"TOLEDO, Ohio — Steven Haller remembers the look of fear on people’s faces when toxic algae in Lake Erie made it into his community’s water supply 10 years ago, shutting it down for two days.
Since then, Haller, a clinical researcher in the University of Toledo’s department of medicine, has set out to help provide answers about how harmful algal blooms can affect the health of people who live and play nearby.
“I see all of the concern in the faces of people here,” Haller said. “They want the answers. They want to know.”
For residents in Lake Erie’s western basin, the blooms are a common sight. As spring rains push excess nutrients off farm fields and into the creeks and rivers of the watershed, the bacteria that live in the lake feed on that phosphorus and nitrogen, tinting the water green, producing a thick sludge when severe and potentially turning toxic to humans and animals."
Joshua A. Bickel reports for the Associated Press October 22, 2024.
SEE ALSO:
"On Lake Erie, Getting Rid Of Problem Algae Starts With Giving It Less Food" (AP)
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