Lake Michigan Water Research Articles

The effects of natural water level fluctuations on N and P cycling in A great lakes marsh

The water depth in marshes occurring along Lake Michigan is largely controlled by fluctuations of the Lake Michigan water level. The role of water level in controlling the distribution and cycling of N and P in emergent (Sparganium eurycarpum,Scirpus validus, andTypha latifolia) and wet meadow (Calamagrostis canadensis,Carex stricta, andCarex aquatilis) communities of a Lake Michigan river mouth marsh was studied. Nutrient uptake was determined from biomass sampling and tissue analysis. Community distribution at various lake stages was determined from aerial photographs.

Lake Level Effects as Measured from Aerial Photos

Rising Lake Michigan water levels were found to negatively influence the amount of wetlands and beaches in the Straits of Mackinac area of Lack Michigan. The effects of long-term fluctuation in water levels were determined from measurements of wetlands and beaches on seven sets of historical aerial photographs (1938-1980). Analysis of aerial photographs demonstrated a 380 acre (154 ha) difference in total wetland and beach areas at the highest lake level sampled. as compared to the total at the lowest lake level sampled, or a range of 4 ft (1.2 m). A linear model between total wetland and beach areas and water levels (R²=0.93) indicated an increase of one foot (0.3 m) would result in a decrease of 80 acres (32 ha) or 18% of the 439 acres (178 ha) of wetlands and beaches in the study area. This methodlogy, which includes measurements from historical aerial photographs, acquisition of small format aerial photographs, and determination of local hydrological conditions, was useful for quantifying change in these lacustrine wetlands.

Growth responses of river and lake phytoplankton populations in Lake Michigan water

(1984). Growth responses of river and lake phytoplankton populations in Lake Michigan water. SIL Proceedings, 1922-2010: Vol. 22, No. 1, pp. 445-451.

Increased Diversion at Chicago: Initial Assessment

The Corps of Engineers has proposed and analyzed the effects of diverting Lake Michigan waters down the Illinois River in times of above average lake levels. Effects would vary considerably depending upon the rate and timing of diversion. Major benefits on the river portion will be an improvement in water quality, increased benefits to commercial navigation and increased power generation. On the Great Lakes the major benefits would be reduction in shoreline erosion and flooding. Adverse effects would be significant. On the river major adverse effects are due to increased flooding over existing conditions and longer flooding duration in the lower reaches. Current trends of habitat destruction and loss of species diversity in natural ecosystems will be accelerated by the increased diversion, resulting in the deterioration of natural ecosystems. Managed ecosystems such as leveed farmlands and duck clubs will suffer higher drainage costs as a result of the increased flooding. Unleveed areas will experience substantial crop losses, especially in low water years, and diversion may ultimately preclude agriculture in such areas. On the lakes, major adverse effects would result from power loss, lowered ship capacity resulting from shallower draft at docking facilities, and loss of water-edge ecosystems.

Organic geochemistry of suspended and settling particulate matter in Lake Michigan

Organic matter contained in particulate matter in Lake Michigan waters and sediments has been characterized by CN ratios and by distributions of biomarker fatty acids, alkanols, sterols, and aliphatic hydrocarbons. Differences in organic constituents of particulate matter from various depths and distances from shore indicate a complex interaction of production, transformation, and destruction of the organic matter contained in sinking particles. Near-surface material contains important contributions of landderived organic matter, presumably of eolian input. Midwater particles have predominantly aquatic organic material of algal origin. At the sediment-water interface, selective suspension of the finer fractions of surficial sediments enriches bottom nepheloid layers with these sediment size classes. As a result, near-bottom particulate matter has an aquatic biomarker character. Organic matter associated with sinking particles undergoes substantial degradation during passage to the bottom of Lake Michigan, and aquatic components are selectively destroyed relative to terrigenous components.

From dream to reality: Lake Michigan water for four Chicago suburbs

The Northwest Water Commission was organized to supply water to four cooperating suburban Chicago communities. With supplies from wells that served individual communities shrinking, it became apparent in the late 1950s that water would have to be obtained from an alternative source. Securing the legal right to use water from Lake Michigan took 25 years and involved a US Supreme Court ruling. The system is now under construction and will be in operation by 1984.

Silicon Contamination in Diatom Nutrient Enrichment Experiments

Large amounts of biologically available silicon (Si) were released into solution from the walls of Pyrex glass reagent bottles and Erlenmeyer flasks during nutrient bioassay experiments using Lake Michigan water. Photosynthetic rates in short-term (4–7 h) incubations and diatom growth rates and maximum yields in long-term incubations (~7 d) were affected by these extraneous Si supplies. The results of conventional nutrient enrichment bioassays performed in low-Si environments can be seriously biased unless Si contamination from glass incubation containers is avoided.

Determination of113mCd in natural water

A method has been developed for the determination of113mCd from fallout in large-volume environmental water samples. In the analytical procedure a known amount of cadmium carrier is added to the sample and the cadmium is preconcentrated as insoluble hydroxide by coprecipitation with ferric hydroxide. The separated cadmium is purified from other interfering elements by an anion—exchange procedure. Finally, cadmium is coprecipitated with copper sulfide, and the radioactivity of113mCd is measured in a lowbackground, gas-flow proportional beta counter. The cadmium recovery is established by determining the amount of Cd in the precipitate using an energy dispersive x-ray fluorescence spectrometer. For a 24hr counting period a lower limit of detection around 50μBq113mCd/1 of sample has been attained. Samples of Lake Michigan water were analyzed: the concentration of113mCd in 1980 was 177±5 μBq/l.

Soluble Reactive Phosphorus Measurements in Lake Water: Evidence for Molybdate‐enhanced Hydrolysis

AbstractMeasurements of ortho‐phosphate (PO4‐P) concentrations in natural waters obtained by molybdenum blue methodology are based on the assumption that molybdate (Mo) complexes only with PO4‐P (in the absence of arsenate and silicate interference) to form the reductant‐sensitive complex 12‐molybdophosphoric acid (12‐MPA). The hypothesis that Mo causes or accelerates PO4‐P release from bound sources or forms reductant‐sensitive complexes with organic compounds (organic‐PO4‐Mo) was tested by exposing filtered Lake Michigan water to acid, acid plus Mo simultaneously, and Mo, respectively, before measuring PO4‐P by the Chamberlain‐Shapiro extraction method. Not only does Mo accelerate hydrolysis in the presence of acid, but it also either causes hydrolysis or forms organic‐PO4‐Mo before samples are acidified. Although the relative amounts of 12‐MPA and organic‐PO4‐Mo formed in lake water cannot be assessed quantitatively, a major fraction of the blue color formed during routine analysis by this or by similar methods apparently is not the product of acid hydrolysis, but may also be due to reduction of organic‐PO4‐Mo. Future developments in molybdenum blue methodology aimed at minimizing hydrolysis must consider the sequence of reagent additions and Mo, as well as acid, contact times.

Impact of Lake Michigan Allocations on the Cambrian‐Ordovician Aquifer System

ABSTRACTOverpumping of the Cambrian‐Ordovician aquifer in the Chicago area has caused severe water‐level declines in portions of Cook, DuPage, Kane, and Will Counties. Recent changes in the accounting procedure for diversion of Lake Michigan water have released more water for public supplies. As communities currently withdrawing water from deep wells receive allocations of Lake Michigan water, deep pumpage will decrease in those areas and water levels will partially recover. Major cones of depression will shift southward to Joliet and westward to the Fox River communities north of Aurora. Critically low water levels caused by pumpage in these areas will result in a loss of pumping capacity of as much as 19% by the year 2020. Despite lake allocations, deep pumpage will grow again and will still exceed the practical sustained yield (65 mgd/2.46 × 105 m3/day) of the aquifer. Continued growth in Wisconsin pumpage will also contribute an estimated additional decline of about 80 feet near the State line between 1980 and 2020.

Determination of cadmium in Lake Michigan by mass spectrometric isotope dilution analysis or atomic absorption spectrometry following electrodeposition

Electrodeposition on an amalgamated gold wire concentrates cadmium effectively from freshwater for subsequent determination by mass spectrometric isotope dilution analysis or by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry. Sampling and handling procedures have been developed that reduce blanks to approx. 3 ng L/sup -1/ while avoiding the need for clean room operations. By use of mass spectrometric isotope dilution, the calculated instrumental limit of detection was <0.1 ng, well below the limits imposed by the observed precision and blank values. The overall procedure, including determination of and correction for the blank value, had a precision of 14%, relative standard deviation. Electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometric detection gave a relative precision of 19%. The mean cadmium concentration in Lake Michigan water samples from 1978 ranged from 31 to 41 ng L/sup -1/.

Feeding, Growth, and Fat Deposition by Brown Trout in Constant and Fluctuating Temperatures

Abstract Hatchery brown trout Salmo trutta intended for stocking into Lake Michigan were exposed for 57 days to three temperature regimes: (1) a diel temperature cycle (9–18 C; mean 12.5 C; amplitude 4.6 C) simulating that selected by brown trout residing in thermal effluent areas in spring; (2) a constant 13 C, the optimum constant temperature for brown trout growth; and (3) naturally fluctuating, arrhythmic temperatures of inshore Lake Michigan waters (4–11 C; mean 7.7 C). Fish in each treatment were fed to satiation twice a day with alewife Alosa pseudoharengus. Food consumption and growth rates were nearly identical in the constant 13 C and the ambient-temperature regimes; they were significantly greater in the thermocyclic regime than in the other two regimes. Gross conversion efficiencies were not significantly different among treatments, indicating little, if any, energetic penalty for exposure to large or small diel temperature fluctuations. Brown trout exposed to a constant 13 C accumulated less ...

Comparative Hatching Success of Lake Trout Eggs in Lake Michigan Water and Well Water

"Comparative Hatching Success of Lake Trout Eggs in Lake Michigan Water and Well Water." The Progressive Fish-Culturist, 44(1), pp. 47–48

Colonization and Growth of Attached Algae at the Lake Michigan Water Line

Changes in populations of attached algae growing near the water line along the west shore of Lake Michigan were observed. Emphasis was placed on harbor populations with particular focus on the algae of Milwaukee Harbor during 1979 and 1980. Vertical zonation on rocks and harbor structures is documented and seasonal growth patterns and selected interrelationships are described. Of the three major filamentous algal forms present in this habitat, Bangia appears as a permanent resident, while Ulothrix may be considered a seasonal and opportunistic plant, responding rapdily to changes in water level. Cladophora is a perennial, but plants above a depth of approximately 30 cm tend to grow as annuals due to conditions of ice scour. It is suggested that seasonal and spatial variation in the abundance of particular species is related to the physical growth requirements of the species.

Changes in physicochemical forms of lead and cadmium added to freshwater

Transformation of physicochemical forms of cadmium and lead added at 1 μ/L to Lake Michigan water have been studied by anodic stripping voltammetry. Unfiltered, 0.45 μ membrane filtered, ultrafiltered, and UV irradiated ultrafiltered samples were used to differentiate metal binding by particulate, colloidal, and dissolved organic matter. The reaction of added metal with colloids and particles is rapid. Their reaction with soluble organic matter is slow, requiring 1 to 2 days for complexation of one-half the added metal.

Abiotic versus Biotic Uptake of Radiophosphorus in Lake Water

Tests were conducted on Selenastrum capricornutum and lake water to evaluate the common practice of estimating abiotic uptake of radiophosphorus (33Pi) by poisoning samples with glutaraldehyde (GA) and Formalin (FM) and to estimate abiotic uptake in Lake Michigan water. Algae treated with GA and FM release intracellular 31Pi into solution, which elevates the dissolved 31Pi:33Pi ratio and could seriously underestimate abiotic uptake. Carbonyl-cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CP), an inhibitor of phosphorylation, was identified as a satisfactory agent for estimating abiotic uptake because it effectively inhibits biological uptake, it does not cause the release of detectable amounts of 31Pi from algae into solution, and it does not appear to block significantly abiotic uptake by particulate material in lake water. Two types of tests demonstrated that nonbiological uptake of 33Pi in water from Lake Michigan was negligible: uptake in samples treated with 10−3 mol/L CP was ≤ 0.01%, and uptake by particulate material recovered from lake water after treatment with heat or GA and resuspension in filtered lake water was ≤ 2% of rates measured in untreated samples. Procedures for estimating abiotic uptake in 33Pi tracer experiments are proposed.Key words: methodology, carbonylcyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone, Lake Michigan, phosphorus, phytoplankton

Interstate Conflict Over Ground Water: Wisconsin‐Illinois

ABSTRACTThe Cambrian‐Ordovician aquifer (deep sandstone aquifer) of northeastern Illinois and southeastern Wisconsin consists of a number of hydraulically connected sandstone and dolomite units. The aquifer dips gently to the east beneath Lake Michigan and is regionally confined by the Maquoketa shale, which has been thinned and removed by erosion to the west. Recharge to the regional aquifer system occurs where the shale is missing and to a lesser extent across the shale wherever there are downward hydraulic gradients. The practical sustained yield from the aquifer is 46 million gallons per day (mgd) (170,000 m3/day) in Illinois and approximately 34 mgd (129,000 m3/day) in Wisconsin. In 1978, pumpage from the aquifer amounted to 142 mgd (537,000 m3/day) in the eight counties of northeastern Illinois compared with an estimated 38 mgd (144,000 m3/day) in Wisconsin. Pumpage in Illinois has exceeded the practical sustained yield every year since 1958 while in Wisconsin the practical sustained yield was reached about 1975. Two regional pumping cones have developed. One centered in the Chicago region has maximum drawdowns of more than 900 feet (275 m) while in the Milwaukee pumping cone water levels have fallen about 350 feet (106 m). The greater drawdown in the Chicago pumping cone has changed the regional hydraulic gradient and 9.3 mgd (35,200 m3/day) of ground water is now being drained from beneath Wisconsin into Illinois. A digital computer model of the aquifer system was used to separate the amount of total drawdown in the aquifer attributable to each pumping center as well as to predict future ground‐water levels. At the Illinois‐Wisconsin border in 1973, there was 265 feet (81 m) of drawdown of which 94 feet (28 m) were due to pumpage in Wisconsin and 171 feet (52 m) due to pumpage in Illinois. Allocations of Lake Michigan water to ground‐water users in Illinois could result in a reduction of pumpage to less than 46 mgd (174,000 m3/day) by 1985. In order to obtain a modification of the U.S. Supreme Court decree permitting Illinois to divert 3,200 cubic feet per second (cfs) (7,829,000 m3/day) of water from Lake Michigan, Illinois must agree that future allocations of Lake Michigan water will be done in such a manner as to reduce Cambrian‐Ordovocian aquifer pumpage. The rate of ground‐water decline will decrease substantially if this occurs. Water resources managers in southeastern Wisconsin should limit pumpage from the deep sandstone aquifer to approximately the current rate.

Effects of Atmospheric Precipitation Additions on Phytoplankton Photosynthesis in Lake Michigan Water Samples

The effects of incremental additions (0.1-50% v/v) of atmospheric precipitation on phytoplankton photosynthesis ( 14C uptake) were tested in Lake Michigan water samples. Wet deposition was used in experiments I, III, and IV, and a melted snow core was used in experiment II. Additions of precipitation significantly reduced photosynthesis in the first three experiments, starting at about the 5-15% treatment level. No significant difference occurred in experiment IV, but photosynthesis was greater than in the control samples and this precipitation sample appeared to stimulate primary productivity. Soluble reactive phosphate, nitrate, and ammonia levels in the precipitation samples exceeded the lake water averages by factors of 10, 2, and 50, respectively. Silicon levels in precipitation were lower than the lake water, but likely did not limit photosynthesis. The additions of precipitation reduced pH very little and no consistent relationship was observed with reduced photosynthesis. Alkalinity was greatly reduced in the treated samples and special precautions were required in calculating photosynthetic rates as a result. Zn, Cd, and Cu levels in the precipitation samples greatly exceeded the lake water averages, producing a high potential for toxic effects on photosynthesis at treatment levels >10%. These experiments suggest that algal nutrients and toxic trace elements in atmospheric precipitation may competitively interact to either stimulate or depress phytoplankton photosynthesis in Lake Michigan water samples.

The Chicago Region's Valuable Water Resources

Solution of the complex water supply problems of the Chicago metropolitan area are discussed in detail. Limitations in the use of Lake Michigan water imposed by the U.S. Supreme Court's decrees of 1930 and 1967; the over-pumping and depletion of the deep sandstone aquifers; the increasing demands caused by the extensive growth of the metropolitan area; and the other uses such as lockages, leakages, navigation makeup, stormwater runoff and dilution water needed for waterway quality all add to the complexity of the water supply of this metropolitan region. Computer analyses reveal that projected future water supply demands will conflict with other uses of the 3,200-cfs allowable Lake Michigan water source. However, extensive studies show that the potential water supply deficit can be mitigated: (1)With implementation of conservation measures required by the Illinois Division of Water Resources in its water allocation order; (2)with completion and startup of the extensive pollution control facilities of the Metropolitan Sanitary District of Greater Chicago; and (3)upon success of the petition to the U.S. Supreme Court to change the Lake Michigan diversion accounting procedures.

Lake Michigan Water Allocation in Illinois

In 1967 the United States Supreme Court entered a Decree that limited the direct diversion of Lake Michigan water by the State of Illinois to annual average flow of 3,200 cfs. The state delegated the responsibility of allocation to the Department of Transportation. The initial allocation was issued in 1972. The court rejected this allocation because the Department failed to observe procedural due process safeguards. The Department initiated the measures necessary to safeguard the applicants' interests during the reallocation proceedings. The 1977 allocation was based upon a regional projection of all water resources to the year 2010. Projected deficit areas were allocated Lake Michigan water in sufficient time so that critical groundwater levels were not reached. New Lake Michigan water users will receive Lake Michigan water in 1979. The Department's continuing program of data collection, expert studies, and technical assistance to communities will ensure wise use of all regional water resources.