https://t.co/728AGjmdj9 Fertilizer has contributed to an algae problem in Lake Erie. How can we prevent this in the future? #bcsfh20
— Ji Soo Choi (@JiSooChoiMHC) October 11, 2017
Lake Erie Erie is a common water source for citizens living in surrounding towns. Unfortunately, an overuse of fertilizer on the region’s farmland has been creating an algae problem that has been growing since the 2000s. This is a huge issue, as algae blooms have been linked to being toxic in the past. These algae blooms are only increasing, threatening the health of over 3 million people, and hurting the economy by decreasing the ability to fish and attract tourists.
Although agriculture is necessary, it is clear that we need to rethink the way we grow our food if it is affecting water supply as negatively as these algae blooms. Lake Erie is not currently regulated through the Clean Water Act, despite the problem being very well known. It seems that when there is a health risk, government officials are very slow to address the issue. Flint, Michigan is the most popular example of this, but this lesser known issue has made me wonder whether citizens are using polluted water supply and are unaware of it. To many, it could have been unexpected that fertilizer can ruin such an important water supply. It is clear that we need to be careful of our everyday actions, since small,negative actions can add up to a detrimental situation in the future. We can only hope that Lake Erie can serve as a lessen for the future.
