The waves continue to wash the shore, and gravity continues to cause the land to slide into the water. This causes erosion problems for lakefront property owners. Many people attempt to stop erosion on or near their property by installing erosion control measures. If not designed properly, these measures can themselves worsen the property owner's or neighbors' erosion problems. There is some degree of erosion everywhere along the lakeshore.
Some areas are more stable, while other areas are eroding at a very rapid rate.
This movement is called recession. Measuring changes over the past is the best way to predict what will happen in the future. ODNR's Division of Geological Survey has mapped CEAs based on rules that ODNR adopted in 1996, using the best available scientific records, data and analyses of recession over many years. ODNR developed the scientific standards in the rules with help from a group of non-ODNR geologists and engineers, local officials and lakeshore property owners. ODNR, working with this group, determined that, based on the best scientific information available, areas eroding at more than nine feet over a 30 year period were most in need of protection under this program.