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General Fishing Discussion / Re: Lake Erie Algae
« Last post by taxid on Today at 12:31 PM »
I agree
I have seen Satellite photos of the algae in the past few years and a real thing.
So, when this article popped up on my feed I was interested.
But yea, it was certainly a bit lackluster for sure.
Of course the article is alarmist to get the reader's attention, but it is a problem. I wouldn't got as far as saying the Lake is dying.
The thing people don't realize is even treated sewage still is high in nitrates (between 500 and 1000 mg/l) which is fuel for filamentous algae.
Adding to the problem is the the clearer water due to mussels filtering the water allows more sunlight to reach the algae and grow deeper. As algae produces oxygen and becomes more buoyant it floats to the surface. And growing deeper there is more of it.
I am near a watershed that feeds Lake Erie via three rivers (Maumee, St. Joseph, and St. Marys) and I can assure you inflowing fertilizers can easily make their way in those rivers during heavy rains and end up in Lake Erie. It's obvious the amount of surface runoff that enters the rivers as they are rarely clear and typically after a heavy rain are the color of mud especially in the spring. There's been a lot of work to curb erosion but a lot more needs to be done.
