 El Nino year.  The

widespread nature of this event resulted in impacts over a large area.  For example, business at

Midwest U.S. ski resorts was down 50 % and losses were estimated at $120 million (U.S.)

(Great Lakes Regional Assessment Group, 2000).

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