The Great Lakes Water Balance
Data Availability and Annotated Bibliography
By Brian P. Neff and Jason R. Killian

Introduction | Hydrological Information | Forecasts and Summary

Connecting Channel Flow

Connecting channel flow through the Great Lakes could be considered either "inflow" or "outflow" depending on the specific lake and connecting channel of interest. These flow data are reported in unison, however, and in most cases the outflow of one Great Lake is considered to be the inflow of the next lake down gradient. For these reasons all connecting channel flow data will be considered in this single section.

Thorough explanations of stream flow gaging techniques on the connecting channels exist elsewhere. A report published by the Coordinating Committee on Great Lakes Basic Hydraulic and Hydrologic Data (CCGLBHHD) (1994) offers a thorough explanation of stream gaging technique on the connecting channels. The methods of gaging the connecting channels are not described in this work.

Connecting channel flows are monitored jointly by the USACE and EC, acting on behalf of the International Lake Superior Board of Control, International Niagara Board of Control, and the International St. Lawrence River Board of Control. These organizations were created by, and report to, the International Joint Commission. Each Board is comprised of members representing various agencies from the two countries, most notably the USACE and EC.

St. Mary's River 

The Lake Superior Board of Control regulates the flow out of Lake Superior. Outflow is a combination of the flows through three hydropower plants, the Soo Navigation Locks, the international dam known as the "Compensating Works", and minor amounts of water used for wildlife, domestic and commercial use (figures 5 and 6). Historical data for Lake Superior outflow through the St. Mary's River, the Soo locks, and hydropower diversions for the years 1860-1968 has been published in CCGLBHHD (1970). Current data are collected by the Lake Superior Board of Control and are included in semi-annual reports to the IJC. The data in these reports are considered to be provisional and can be obtained from the USACE Detroit District office. The complete history of Environment Canada's St. Mary's River data are published on the HYDAT CD ROM.

St. Clair River / Lake St. Clair / Detroit River 

Water from Lake Huron flows to Lake Erie via the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair and the Detroit River (figures 7 and 8). St. Clair and Detroit River flow data for the years 1900 -1986 have been published in CCGLBHHD (1988). Since 1987, data have been reported by the Lake Superior Board of Control in semi-annual reports to the International Joint Commission. These data are considered to be "provisional" and may be obtained from the USACE Detroit District office. Canadian data for these water bodies are readily available on the HYDAT CD-ROM.

Niagara River, Welland Canal and new york state barge canal 

Water flows from Lake Erie through the Niagara River, the Welland Canal and the New York State Barge Canal (figures 9-10). Monthly flows through the Niagara River, the Welland Canal and the New York State Barge Canal Diversion for the years 1860-1975 and daily flows for the years 1926-1975 have been published in CCGLBHHD (1976). Monthly and daily hydrologic data for all three flows are currently summarized in annual reports published by the International Niagara Committee. The reports are titled: International Niagara Committee, Report of Niagara River diversions, calendar year (year) and are available from the US Army Corps of Engineers, Buffalo District Office. A number of small creeks flow into the river both above and below the power plants and Falls, where the USACE gages are located. Therefore, Niagara River flow calculated from data in the International Niagara Committee does not exactly represent outflow from Lake Erie, nor inflow to Lake Ontario. The International Niagara Board of Control issues semi-annual reports to the IJC, which contain Niagara River flow at Queenston, but these data are only of monthly average flows and are considered provisional.

St. Lawrence River 

Since 1956, St. Lawrence River discharge has been determined from the summation of discharge through several control structures located approximately 112 miles (180 km) downstream from the Lake Ontario outlet at Kingston, Ont.. These structures are the Robert Moses - Robert H. Saunders power dam, the Long Sault dam, the Massena Diversion, the Raisin River Diversion, the Cornwall and Massena municipal water supply, and the Cornwall and the Wiley-Dondero navigation canals (figure 11). (Butch and others 2001) 

The Buffalo District of the USACE records St. Lawrence River discharge and maintains these data. A data summary of monthly average flows is published in the St. Lawrence Board Semi-Annual Report. The full dataset can be retrieved directly from the Buffalo District of the USACE. The Corps of Engineers supplies St. Lawrence River flow data to the USGS New York District. The USGS publishes daily average flows in their annual New York Water Resources Data reports. These reports may be accessed with the assistance of the New York District office of the USGS. These same data are also made available a third way from Environment Canada on the HYDAT CD ROM.

References

• Bibliographies of selected references

• Full reference list

• Sources of Hydrological data and information

This report is prepared by USGS in cooperation with the Great Lakes Commission.

The Great Lakes Commission is a  multi-agency, multi-disciplinary, multi-faceted team approach to addressing the science and policy of a Great Lakes water management regime will produce such application-oriented products as a water use web site, updated annual water use inventories, ecological evaluations of the system, and an integrated binational role for future Great Lakes-St. Lawrence endeavors.