The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Water level remains high for Lake Erie
The deck at the Overlook Beach Park in Mentor-on-theLake is now closed due to high water levels.
The stairs at the Overlook Beach Park in Mentor-onthe-Lake have been closed for the past several years. Now the deck is closed too.
“The deck is now closed due to the amount of land we are losing due to erosion,” Mayor Dave Eva told the News-Herald in an email. “The deck has been stable in the past but now we are being cautious because we may lose the whole structure, stairs and deck at some point in the future.”
High lake levels have exacerbated erosion concerns along Lake Erie’s shores.
Water levels are “well above” their long-term monthly average, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. As of March 13, Lake Erie has a mean water level of 573.88 feet, according to Army Corps data. That’s 11 inches higher than it was during the same period last year and 33 inches more than the long-term monthly average. The lake is at record-high levels for the month of March.
Last year Lake Erie saw several recording-breaking months, including an alltime record-high mean water level of 574.62 in June, surpassing the record of 574.28 set in 1986.
U.S. Army Corps projections estimate the lake will be above April’s monthly record and right around May’s monthly record-high. During June through August, the lake is projected to be below the record-high levels (all set last year), but remain well-above the longterm monthly averages.
Available help
Ohio Rep. John Rogers,
D-Mentor-on-the-Lake, in February reminded property owners that assistance is available to those affected by the high Lake Erie water levels.
“Many of the individuals owning property along Lake Erie’s shoreline have suffered significant erosion damage due to heavy weather and high lake levels,” Rogers said. “The issue is even more exacerbated when the lake fails to freeze over during our winter months. While I suspect many are aware of the limited assistance made available to them by the state, it is worth a reminder of just what services are available.”
Programs available to those affected include:
• Temporary Shore Structure Permits, which are available to coastal property owners, allow them to install emergency shore protection to protect their property from erosion-related damage. Program applications can be found at http://coastal.ohiodnr.gov/ tssp.
• Free on-site Technical Assistance is available to coastal property owners by ODNR coastal engineers to provide recommendations for erosion mitigation. Call the ODNR Office of Coastal Management at 419-626-7980 to speak with a coastal engineer.
• Coastal Management Assistance Grants are available for coastal planning, habitat restoration, public access, research and water quality improvement projects. Local governments, county and regional planning agencies, universities, school districts, conservancy districts, port authorities and certain non-profit groups are eligible to apply for these competitive awards. More information can be found at http://coastal.ohiodnr.gov/ cmagrants.
• The Coastal Erosion Area Loan Program, which provides low-interest loans for the design and construction of erosion control measures for properties within a designated coastal erosion area. This program is administered by participating counties, not the ODNR. For more information, visit http://coastal.ohiodnr.gov/ erosionloans.
• Special Improvement Districts, or SIDs, which provide local financing to facilitate erosion improvements along Lake Erie. ODNR will work with SIDs to ensure that projects are well-designed and that they minimize adverse impacts to Lake Erie and that appropriate authorizations are obtained when necessary.
More information on the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Office of Coastal Management can be found at coastal.ohiodnr. gov.