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Great Lakes Submerged Lands

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Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy

Great Lakes Submerged Lands

The State of Michigan is the trustee of the bottomlands and waters of the Great Lakes. The state has a perpetual duty to manage and protect these resources for the benefit of its citizens.

Michigan’s Submerged Lands Program is responsible for regulating Construction activities along 3,288 miles of Great Lakes shoreline and over 38,000 square miles of Great Lakes bottomlands and coastal marshes. The program regulates the recovery and use of submerged cultural resources (shipwrecks and associated artifacts) located in the Great Lakes, administers the underwater preserve program, and regulates the recovery of submerged logs. 

  • Coastal Processes and Adapting to Coastal Change on Michigan's Great Lakes

    In this webinar we explore coastal processes, the impacts of shoreline modifications, coastal resiliency and adapting to a changing coast.

How Did the Great Lakes Form?

All 5 of the Great Lakes owe their existence to the ice sheets that covered Michigan during the last Ice Age. The glaciers moved across what is now Michigan and the rest of the Great Lakes region. The ice scoured out deep basins in the softer portions of the bedrock. Between 10 and 20 thousand years ago the climate warmed and the ice began to melt away. The lakes size and shape changed multiple times as the ice melted.  The size and shape of lakes we know today formed around 3,000 years ago.

What is the Public Trust?

The Public Trust Doctrine is common law that can be traced to the ancient romans. The main principle of the Public Trust is that certain resources such as water or air are of such importance that they cannot be privately owned and are protected for the benefit of all. In the Great Lakes, the State of Michigan is the trustee of the Bottomlands and is tasked with protecting these resources for the enjoyment of the public. The Public Trust ensures that all people have a right to navigate, fish, hunt, and any other public purpose. All of EGLE’s Submerged Lands Programs are rooted in the Public Trust.

What Kind of Habitats and Fish are in the Great Lakes?

Great Lakes habitats range from sandy shallows near the dunes to deep water back to coastal wetlands. There are 139 native fish species within the Great Lakes. Some important species include the Lake Whitefish, Walleye, Yellow Perch, and Lake Trout. The Great Lakes also contain non-native, invasive species that can displace native fish. The submerged lands program reviews proposed construction in the Great Lakes to minimize impacts and ensure public trust access to the fishery.

Great Lakes Fast Facts:

  • The Great Lakes hold around 6 quadrillion gallons of freshwater or 20% of the worlds surface freshwater supply.
  • The Great Lakes cover 94,000 square miles - larger than all of New England.
  • Lake Superior is the largest lake with the most volume and largest surface area.
  • 34 million people in the Unites States and Canada live within the Great Lakes Basin.
  • Michigander's are never more than 85 miles from a Great Lake when they're at home.

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