Breakwall by Mark Swanson

Michigan Sea Grant shares a recent Science Line story about how extreme changes in water levels, fierce storms, decreasing ice coverage, and infrastructure that interferes with the natural coastal cycle are washing away beaches & baffling local officials charged with protecting Great Lakes beaches:

…“When we get 15 foot waves on Lake Michigan, I’m thinking, ‘Oh, my God. How much damage are they doing?’” says David Bunte, the supervisor for Chikaming Township, near the southern tip of Lake Michigan.

Water levels fluctuate naturally in the Great Lakes but intensifying climate change accelerates those changes. What used to be normal on a 20 year cycle is now happening in five or 10 years, says Mike Shriberg, an environmental policy researcher at the University of Michigan.

“We’re seeing record highs and then record lows much closer together,” says Shriberg, whose work focuses on Great Lakes water policy. “The Great Lakes has already experienced more water level change in the last decade than the saltwater coasts are expected to experience in the next 100 years.”

Ice normally acts as a buffer for the shoreline, absorbing the blows of powerful waves in winter storms, but as temperatures warm, diminished ice coverage in the Great Lakes is speeding up coastal erosion.

Read on for much more. If you’re not yet aware of Michigan Sea Grant , I encourage you to learn more about this cooperative program of the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that funds research, education, and outreach projects designed to foster science-based decisions about the use and conservation of Great Lakes resources.

Mark took this photo at the beach in St. Joseph. Here’s a few more of Mark’s recent shots from the St Joseph’s Lake Michigan shoreline – note the crazy high water! See the latest in his 2025 gallery on Flickr!