Farm leaders in Ohio say producers have worked for years to reduce their use of fertilizer and to reduce runoff through using no-till cultivation and planting filter strips near waterways, says AgWeb. It says the state legislature passed a law this year that requires farmers with more than 50 acres “to attend a class before they can obtain the new license to apply fertilizer to their fields, similar to the requirements for pesticides.”
Runoff from fields and feedlots along with leaky septic systems and residential use of fertilizer are among the causes of algae blooms in Lake Erie. “According to a 2013 task force report, phosphorus from cultivated cropland represents 61 percent of the total phosphorus load in the Lake Erie basin,” says AgWeb. “As a result, many farmers are fretting that that they now will be unfairly blamed for all of Lake Erie’s problems.”
The National Geographic says “experts say harmful algal blooms that can turn tap water toxic and kill wildlife are becoming more common in coastal oceans and in freshwater across the United States and around the globe.” Climate change plays a role with warmer weather. “The algae and bacteria responsible for blooms, including the one that created Toledo’s tap water mess—a type of bacteria known as Microcystis—need warm temperatures and the nutrients phosphorus and nitrogen to grow,” says the Geographic.