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Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy. We need your help. More Info ### I would like to contribute One Time Monthly Yearly Join Now ![](\\" ![](\\" Patrick Burke stated on March 2, 2024 in a press release: The Great Lakes account for “over 20% of the world’s freshwater and over 80% of North America’s freshwater.” ![\\"true\\"](\\" true/3d4df195c595a07e3fd69b5e4aab3e3c.jpg.\\") ![\\"true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") * Environment * New York * Patrick Burke ![\\"Mike](\\" Mike Brown takes sits on a retaining wall and looks out at Lake Erie in Cleveland. (AP) ![\\"David](\\" By David Scibilia March 20, 2024 # Do the Great Lakes account for over 20% of the world’s freshwater? #### If Your Time is short * The Great Lakes account for 21% of the world’s freshwater and 84% of North America\'s surface freshwater, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. * Our mission: Help you be an informed participant in democracy. Learn more. See the sources for this fact-check Two of the five Great Lakes — Erie and Ontario — border New York state. And a New York state legislator recently touted the lakes’ importance to the continent’s and the world’s water supply. New York State Assembly member Patrick Burke, whose Buffalo-area district almost touches Lake Erie, introduced a bill this month that would create a \"Great Lakes Bill of Rights\" to give residents \"a role in the decision- making process regarding current and future projects that impact the ecosystem.\" In a press release introducing the bill, Burke wrote that the Great Lakes account for \"over 20% of the world’s freshwater and over 80% of North America’s freshwater.\" Official data says Burke is correct. Burke’s office did not answer a request for comment. How great are the lakes? Besides Erie and Ontario, the Great Lakes include Superior, Michigan and Huron to the west. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Great Lakes account for 21% of the world’s freshwater and 84% of North America\'s surface fresh water. That’s in line with what Burke said. Such percentages may sound like a lot, but Joseph Atkinson, the director for the Great Lakes Program at the University at Buffalo, told PolitiFact that even such large reserves cannot last indefinitely without careful conservation. \"if you start diverting the water from the Great Lakes to other areas of the U.S., depending on how much is moved, they won’t be able to provide as much fresh water as they would if the water remained where it was,\" Atkinson said. If the water being removed \"exceeds the water coming in, the water levels will drop indefinitely.\" #### Featured Fact-check ![](\\" ![](\\" Ron DeSantis stated on August 28, 2024 in a press conference The proposal to put golf courses, hotels in Florida state parks “was something that was leaked. … a lot of that stuff was half-baked and was not ready for prime time.” ![\\"true\\"](\\" mostly-false/6a6ef6075c162fdccf5eb960e683dcd1.jpg.\\") ![\\"barely- true\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") By Samantha Putterman • August 29, 2024 Besides providing fresh drinking water, the Great Lakes provide energy through hydroelectric power. The Robert Moses Niagara Hydroelectric Power Station and the Lewiston Pump Generating Plant are New York State’s two largest hydroelectric power plants, according to the New York Power Authority. Both are near Niagara Falls, which is formed by the Niagara River; the Niagara River carries water from Lake Erie into Lake Ontario. \"The hydroelectric power plant at Niagara Falls was one of the first in the country, and it\'s still a pretty large contributor to New York\'s power supply,\" Atkinson said. Conservation efforts The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, signed April 15, 1972, involved pledges by Canada and the United States to protect the Great Lakes. The agreement sets limits on phosphorus levels flowing into the lakes. Too much phosphorus would make the lakes subject to too much growth by algae and other invasive plants, Atkinson said. \"It\'s very important to conserve the Great Lakes,\" Atkinson said. The lakes, he said, \"are essential to our existence.\" Our ruling Burke said the Great Lakes account for \"over 20% of the world’s freshwater and over 80% of North America’s freshwater.\" The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says the Great Lakes account for 21% of the world’s freshwater and 84% of North America\'s surface fresh water. That’s in line with what Burke said. We rate the statement True. #### Read About Our Process The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter ### Our Sources Patrick Burke, press release, March 2, 2022 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Great Lakes Facts and Figures, Nov. 2, 2023 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, \"Joint Statement by Environment and Climate Change Canada and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on the 50th Anniversary of the signing of the United States-Canada Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement,\" April 14, 2022 Binational.net, The 2012 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, Accessed March 18, 2024 New York Power Authority, Niagara Power Project, accessed March 18, 2024 Niagara Falls State Park, Facts About Niagara Falls, accessed March 18, 2024 U.S. Energy Information Administration, How much electricity does an American home use?, Accessed March 18, 2024 Interview with Joseph Atkinson, the director of the Great Lakes Program at the University at Buffalo, March 14, 2024 ## Browse the Truth-O-Meter ### More by David Scibilia ![](\\" ![](\\" Jonathan Becker stated on February 16, 2024 in a letter to college presidents: After a 2022 law, “the vast majority of colleges in New York State do not have on-campus poll sites.” ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By David Scibilia • April 8, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Patrick Burke stated on March 2, 2024 in a press release: The Great Lakes account for “over 20% of the world’s freshwater and over 80% of North America’s freshwater.” ![\\"true\\"](\\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" By David Scibilia • March 20, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Charles Schumer stated on January 29, 2024 in a press release: “TSA found with metal detectors nearly 7,000 firearms at airports last year — an all-time high.” ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By David Scibilia • February 21, 2024 ### Do the Great Lakes account for over 20% of the world’s freshwater? * ![](\\" ![](\\" Sam Brown stated on August 28, 2024 in a campaign appearance: Proposed Nevada constitutional amendment to protect abortion rights would put “essentially no limit on access to abortion.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Caleb McCullough • September 13, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Jon Tester stated on September 8, 2024 in a Facebook ad: Tim Sheehy “would let politicians like him ban abortion, with no exceptions for rape or to save a woman’s life, and criminalize women.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 8, 2024 in a Threads post: “Elon Musk is going to expose Bill Gates soon, says ‘he’s evil.’” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 6, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Gordon Ramsay calls Tim Walz a ‘woke creep,’ throws him out of Hell’s Kitchen.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 11, 2024 in una publicación en Facebook: \"ÚLTIMA HORA Río Nilo se pinta de rojo sangre\". ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Marta Campabadal Graus • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 7, 2024 in a Threads post: Photo shows Elton John wearing a “MAGA” jacket. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 11, 2024 in a photo: The Minnesota Vikings have denounced Tim Walz: “We don’t suppᴏrt his values.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on September 8, 2024 in Instagram posts: Immigrants get $2,000 each time they cross the border illegally. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Sofia Ahmed • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on August 30, 2024 in a Facebook post: Video shows tornadoes in Canada. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on September 8, 2024 in an Instagram post: Video shows a Ku Klux Klan member at a rally for former President Donald Trump. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 Load more ### Support independent fact-checking. 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The Great Lakes account for over 20 of the world’s freshwater and over 80 of North America’s freshwater