Great Lakes Basin

Large drainage basin around the Great Lakes

A map of the Great Lakes Basin showing the five sub-basins within. Left to right they are: Superior (magenta); Michigan (cyan); Huron (pale green); Erie (yellow); Ontario (light coral).

The Great Lakes Basin consists of the Great Lakes and the surrounding lands of the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin in the United States, and the province of Ontario in Canada, whose direct surface runoff and watersheds form a large drainage basin that feeds into the lakes. It is generally considered to also include a small area around and beyond Wolfe Island, Ontario, at the east end of Lake Ontario, which does not directly drain into the Great Lakes, but into the Saint Lawrence River.

The Basin is at the center of the Great Lakes region.

## Demographics

[edit]

The basin is home to 37 million people.[1] It hosts seven of Canada's 20 largest census metropolitan areas, namely Toronto, Hamilton, Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo, London, St. Catharines–Niagara, Windsor, and Oshawa. Also, the American cities of Duluth, Milwaukee, Chicago, Gary, Detroit, Toledo, Cleveland, Erie, Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse, among others, are located in the basin.

## Sub-basins

[edit]

Each individual lake forms a sub-basin, such as the Lake Erie Basin, and each sub-basin consists of multiple watersheds, such as Pennsylvania's Lake Erie Watershed. The overall Great Lakes Basin is monitored by the binational Great Lakes Commission.

## St. Lawrence Basin

[edit]

Quebec, a portion of whose lands drain into the St. Lawrence Basin, is a signatory to the Great Lakes Charter of 1985, the 2001 Charter Annex, and the Agreements of 2005.[2] While not a part of the Great Lakes Basin, Quebec's position along the Saint Lawrence Seaway makes it a partner in water resource management with Ontario and the eight US states mentioned above.

## See also

[edit]

* Lakes portal

* Grand River
* Lake Ontario Waterkeeper
* List of prehistoric lakes
* Niagara River
* Saint Lawrence River
* Speed River
* River basins in the United States
* Watershed

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ "Great Lakes Quickfacts - Water - Environment Canada". Archived from the original on 2015-11-01. Retrieved 2015-10-29.
2. ^ Great Lakes Basin Sustainable Water Resources Agreement, Government of Quebec

## External links

[edit]

* Great Lakes Commission
* Hydrographic Regions of Quebec

* v
* t
* e

Great Lakes of North America

Main lakes|

* Erie
* Huron
* Michigan
* Ontario
* Superior

Secondary lakes|

* Nipigon
* Nipissing
* Simcoe
* St. Clair
* Winnebago

Bays and
channels|

| Erie|

* Chadwick Bay
* Maumee Bay
* Presque Isle Bay
* Sandusky Bay

|

Huron|

* Georgian Bay
* Matchedash Bay
* Nottawasaga Bay
* Parry Sound
* Lake George
* Little Pike Bay
* Munuscong Lake
* North Channel
* Potagannissing Bay
* Saginaw Bay
* St. Joseph Channel
* Thunder Bay

Michigan|

* Detroit Harbor
* Grand Traverse Bay
* Green Bay
* Big Bay de Noc
* Little Bay de Noc
* Porte des Morts
* Sturgeon Bay
* Little Traverse Bay
* Manitou Passage

Ontario|

* Bay of Quinte
* Braddock Bay
* Hamilton Harbour
* Humber Bay
* Irondequoit Bay
* Sodus Bay
* Toronto Bay
* Wellers Bay

Superior|

* Au Train Bay
* Chequamegon Bay
* Chicago Bay
* Huron Bay
* Little Trout Bay
* Keweenaw Bay
* Oronto Bay
* Pokegama Bay
* Superior Bay
* Thunder Bay
* Whitefish Bay
* Ashmun Bay
* Batchawana Bay
* Goulais Bay

St. Clair|

* Anchor Bay

Simcoe|

* Cook's Bay
* Kempenfelt Bay
* Lake Couchiching

Nipissing|

* Callander Bay

Waterways|

* Chicago River
* Detroit River
* Erie Canal
* French River
* Great Lakes Waterway
* Niagara River
* Fall
* Nipigon River
* St. Clair River
* St. Lawrence River
* St. Lawrence Seaway
* St. Marys River
* Sault Ste. Marie Canal
* Soo Locks
* Straits of Mackinac
* Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal
* Trent–Severn Waterway
* Welland Canal
* First canal

Islands|

* Apostle Islands
* Detroit River Islands
* Isle Royale National Park Islands
* Isle Royale
* Lake Erie Islands
* Manitoulin Island
* Lake Kagawong
* Lake Manitou
* Lake Mindemoya
* Treasure Island
* Province of Ontario Islands
* State of Michigan Islands
* Lake Huron Islands
* Populated
* Potawatomi Islands

Historic geology|

* Lake Admiralty
* Lake Agassiz
* Lake Algonquin
* Lake Arkona
* Champlain Sea
* Lake Chicago
* Lake Chippewa
* Lake Coleman
* Lake Duluth
* Early Lake Erie
* Lake Frontenac
* Glacial Lake Iroquois
* Lake Maumee
* Nipissing Great Lakes
* Lake Saginaw
* Lake Stanley
* Lake Tonawanda
* Lake Warren
* Lake Wayne
* Lake Whittlesey
* Last Glacial Maximum
* Midcontinent Rift System
* Niagara Escarpment
* Scotch Bonnet Ridge
* Wisconsin glaciation

Organizations|

* Alliance for the Great Lakes
* Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Governors and Premiers
* Great Lakes Areas of Concern
* Great Lakes Basin Soil Erosion and Sediment Control Program
* Great Lakes Charter
* Great Lakes Commission
* Great Lakes Compact
* Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory
* Great Lakes Fishery Commission
* Great Lakes–Saint Lawrence River Basin Sustainable Water Resources Agreement
* International Joint Commission
* Municipalities
* Cities

Related topics|

* Basin
* Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac
* Circle Tour
* Crossings
* Great Loop
* Lake breeze
* Lake-effect snow
* Lake freighter
* Lake Michigan–Huron
* Lake Michigan Triangle
* Lake surfing
* Marine protected areas
* Marysburgh vortex
* Megalopolis
* Museum and historic ships
* Ports
* Region
* Laurentia
* Shipwrecks
* Storms
* Third Coast
* Treaties

Lakes portal

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF
* FAST

National|

* United States
* Israel

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template