Lake Ontario flooding

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It’s been raining a lot, with more in the forecast, and Lake Ontario is overflowing its banks, causing a host of problems everywhere, including Hamilton.

“There’s been a variety of issues in locations across the city over the last several weeks where we have experienced damage. Certainly the waterfront trials have seen the worst of it.” said Dan MacKinnon, General Manager of Public Works.

The International Joint Commission, which regulates the levels of the great lakes, uses the Moses-Saunders Power Dam on the St. Lawrence to release water from Lake Ontario, but says because of serious floods in Montreal, opening up the gates any further would make that situation even worse. That city is still recovering from floods that triggered a state of emergency and forced many people to leave their homes and belongings behind.

While we haven’t experienced flooding like in Montreal, erosion along the shoreline has become a common sight in Hamilton. It’s also an additional cost not accounted for in the city’s storm damage total. That’s because water levels remain too high too asses the damage.

“It’s the lake levels that are really concerning for us. Environment Canada is suggesting that they’re going to continue to rise and won’t decrease for several more weeks.”

The International Joint Commission says regulating the water flow has become a balancing act- releasing enough water to reduce lake levels, without overwhelming other areas. So for now there is little anyone can do, except wait and hope for dry weather.