David Sommerstein / NCPR Lake Ontario is eight inches lower than average for this time of year. That’s the lowest it’s been in early April since 2015 and a hopeful sign the chance of flooding on the lake and St. Lawrence River is relatively low this summer. Spring came early, exposing low wetlands and shorelines along Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River. "But this is really the lowest part of water levels for the year," says Tony David, the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe's environment director and a member of the International Lake Ontario St. Lawrence River Board, which oversees water flows from below Niagara Falls to Montreal. "It’s also the time when Lake Ontario begins its seasonal rise."