Ice cover on the Great Lakes reaches record low, says Environment Canada

Environment and Climate Change Canada says ice cover on the Great Lakes reached a record low this winter.

"In addition to warmer water temperatures and milder winter weather, climatic factors can also drive the lack of ice," Environment Canada said in an online update.

"This year, three climate patterns - El Niño, the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation, and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation - have strongly influenced warming in the Great Lakes."

Mike McKay, the director of the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research at the University of Windsor, said ice cover on the Great Lakes has declined about 75 per cent in the last 50 years.

McKay said the more northern lakes, such as Huron and Superior, have seen the greatest decline in ice coverage during the winter months.

"You might think that Lake Erie would be particularly prone to these declines in ice cover, but it's just such a shallow lake," he said.

"It's the lake that is most reliably ice covered in the Great Lakes system."

Due to a warming climate, McKay said the trend of declining ice coverage on the Great Lakes is unlikely to reverse.

He added there are both positives and negatives to having less ice on the Great Lakes.

"Pros, you could extend your shipping season," he said.

For example, the locks in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. normally close in mid-January though the end of March. But McKay said the city was able to open them on Friday, March 22 this year.

But McKay added there are several negatives to less ice cover.

"We rely on ice cover to protect our coastal communities," he said.

"It essentially serves like a cap on the lakes and prevents winter storms from scouring the coastlines and causing erosion."