EWG analysis finds 169 blooms in 2017, with alarming rise in recent years.
Here’s a link to the Environmental Working Group (EWG) report entitled, “Across U.S., Toxic Blooms Pollute Lakes.” It’s worth a read, with a lot of public health information. For example:
This video is instructive, and sums up most of the stuff in my post in four plus minutes:
Across the U.S., a growing epidemic of toxic algal blooms is polluting lakes and other waterways, according to a new report by the Environmental Working Group.
Toxic algal blooms occur when chemical pollution from farms and other sources runs off into waterways, forming a thick, green, soup-like substance on the surface. The blooms are hazardous to human health and can even kill pets. And they can make tap water unsafe to drink, as residents of Toledo, Ohio, learned in 2014, when a massive bloom blanketed Lake Erie and invaded the city's water supply.
No government entity tracks blooms nationwide, but EWG's analysis of news coverage and satellite imagery found that, since 2010, nearly 300 blooms have been recorded in lakes, rivers and bays in 48 states. The problem has grown exponentially during that period: 169 toxic blooms were reported in 40 states in 2017, compared to only three blooms in 2010.
Algal blooms can cause fish die-offs and harm other marine life, and they can devastate local economies by curbing tourism and recreational activities like swimming, fishing and boating. Blooms often reach their peak in the summer, but can also occur well into the fall and winter. In many places, they are forming earlier each year. Changing weather patterns associated with climate change exacerbate the issue.
What's usually referred to as blue-green algae are actually photosynthetic organisms called cyanobacteria. And not all algal blooms are toxic. They become dangerous when they create byproducts such as microcystin, the toxin that contaminated Toledo's water. Short-term exposure to microcystins through skin contact, ingestion or inhalation can cause sore throat, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and liver damage. Long-term exposure can lead to cancer, liver failure and sperm damage.
While algal blooms can happen naturally, the recent spike is indisputably linked to pollution from farms. When fertilizer and animal manure run off into lakes, streams and bays, chemicals—including phosphorous—can spur the unchecked growth of cyanobacteria, particularly in warm weather.
EWG’s interactive nationwide map shows locations of reported toxic blooms in green. Orange locations have links to vivid satellite photos of blighted lakes from California to Florida.
I clicked on the orange link to Lake Winnebago in Wisconsin, and here’s what we see from a before and after perspective:
