&'2412015 Toxic Algae Bloom Leaves 500,000 Without Drinking Water in Ohio 

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# ToxicAlgae Bloom Leaves 500,000 Without Drinking Water in Ohio
Codi Yeager-Kozacek, Circle ofBlue 

### Don't miss out. Stay Informed. Gat EcoWatch's Top News ofthe Day. The City ofToledo has issued a "Do Not Drink" advisory tor residents served by Toledo water after chemical tests confinned the presence ofunsafe levels ofthe algal toxin Microcystin in the drinking water plant's finished water. The advisory, spanning three counties in Ohio and one in Michigan, leaves more than 400,000 people in the Toledo area without drinking water.

Harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie, likethis bloom in 2013, can become so concentrated that the water is often described as pea soup. Befowthe surface, decomposing algal blooms cause a different problem: oxygei'H:Ieprived dead zones that kill bottom-dwelling organisms and can force flah outoftheir preferred habitats. Photo credit: JeffRoolfer I Ohio SeaGrant and Stone Laboratory "Do not drinkthe water," Melanie Amato, public information officer forthe Ohio Department of Health," told Circle of Blue

. "You can shower in it, bathe in it, but do not tryto ingest it. That means no washing dishes: you can brush yourteeth with it as long as you don't swallow any water, but we recommend using bottled water for that as well." The Toledo advisory was posted at 2 a.m. Saturday morning. Ohio governor John Kasich soon announced a state ofemergency to mobilize more resources for the city.

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### Other emergency measures also became apparent across northwest Ohio:

• Stores sold out of

### bottled water, sending residents into neighboring cities and Michigan to find supplies. • Local restaurants, universities and public libraries closed. • Several nearby municipalities that have not been affected by the toxin are offering waterto Toledo residents free of charge. • The National Guard is charged with delivering 300 cases of bottled waterfrom Akron, Ohio, as well as Meals Ready to Eat (MRE's) for distribution to homeless shelters and other vulnerable populations who are unable to cookwith theirwater. • Humanitarian organizations like the American Red Cross are responding, manning water distribution centers and providing water delivery assistance to homebound residents. Microcystin is atoxin produced by blooms offreshwater algae,which are a vast and growing problem in Lake Erie- Toledo's drinking water source. Microcystin can cause nausea, vomiting and liver damage ifingested, and it has been known to kill dogs and livestockthat drink contaminated water. Skin contact with the toxin can also cause irritation and rashes, though levels in treated water are not high enough at this time to warrant a complete ban on water use, Amato said.

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# ToxicAlgae Bloom Leaves 500,000 Without Drinking Water in Ohio Cadi Yeager-Kozacek, Circle ofBlue 

### Don't miss out. Stay Informed. Gat EcoWatch's Top News ofthe Day. Readpage 1 Microcystin appears to be a growing public health problem in the western portions of Lake Erie. Almost ayear ago, in September 2013, Carroll Township nearToledo detected dangerous levels of Microcystin in its water supply, shut down its watertreatment plant, and simultaneously alerted the community's 2,000 residents not to drinkthe water.

Efforts bythe City ofToledo and other "poont source" dischargers ofphosphorus have not been enough to stop toxic algal blooms In Lake Erie. The citywarned residents notto drinktheirwater Sabm!aydue to algal toxins. Clickimageto enlarge. Photo credit: ScottStraz:zante I Clrde ofBlue Toledo is the first major city in the Great Lakes region to fall victim to Microcystin contamination, despite testing and treatment for the toxin. The city allocated $US 4 million forwatertreatment chemicals last year-double what it spent in 2010. The spending increase is largely due to concerns about algal toxins. Citywater managers were especially worried after the Carroll Township crisis, which was alleviated by the township's ability to connect to an outside water supply while itflushed the toxin from its 

### own system. It is unclear ifToledo has similar options available. The city's Facebook page states: http://ecowatch.com/2014/08/03/toxi c-algae-bloom-500000-without-dri nking
-water-ohio/2/ 1/2&'2412015 ToxicAlgae Bloom L eaves 500,000Without Drinking Water in Ohio» Page 2 of3 "It is understandable that there is a huge degree of public concern, but 

### we would advise everyone to remain calm, an alternative water supply and a distribution system will be announced as quickly as possible." Algal Bloom Small, ButConcentrated The culprit behind Toledo's drinking water problems is a toxic algal bloom in Lake Erie's Maumee Bay

. The bloom is not very large compared to past blooms, and Microcystin levels, though high, are not out ofthe range ofthose previously seen on the lake.

All algal bloom**apR:~**ads aCf088 Lake Erie near Point Pelee, Ontario. Blooms In the lake conalst prfmarlly oftiny cyanobacteria that can release toxins capable ofcausing skin rashes and bums when touched, and vomiting and liverdamage ifingested. Photo credit: Tom Atctter 1 Michigan Sea GranL "The bloom right now isn't big in terms ofspatial coverage, but it is pretty dense in Maumee bay and that area of western Lake Erie," Justin Chaffin, a senior researcher at The Ohio State University's Stone Laboratory in Putin-Bay, Ohio, told Circle of Blue. "It is pretty much surrounding where the Toledo water intake pipes are." The bloom in that area is very concentrated and thick, he added. "I'm not sure what levels they were seeing coming in through their pipes, but we were out there sampling on Wednesday and 

### we got Microcystin levels around 1 0 to 20 parts per billion."

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# ToxicAlgae Bloom Leaves 500,000 Without Drinking Water in Ohio Cadi Yeager-Kozacek, Circle ofBlue 

### Don't miss out. Stay Informed. Gat EcoWatch's Top News ofthe Day. Readpage 1 The acceptable level of Microcystin in drinking water is 1 part per billion, according to the World Health Organization. Typically, the city 

### ofToledo is able to chemically treat their drinking water to bring Microcystin levels belowthat threshold, even ifthe intakes receive high levels ofthe toxin. Chaffin said that there was likely a mixing event-such as a storm or strong wind-thatforced the toxic algae, which normally floats on top ofthe water, down to the bottom where the intakes are located. The city is now hurrying to test water samples drawn from throughout the treatment and distribution system to track the Microcystin concentrations. Testing a batch ofsamples takes approximately three to four hours once the test is started, according to Chaffin.

Harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie can prompt beach dosures, likethis one in Sandusky Bay, Erie County, Ohio. They also pose a threat to

drinking waterthat is supplied from the lake. The two largest algal blooms ever reeorded on Lake Erie occurred in the pastfive years. Photo credH: Ohio SeaGrant and Stone Laboratory

http://ecowatch.com/2014/08/03/toxi c-algae-bloom-500000-without-dri nking
-water-ohio/3/ 1/2&'2412015 ToxicAlgae Bloom L eaves 500,000Without Drinking Water in Ohio» Page 3 of3 "They are running water samples from hospitals, really from all over Toledo," he said. "Everyone that does Microcystin sampling in the Toledo area is either sending their [test] kits to the Oregon [Ohio] treatment plant or the city ofToledo's treatment plant. They are just swamped with samples and they ¥Jere running out of kits." Toledo is also sending water samples to labs in Cincinnati to undergo a more complete analysis. There are approximately 80 different kinds of Microcystin-producing cyanobacteria, Chaffin said. Although all are toxic, their level oftoxicity varies. The more extensive tests will help to determine a more accurate level ofthe toxin in the water. Algal Blooms a Growing Problem Commonplace in Lake Erie in the 1960s, toxic algal blooms disappeared from the lake following international, national and state efforts to reduce the phosphorus pollution that dr1ves them. The federal Clean waterAct of 1972 was especially important for reducing phosphorus from city sewage plants and other "point" sources that discharged pollutants from a pipe. The CWA, however, did little to address phosphorus runoff from farms and lawns, known as "nonpoint" sources. Researchers have shown that a rise in phosphorus levels-particularly a form ofthe nutrient that is readily available to promote algae growth-has coincided with renewed blooms in Lake Erie, and international agencies have called for a reduction in phosphorus to alleviate problematic blooms in Lake Erie and elsewhere in the Great Lakes

. The largest bloom ever recorded on the lake occurred in 2011. Scientists and environmental groups say addressing agriculture is particularly important for reducing the blooms. "I have every confidence in the watertreatment plant to figure out howto make the drinking water safe," Adam Rissien, director of agricultural and water policy at the Ohio Environmental Council, told Cirde of Blue."Unfortunately, the options available to them are costly and that means a rate increase-there's no way around it. Until 

### we reduce phosphorus and address harmful algal blooms, I'm afraid it's going to come on the ratepayers' backs. And that's not fair." You MightAlso Like Ignoring Climate Risks Could Sink U.S. Economy 10 Biggest Threats to Human Existence Groundwater Disappearing Much FasterThan Lake Mead in Colorado River Basin

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