The tide is turning against harmful algal blooms on Lake Erie — thanks in part to an Ohio program that encourages farmers to restrict their use of fertilizers, according to organizers of a conference on Wednesday in Toledo.
“Phosphorus going down the Maumee River has declined by 10% in the past several years," said Sara Guiher, water quality specialist for Ohio Sea Grant, which promotes improved water quality on Lake Erie and the Great Lakes.
The Maumee watershed, which includes parts of Indiana, contributes 5% of the water in Lake Erie and nearly half of the phosphorus and nitrogen — farm fertilizers that fuel algal blooms after they wash into the Maumee River.
Guiher credited the H2Ohio program for much of the reduction in runoff. The program restricts when fertilizer can be applied to farm fields and incentivizes practices to reduce runoff — such as adding tree-lined ditches around fields, encouraging wetland buffers and building retention ponds.
“There is a definite difference in nutrients coming into Lake Erie via the Maumee River and a lot of that is because of voluntary programs like H2Ohio,” Guiher said.
The conference will focus on expanding the program’s existing initiatives, increasing monitoring of runoff and exploring new ways to encourage wetland development.
Algal blooms are caused by cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, which are one of the oldest life forms on earth. Billions of years ago they produced the oxygen necessary for animal life. But when they proliferate in waterways, they can make water unsafe for people to drink.
Toxic algae levels on Lake Erie peaked in 2014, forcing Toledo and the surrounding region to restrict water supplies to nearly 500,000 people.
The crisis prompted Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine to launch the H2Ohio initiative in 2019.
