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We all know the Great Lakes are big. If they weren't, they'd have to do something about that name. But do you know just how big—and just how important—those lakes are?
For instance, ponder this: how much of the world's fresh water do the Great Lakes contain? I'll give you a hint: they shore up around 90% of the fresh water supply in the US alone. That's a pretty considerable amount. It's enough to entice 7% of all American agriculture to the area surrounding its basin.
So, got any guesses as to how much of the entire world's fresh water supply the Great Lakes account for? How about 20%. That's right—those five enormous lakes along the Canadian-American border hold a full one fifth of the world's fresh water.
Okay, so that's impressive, sure. But why is that worth noting? Because even fresh water in lakes of such size is threatened by pollution and contamination. Which unfortunately is a major problem for the iconic lakes. And 30 million people live in the Great Lake basin—so if that water is affected, so are all of them. And that huge chunk of American agriculture is vulnerable too—but it's also part of the problem. According to the EPA:
Major stresses on the lakes include toxic and nutrient pollution, invasive species and habitat degradation. Sources of pollution include the runoff of soils and farm chemicals from agricultural lands, waste from cities, discharges from industrial areas and leachate from disposal sites. The large surface area of the lakes also makes them vulnerable to direct atmospheric pollutants that fall as rain, snow, or dust on the lake surface, or exchange as gases with the lake water.
Bad news. Let's hope the EPA's Great Lakes Interagency Task Force, the group charged with protecting the lakes, can turn the tide. If not, that's 20% less fresh water in the world—water that we can't afford to lose.
More on the Great Lakes:
Offshore Wind Power in Great Lakes Touted as Untapped Resource
Ships Hauling Less as Water Levels Drop in Great Lakes
Wisconsin Signs Great Lakes Compact : TreeHugger
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