Toxic Algae

 

Toxic Algae Blooms That Kill Dogs Are Becoming More Common. And Climate Change Is Making It Worse, Scientists Say. According to The Texas Tribune, “This past summer, mysterious blooms of blue-green algae killed five dogs who went swimming in canine-friendly Austin. Months have passed but the capital city still has signs up warning of ongoing dangerous conditions in Lady Bird Lake. This week, freezing temperatures killed off visible blooms, according to city officials, but they said the popular waterway still poses a threat. Scientists say there’s still much they don’t understand about the recent emergence of the toxic algae blooms, but they’re already predicting that the problem is bound to get worse in the coming summers as climate change furthers once-unusual weather conditions. They said it’s also increasingly likely that more cities and towns with stagnant waters and hot summers could find themselves in the same situation as Austin. So far, city officials don’t have a way to combat future algae blooms. ‘We’re really kind of in an infancy in this field,’ said molecular biosciences professor Schonna Manning, who studies algae blooms around the state at the University of Texas at Austin. ‘We know that there are algae blooms that are occurring all the time. But we don’t really have a lot of experts out there that are able to identify either the organisms or the toxins.’” [The Texas Tribune, 11/14/19 (+)]

 

The Shallowest Great Lake Provides Drinking Water For More People Than Any Other. Algae Blooms Are Making It Toxic — And It’s Getting Worse. According to Chicago Tribune, “Every year, an explosion of microscopic life reigns over western Lake Erie, forming a green slick of algae and bacteria so massive and vibrant that it can be seen from space. The harmful algae bloom slimes fishing boats, paints beaches in toxins and engulfs water intake cribs. In 2014, it left 400,000 people without drinking water for three days after toxins infiltrated Toledo’s water system. Then-Gov. John Kasich declared a state of emergency and called in the National Guard to distribute bottled water in an incident that served notice that drinking water from Lake Erie was in peril. This year, the bloom was among the most severe and toxic since scientists began keeping track in the early 2000s. At its peak, it coated around 620 square miles of Lake Erie’s surface waters, an area more than twice the size of Chicago, according to satellite imagery. The sheer weight of blue-green bacteria making up the bloom — forecast to be around 46,000 metric tons — was expected to be a new record. … Climate change is jeopardizing two of the most precious resources the Midwest possesses: food and water, according to federal studies. Greater rainfall and more powerful storms are eroding some of the richest soils in the United States and, in doing so, washing bloom-inducing fertilizers from farm fields into Lake Erie. More frequent torrential downpours are also overpowering antiquated sewer systems at times, releasing a profusion of raw sewage into waterways, further polluting and degrading water quality.” [Chicago Tribune, 11/14/19 (=)]

 

AP | Governor: Ohio Plan To Clean Lake Erie Will Work, Take Time. According to Houston Chronicle, “Ohio’s new strategy to combat the toxic algae plaguing Lake Erie will focus on reducing agriculture runoff that feeds the yearly outbreaks by offering farmers financial incentives to change their practices, Gov. Mike DeWine said Thursday. The plan is the first time the state has taken such a comprehensive approach, he said, and will take on the main sources of the pollution by relying on years of research. Farmers won’t be forced to adopt any of the changes, but DeWine thinks they will buy in because of the incentives and some of the new practices that will save them money. The Republican governor said that a new strategy is needed because the state’s attempts to reduce the phosphorus that fuels the algae has not shown any improvement since 2014 — the year toxins from a bloom contaminated the water supply for more than 400,000 people in the Toledo area. ‘The results have not been what we wanted,’ he said, mainly because the state has only spent a fraction of the money targeted for water quality on reducing farm fertilizer runoff, the biggest contributor to the algae in western Lake Erie. Just months after taking office this year, DeWine proposed putting nearly $1 billion on water quality projects over the next decade. State lawmakers this summer approved spending $172 million during the next two years for such work.” [Houston Chronicle, 11/14/19 (=)]

 

Drinking Water

 

Manure Spurs Wis. County's Push To Prosecute Journalists. According to E&E News, “Behind all the anger and indignation over a southwestern Wisconsin board’s attempts to control reports on a well water study is a simple story about manure. Lafayette County officials tried to stifle discussion about upcoming results from the study, which has already determined a handful of wells are contaminated with fecal matter. They came up with a resolution that called for prosecuting journalists who report on study results without publishing information from the county verbatim. The resolution also warned that county board members who speak to reporters about findings without permission from a review board would be punished. The proposal left advocates of open government and experts in media law aghast and drew national headlines. The county board ultimately tabled the resolution during a contentious meeting Tuesday night. But the study is far from over, and its implications still weigh heavily on the area’s farmers and well owners. The findings could play a key role in whether state regulators decide to impose costly manure-spreading restrictions in the region. ‘I think acknowledging that our wells are bad is just difficult emotionally,’ said Kriss Marion, a Lafayette County board member who opposed the resolution. ‘As much as you hate regulation, don’t you want to know what the situation is?’” [E&E News, 11/14/19 (=)]

 

PFAS

 

EPA Downplays DOD’s Preemption Of PFAS Guide, Touts Enforcement. According to Inside EPA, “EPA officials are downplaying concerns that the Defense Department (DOD) is preempting its draft screening levels for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in groundwater used for drinking water, after DOD last month issued guidance setting Superfund levels for two of the chemicals that are less stringent than levels suggested by EPA’s draft policy. When pressed on which levels would apply given the conflict if EPA finalizes its guidance as is, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler did not respond directly, telling Inside EPA Nov. 13 that the agency, in taking enforcement actions including those at DOD sites, will continue to apply its recommended cleanup level of 70 parts per trillion (ppt) to the two chemicals. He said of the nine enforcement actions EPA has taken so far to require cleanup of PFAS, most of them have been against DOD, and the agency has required cleanup to 70 ppt. ‘So, no, when we see a problem, . . . when it’s in the drinking water system, we can and we do require it to be cleaned up,’ he said. Wheeler responded to questions after touring a Fairfax County, VA, glass recycling facility. EPA Assistant Administrator for the Office of Land and Emergency Management Peter Wright, at the same event, noted that ‘we haven’t really had discussions’ with DOD on the issue since the Pentagon issued its memo on Oct. 15.” [Inside EPA, 11/14/19 (=)]

 

 

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