Defending Our Lake Shores

by Wallis S. Hamilton, (F.ASCE), Consulting Engr.; Wilmette, IL,


Serial Information: Civil Engineering—ASCE, 1987, Vol. 57, Issue 4, Pg. 75-77


Document Type: Feature article

Abstract:

The current high levels of the Great Lakes are nothing new, as the lakes have been fluctuating throughout history. There have been proposals to stop the current rise in the Michigan-Huron body of water, but such schemes would be extremely expensive, with costs exceeding the cost of damage now due to high water problems. The only way to protect shorelines against a 6 ft fluctuation is with engineered revetments and breakwaters. One such project protected two properties in Wilmette, Illinois, where seawalls had failed, restoring a beach to one of them.

Subject Headings: Lakes | Coastal protection structures | Coastal management | Benefit cost ratios | Water level | Shores | Shoreline protection

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