Ohio universities collaborate to understand Lake Erie nutrient cycling

Algal blooms in Lake Erie's Western Basin in 2011 (Credit: NASA, via Wikimedia Commons)

A group of Ohio colleges and a consulting firm will collaborate under a $500,000 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grant to study nutrients and eutrophication dynamics for Lake Erie’s Western Basin, according to a report from TiffinOhio.org.

Researchers from Heidelberg University, the University of Toledo, Case Western University, Ohio State University and Limnotech will work to monitor and analyze Erie’s eutrophication.

Most of the research from this grant will focus on nutrient cycling. Heidelberg’s National Center for Water Quality Research also received a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to study nutrient loading at farm fields and Maumee River tributaries.

The EPA funded this project in an effort to determine ways to improve the health of Lake Erie.

Image: Algal blooms in Lake Erie’s Western Basin in 2011 (Credit: NASA, via Wikimedia Commons)