Scientists from around the globe released a reportthis week warning of the degradation to the world’s large lakes… including those in Michigan.
The report warns that “decades of degradation” to global lakes have led to a legacy of economic and ecological costs for future generations.
Don Uzarski is a professor at Central Michigan University who contributed to the report. He said depletion of fisheries and potable water is widespread across large lakes. And, he said, lakes are warming quickly.
“In fact, the Great Lakes and especially those located in Northern latitudes are warming faster than those around the world.”
Uzarski said lake degradation is connected to everything from ecosystem loss, increased chemical pollution, and global warming.
“The sort of alarming thing is that what we’re seeing locally everyone else is seeing around the globe.”
The degradation of lake systems is concerning, Uzarski says because they provide drinking water for millions of people.
The North American Great Lakes are estimated to provide drinking water to some 48-million people.