A Wisconsin Congressman hopes to shed light on dropping Great Lakes water levels. The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure's Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment will hear testimony in Green Bay today. Wisconsin Democrat, congressman Steve Kagen , is a member of the panel who says the focus will be on the water level of Lakes Michigan and Superior, "both of which appear to be declining at rates greater than one would expect from natural climatic changes."
Those falling water levels could mean a host of problems for industry, transportation, fisheries and recreation on the lakes. Kagen says the feds need answers: "is the declining level of Lake Michigan man made, and if so, where is it leaking? And if there is a leak we need to plug it as soon as possible."
The U.S. and Canadian governments will have to figure out how to repair that damage — and how to pay for it. Most evidence seems to point to a "drain hole" in the St. Claire River between Michigan and Ontario as the cause of the lower water levels, the result of dredging and shoreline alteration.
