Algae blooms caused by farm runoff or sewage dumping are not just smelly and unpleasant — they can also be dangerous for wildlife and people.

Our big lakes need a big helping hand right now.  Fortunately, Ontario’s new Great Lakes Protection Act has set the stage for action to clean up the lakes, but it will need resources to be effective. A particular threat to the health of the lakes is phosphorous discharges from agricultural fertilizers and sewage treatment plants. This can lead to unhealthy – and very unpleasant — algae blooms, especially as lake waters get warmer with climate change. To address this problem, we need to:

• Provide incentives and assistance to farmers to use less fertilizer and to better control farm field runoff
• Create an action plan to fight algae in Lake Erie
• Establish binding standards that limit phosphorous emissions to water for sewer treatment plant effluent