Drawn by the area s abundant resources, including fish, game, and lumber, settlers cleared forested land and drained wetlands for agricultural use. Lumbering became a booming enterprise in the 1870s. Later, iron ore from the deposits near Lake Superior was shipped to Lake Erie ports, and Appalachian coal was sent overland, giving birth to a steel industry. Erie s shores remain home to a heavy concentration of industry. Manufacturing industries, including auto and steel production, glass manufacturing and shipbuilding, use nearly six billion gallons of Lake Erie water each day.
Municipalities use lake water for drinking supplies and disposal of sewage and other wastes.
Shoreline developments, including marinas, condominiums, and urban revitalization projects such as the Cleveland Lakefront State Park, have a major economic impact on Lake Erie. Tourism and recreational uses of the lake, including fishing, swimming, sunbathing and boating, are also significant. In recent years, the improvement in the lake s appearance and the resurgence of sportfishing, particularly for walleye, have led to a rising demand for public access to the lake. Sportfishing in Erie is a multimillion dollar industry. Of the Great Lakes, Erie is second only to Lake Michigan in sportfishing, and its western basin is known as the Walleye Capital of the world.