Lake St. Clair is a natural lake with management context from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers / Environment and Climate Change Canada. Lake Insights displays its latest available elevation from U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
Lake Status
- 7-day trend
- Falling
- 7-day change
- Down 0.23 ft
- 30-day change
- Down 0.54 ft
- Last updated
- 1 hour ago
Watershed drought conditions
Wayne County, MI · surrounding county from lake location
Abnormally Dry
The surrounding county is abnormally dry, which is not official drought.
Severity
Weekly trend
Stable
Compared with last week
Official drought
Yes
38.7% of the watershed is currently classified as official drought (D1+).
U.S. Drought Monitor · map date Sep 22, 2026. Updated weekly. droughtmonitor.unl.eduView drought map for Wayne County, MI
Key Facts
Managing authority
Waterbody / project type
Datum
Current-level source
Why the level can change
General factors for natural lakes like this
These are common influences for this type of lake. They do not identify the cause of a specific current change unless an operator update confirms it.
Rainfall & runoff
Rain on the lake and watershed runoff can raise natural lake levels over time.
Inflows & outflows
Tributaries, connecting waterways, and outlets move water into and out of the lake.
Evaporation & seasonal weather
Warm, dry, and windy periods can increase evaporation and contribute to seasonal level change.
Ice, wind & seiches
On larger natural lakes, wind setup, seiches, and ice conditions can temporarily change local water-surface elevation.
Current data source
Managing authority: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers / Environment and Climate Change Canada
Observation source used by Lake Insights: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
Who manages the lake and who publishes the reading Lake Insights displays can differ. Lake Insights does not invent a source label from the managing authority alone.
General education
Shared background — not lake-specific facts
Lake Insights aggregates water level information from authoritative public sources such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, NOAA, TVA, Bureau of Reclamation, power utilities, and other official lake operators. We preserve historical observations, calculate trends, and present lake conditions in a consistent format. For U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), we link to the official source whenever it is available. Lake Insights does not predict future lake levels unless an official forecast has been published by the managing authority.
Common questions about Lake St. Clair
- Who manages Lake St. Clair?
- Lake St. Clair is managed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers / Environment and Climate Change Canada. Lake Insights reports published gauge readings; it does not operate the waterbody.
- Where does Lake Insights get the level reading for Lake St. Clair?
- Lake Insights displays the latest available elevation for Lake St. Clair from U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The managing authority (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers / Environment and Climate Change Canada) may differ from the agency that publishes the observation used on this page.
- What datum is used for Lake St. Clair?
- Elevations for Lake St. Clair are referenced to IGLD85 (MSL).