Water

Scientists collaborate to understand warming lakes

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Have the Great Lakes seemed a little less chilly in the past few years? It’s probably because the Great Lakes, like 95 percent of the world’s lakes, are warming. According to National Geographic, researchers from all over are trying to understand the repercussions of increasing lake temperatures.  The Global Lake Temperature Collaboration is a network of researchers, including Great Lakes scientists, collecting data about lakes worldwide. The groups first meeting this summer allowed participants to share, analyze and compile findings.

Water

Enlisting earthworms to fight Great Lakes algae

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Earthworms help soil retain moisture.

And their tunnels helps the roots of cover crops penetrate more deeply into soil.

That kind of action reduces the amount of water running off the land and carrying the nutrients that can nourish explosive algae growth in the Great Lakes.

Echo

Algae attacks Ohio’s largest inland lake; wet spring and manure blamed

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A popular recreational lake in western Ohio has nearly died, economically and environmentally, because of algae thriving on runoff from farm fields, officials say.

Grand Lake St. Marys is now undergoing a clean up to get rid of toxic algae mostly attributed to manure from nearby fields flowing into the lake during the wet spring.

As a part of the $3.4 million operation, the lake will be treated with nearly 2.6 million gallons of the chemical compound alum.

Nearshore

NEMO’s new mission: Find toxic algae blooms

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By Mehak Bansil
Nov. 17, 2009
EAST LANSING, Mich. – If it looks like a fish and swims like a fish, then it must be a fish. Unless it’s a pseudo-fish named NEMO, designed to monitor water temperature, oxygen levels, invasive algae populations and pollutants. For example, a robofish will be able to navigate independently and transmit information about the location of toxic algae blooms.

“We chose to fit these fish with sensors for toxic algae blooms, but I think other researchers will use this technology in the future to monitor different aspects of water quality,” said Michigan State University zoology professor Elena Litchman.

Water

Algae warning system tried out in Lake Erie

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(OH) The Toledo Blade – Staying one step ahead of algae. That’s the goal of a $269,500 initiative the federal government launched this summer for Lake Erie’s western basin, the warmest and shallowest part of the Great Lakes.  

Stretching approximately from Monroe to Sandusky, Lake Erie’s western basin also is the area hit hardest by farm and street runoff. More

Echo

County could ban urban phosphorus

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(MI) Battle Creek Enquirer – A countywide ban on phosphorus use on lawns would prevent unwanted algae growth within lakes and streams, said Christine Kosmowski and Cheryl Vosburg, representatives of the Lake Allegan/Kalamazoo River Watershed TMDL (Total Maximum Daily Load) Implementation Committee. Excessive algae chokes waterways by absorbing the oxygen that other plants and animals need to maintain a balanced ecosystem. It crowds out sporting fish, such as bass and trout, while making the water murky and clogged with weeds, Kosmowski said. More

Nearshore

Study may help manage muck in Saginaw Bay

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(MI) Bay City Times – A study by Michigan Technological University researchers aims to figure out how to best manage phosphorus inputs to Saginaw Bay. Phosphorus, a nutrient in everything from fertilizers to wastewater, helps fuel the growth of algae in the bay, which fouls shorelines when it dies and washes up on beaches. More