Four Of Five Great Lakes Befouled With Cladaphora Algae, Cyanobacteria Outbreaks Increasing

[hatrack]

After the Great Lakes cleanup of the 1970s, pollution levels plummeted, fish began to thrive and algae receded to a minor annoyance. But three decades after that massive, multibillion-dollar cleanup, the waters of four of the five Great Lakes are once again plagued by smelly, slimy algae.

Lake Ontario's shoreline has become distinctly murky. Some describe it as a bathtub with a dirty ring around it. The stringy green algae known as cladophora is once again washing up on shore — fouling boat propellers, shutting down an upstate nuclear power plant and closing beaches. Cladophora-related closures at Rochester's Ontario Beach have increased fourfold in recent years. Health officials are concerned that decomposing cladophora provides a breeding ground for pathogenic bacteria. And some U.S. scientists worry about the increase of cyanobacteria, which can produce dangerous, even deadly, toxins.

The new growth of these algae and bacteria, scientists say, is driven by an abundance of phosphorus in some near-shore areas and connected bays and ponds, particularly around Rochester and points west.

Concern about algae and weed growth has made phosphorus a hot topic throughout North America and spurred new government controls on phosphorus discharges. But New York state is lagging. A dozen states in recent years have adopted or considered legislation to address phosphate content in dishwashing detergent. Dozens of Great Lakes cities and counties, and some entire states, also have banned phosphorus in lawn fertilizer in the last few years.

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http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080824/NEWS01/808240353/1002/NEWS

[jwirr]

1. Stupid question but can this algae be harvested and used for

bio fuels? I know that there is someone working on using algae for fuel.

[DCKit]

3. Or composted.

No matter how you look at it, it's got economic potential.

My Mom used to say she "every time I find a use for one of the weeds in my garden, it disappears."

[BeatleBoot]

2. I make sure my laundry detergent is non-phosphorus

Living in Detroit...

[amandabeech]

5. Maybe it would help if phosphorus cleaners and household products were replaced

with non-phosphate formulas. I also didn't know that phosphate detergent hadn't been totally phased out here, and that dish washing soap has phosphates. I'd happily pay more for anything non-phosphate.

I'm originally from the west side of Michigan, between Muskegon and Dodington. When I was a little kid, the algae blooms and alewife die-offs were disgusting, and sometimes after thunderstorms, there would be what looked like soap bubbles on the water attached to the algae. After the phosphate detergent ban, things began to improve rather quickly.

I'm originally from the west side of Michigan (north of Muskegon and south of Ludington), and I remember my Mom switching to non-phosphate detergent. Scamway actually had the best stuff for the first 2-3 years! I'm convinced that that is how they really got themselves going.

[kestrel91316]

4. "Phosphorus" = fertilizer runoff. These are just like the Dead Zones in

the Gulf, only these are in "fresh" water.