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Are the Great Lakes really inland seas?

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Re: Are the Great Lakes really inland seas?

#21

Post by engineer_22 »

blakesterz wrote: post #10

"They hold more than a fifth of Earth’s unfrozen fresh water" I read quite a few stories about the horrible drought in the west, and here I am sitting on a good part of all the usable water in the entire world. I can't help but think at some point a bunch of people are going to come for that water, in one way or another. Either by moving here, or trying to move it there. Some ideas have been floating around about tha…

Water from the Great Lakes cannot leave the Great Lakes.

The Great Lakes Compact prevents construction of any water withdrawal that will move water outside of the watershed.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Lakes_Compact

Re: Are the Great Lakes really inland seas?

#22

Post by maxerickson »

mcphage wrote: post #14
blakesterz wrote: post #10

"They hold more than a fifth of Earth’s unfrozen fresh water" I read quite a few stories about the horrible drought in the west, and here I am sitting on a good part of all the usable water in the entire world. I can't help but think at some point a bunch of people are going to come for that water, in one way or another. Either by moving here, or trying to move it there. Some ideas have been floating around about tha…

> Either by moving here That's one of the reasons I'm staying where I am. > trying to move it there Being that they straddle the US / Canadian border, it's legally much more difficult to mass pump water out of them. Probably the main reason it hasn't happened yet.

There's an agreement not to:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Lakes_Compact

Re: Are the Great Lakes really inland seas?

#23

Post by godtoldmetodoit »

cmrdporcupine wrote: post #16

Seas or not, I love the lakes and the land around them, in the 20+ years since I moved myself here they've taken over my heart. I'm from the aspen parkland of central Alberta; thin trees, dry air, small muddy leach-infested kettle lakes, big skies, poplar and birch land. When I was 8 we did a trip across Canada, and I remember us camping by the shores of Superior when a massive thunderstorm came rolling in, and it le…

I grew up in south west Michigan and absolutely took them for granted. After almost 5 years in Austin we decided to come back to Michigan with the birth of our first child. I missed the lakes terribly, just totally took for granted that not everywhere has fresh water surrounding them on all sides.

In this climate change age, being close to so much fresh water really helps calm my nerves knowing that I am in a spot that will be able to weather the changes better then most and possibly become a refuge for more people.

Re: Are the Great Lakes really inland seas?

#24

Post by alehlopeh »

justusthane wrote: post #3
shotta wrote: post #2

I have always loved this song about a shipwreck on the Great Lakes. https://youtu.be/FuzTkGyxkYI

I have to say, I grew up on Lake Superior in Wisconsin, and it’s funny to hear the Edmund Fitzgerald referred to as just “a shipwreck.” In this area, the sinking of the Fitzgerald easily has more cultural relevance than the Titanic. In the small towns that surround Lake Superior, it’s not uncommon to run into someone who lost a loved one, so be careful making jokes in bars — and there are jokes[1]. The mystery of it…

29 people died half a century ago, and it’s not uncommon to run into one of their loved ones in a random bar? I am skeptical of that claim.

Re: Are the Great Lakes really inland seas?

#25

Post by cmrdporcupine »

mcphage wrote: post #14
blakesterz wrote: post #10

"They hold more than a fifth of Earth’s unfrozen fresh water" I read quite a few stories about the horrible drought in the west, and here I am sitting on a good part of all the usable water in the entire world. I can't help but think at some point a bunch of people are going to come for that water, in one way or another. Either by moving here, or trying to move it there. Some ideas have been floating around about tha…

> Either by moving here That's one of the reasons I'm staying where I am. > trying to move it there Being that they straddle the US / Canadian border, it's legally much more difficult to mass pump water out of them. Probably the main reason it hasn't happened yet.

It's legally forbidden by treaty of all the states and provinces that border them.

For now.

There's also little reason for it. There's plenty of rich farmland here to grow on. Agriculture should move back to this region, and growing practices and crops adapt for the colder climate. Growing heavily irrigated crops in the desert or semi-arid regions has many advantages but makes little sense in a water constrained world.

Right now the rich well watered soils of the midwest and great lakes region are being wasted on cash crop soy/corn rotation. Chipping away at the rich top soils for animal feed etc. There's a lot more that could be done here. This land is good for so many things... growing almonds in California? Grow hardy hybrid hazelnuts in the east. Cold hardy, disease resistant grapes make exotic regional wines with a unique eastern terroir and a long history, mostly forgotten. Bring back the apples orchards. The peaches and apricots. Re-open the canning and juicing plants. It's a shorter, mostly single season for most annual vegetable crops, but so much fertile land and water. And greenhouses add a lot of value.

Re: Are the Great Lakes really inland seas?

#26

Post by alanbernstein »

engineer_22 wrote: post #21
blakesterz wrote: post #10

"They hold more than a fifth of Earth’s unfrozen fresh water" I read quite a few stories about the horrible drought in the west, and here I am sitting on a good part of all the usable water in the entire world. I can't help but think at some point a bunch of people are going to come for that water, in one way or another. Either by moving here, or trying to move it there. Some ideas have been floating around about tha…

Water from the Great Lakes cannot leave the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes Compact prevents construction of any water withdrawal that will move water outside of the watershed. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Lakes_Compact

...According to current US law.

Reading your comment, I wasn't sure if "compact" was a legal term or a geological one. Laws change much more quickly than geology.

Re: Are the Great Lakes really inland seas?

#27

Post by pfarrell »

alehlopeh wrote: post #24
justusthane wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have to say, I grew up on Lake Superior in Wisconsin, and it’s funny to hear the Edmund Fitzgerald referred to as just “a shipwreck.” In this area, the sinking of the Fitzgerald easily has more cultural relevance than the Titanic. In the small towns that surround Lake Superior, it’s not uncommon to run into someone who lost a loved one, so be careful making jokes in bars — and there are jokes[1]. The mystery of it…

29 people died half a century ago, and it’s not uncommon to run into one of their loved ones in a random bar? I am skeptical of that claim.

It sank in 1975. There could certainly be children of the sailors alive, and a spouse who was in their 30’s at the time would be around their 80’s now. That doesn’t seem far fetched.

Re: Are the Great Lakes really inland seas?

#28

Post by ceejayoz »

engineer_22 wrote: post #21
blakesterz wrote: post #10

"They hold more than a fifth of Earth’s unfrozen fresh water" I read quite a few stories about the horrible drought in the west, and here I am sitting on a good part of all the usable water in the entire world. I can't help but think at some point a bunch of people are going to come for that water, in one way or another. Either by moving here, or trying to move it there. Some ideas have been floating around about tha…

Water from the Great Lakes cannot leave the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes Compact prevents construction of any water withdrawal that will move water outside of the watershed. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Lakes_Compact

By act of Congress, not Constitutional amendment.

It could be repealed in a matter of weeks if Congress saw fit.

Re: Are the Great Lakes really inland seas?

#29

Post by jameshart »

twelvechairs wrote: post #20
jameshart wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Bosphorus and Dardanelles, between the Black Sea and the Aegean/Mediterranean, are quite a lot like a river. There are both shorter and wider bodies of water that are considered rivers.

They don't have a one way flow though

Many rivers have tidal flows in their lower reaches. Maybe the Turkish Straits are just an extreme example of that?

Re: Are the Great Lakes really inland seas?

#30

Post by ceejayoz »

alehlopeh wrote: post #24
justusthane wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have to say, I grew up on Lake Superior in Wisconsin, and it’s funny to hear the Edmund Fitzgerald referred to as just “a shipwreck.” In this area, the sinking of the Fitzgerald easily has more cultural relevance than the Titanic. In the small towns that surround Lake Superior, it’s not uncommon to run into someone who lost a loved one, so be careful making jokes in bars — and there are jokes[1]. The mystery of it…

29 people died half a century ago, and it’s not uncommon to run into one of their loved ones in a random bar? I am skeptical of that claim.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday_problem, and I presume "loved one" might include cousins, grandchildren, etc.
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