LANSING, Mich. — State officials released a tentative plan last week designed to help improve the quality of  Lake Erie water and help prevent harmful algal blooms.

 

The draft domestic action plan (DAP) is a “guiding document” toward achieving a healthier Lake Erie ecosystem in collaboration with local governments and non-governmental organizations, as well as the neighboring states of Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, New York and the province of Ontario, Canada.

The plan was developed by the Michigan departments of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD), Environmental Quality and Natural Resources. A chief goal of the plan is to reduce the amount of phosphorus entering Lake Erie to help prevent persistent, intense algal blooms in the western part of the lake – though the DAP makes it clear that harmful algal blooms are not the only problem facing the lake.

Michigan’s DAP sets out a roadmap for how the state will do its part to reduce the amount of phosphorus entering Lake Erie by 40 percent by 2025. According to MDARD Director Jamie Clover Adams, Michigan’s plan articulates concrete actions the state will take.

“Although state agencies and other stakeholders are conducting more and better research on the Western Lake Erie Basin and improving best practices for agriculture and wastewater treatment, our Domestic Action Plan lays out additional key strategies for wetland restoration, invasive species research, tightened permit requirements for sewage treatment facilities and customized farm operations,” she said.

There is no one reason why Lake Erie is susceptible to so many algal blooms. Algae are natural components of marine and freshwater systems and not all algae are harmful. Although it’s natural for algae to occur in freshwater systems such as Lake Erie, too much indicates an imbalance in the ecosystem, the DAP document explains.

According to the plan, Lake Erie began facing serious pollution problems beginning in the 1960s. At one point the lake was declared “dead” because of it; however, in the 1970s much progress was made in cleaning up the lake.

The walleye and perch fishery recovered and other recreational activities such as boating, birding, swimming and waterfowl hunting returned, as well.

However, new problems arose in the late 1980s with the introduction of invasive species such as zebra and quagga mussels, which have become established in Lake Erie. Much of the problem was due to the purging of ballast water from ships that came from international waters, bringing potentially invasive species with them.

“Zebra and quagga mussels have changed the lake ecosystem in many ways that are not well understood, including shifting how nutrients cycle in the water column and sediment, by feeding selectively on green algae and thereby increasing local concentrations of cyanobacteria (i.e., blue-green algae), and by increasing water clarity with high densities and high rates of filtration,” the document says.

The evolution of farming practices, as well as changes in storm frequency and intensity, may also contribute to persistent and intense cyanobacterial blooms occurring in the western part of Lake Erie. Such blooms resulted in the infamous August 2014 bloom that appeared around the drinking water intake system in Toledo, Ohio, which caused interruptions in the drinking water supply for three days.

This event created a sense of urgency that something serious needed to be done to clean up the lake.

The DAP can be viewed online through July 14 at www.michigan.gov/deqgreat lakes – click on “Michigan’s Draft Domestic Action Plan for Lake Erie.”