Almost two centuries later, Lake Champlain was at the center of a less violent, but still passionate, battle. Since , all states and territories of the United States with a border on an ocean or one of the Great Lakes have been eligible to host a Sea Grant program, a program within the U. Department of Commerce that provides federal funding for research and outreach about coastal and aquatic resources. The minor edit to the appropriations bill escaped notice and the bill passed on a voice vote.
President Bill Clinton signed it on March 7, Once the inclusion became publicly known, Midwesterners were not pleased. The outrage centered on state pride associated with being home to a Great Lake, not with money or resources—the original motivation for the change. Therefore, politicians quickly found a resolution that left everyone happy. Lake Champlain lost its status but retained its funding.
The addition of Lake Champlain to Sea Grant has strengthened the program overall. Lake Champlain serves as a microcosm of the Great Lakes for researchers. Experiments have been conducted to identify impediments to lake trout reproduction, enhance management of parasitic sea lamprey, and detect sources of microplastics, which contaminate the environment and accumulate in the bodies of fish and other animals. These same challenges face the Great Lakes, but research can often be conducted more efficiently on the smaller Champlain.
Champlain has lost the title of Great Lake. It has not lost its place in the history of the founding of our nation. It has not lost its utility as a laboratory for cutting-edge research. And it has not lost the affection of those who live or visit the region. And residents of the Midwest are more concerned about a Great Lakes watershed than the larger St. Lawrence River watershed we share with them. Truth be told, advocates for Lake Champlain are more likely to be concerned about the Lake Champlain watershed than the larger St.
Lawrence River watershed too. However, narrow focus makes managing larger watersheds difficult. Problems in the receiving body seem distant and remote to those nestled in smaller areas that appear clean.
On the plus side however, when an emotional attachment to a local water body energizes more people, focus on smaller watersheds has positive downstream affects. Numerous tree plantings and volunteer activities have been conducted throughout the Lake Champlain Basin by people who wanted to help their nearby river, but the lake those rivers feed benefits too.
Similarly, allowing institutions in the Lake Champlain watershed to utilize resources previously reserved for the Great Lakes has increased the breadth and diversity of ideas and research brought to bear on Great Lakes issues. And these ideas can be transferred further downstream to improve the St. This watershed-to-lake area ratio is times larger than the Great Lakes and amplifies the impacts of land use management on water quality. Many people who live in the Lake Champlain basin are dependent on the lake for jobs, recreation, and quality of life.
People from around the world visit the lake and basin to enjoy its cultural and military history, abundant biological resources, and opportunities for recreation. Transportation: Crossing Lake Champlain is a breeze! Or you can pick our favorite way and rent a canoe or kayak! Dinosaurs: Lake Champlain is home to the oldest known fossil reef in the world million years old! Champ is a mysterious creature, similar to the Loch Ness Monster, that many have claimed to see while enjoying the lake.
Whether Champ is a dinosaur, a plesiosaur, a whale, or even exists at all is a mystery, but going on a hunt for Champ on one of our preserved lakeshore properties is a great way to spend an afternoon.
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