Michigan steps up fight against harmful algal blooms in western Lake Erie

The conference builds on a years-long effort to cultivate a WLEB community, foster trust, and generate input for the DAP through presentations, panels, question-and-answer sessions, networking, and discussion groups. Partners met for the first State of the Western Lake Erie Basin Conference in December 2023, and steady progress has continued ever since.

In March 2024, Advisory Group members weighed in on the initial draft DAP through letters and review sessions that helped the DAP Team reframe language, add clarifications, and fill gaps.

In June 2024, the Advisory Group met with agency staff and researchers involved in DAP projects to learn and provide feedback on efforts related to soil health testing, database management, and WLEB-related outreach.

Total phosphorus loads in the basin are down by nearly 23%, exceeding a 20% aspirational goal for the basin, largely due to point source reductions. At the Great Lakes Water Authority’s Water Resource Recovery Facility, for example, phosphorus loads dropped by more than half, from 764 metric tons in 2008 to an average of 362 metric tons between 2018 and 2022.

Senior managers in EGLE, DNR, and the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) will continue to review and revise the DAP regularly based on progress and changing needs.  The UM Water Center, DAP Team, and Advisory Group will continue to collaborate on outreach about state efforts to plan and implement DAP programs and projects.

For more information on the DAP update and Michigan’s actions in the WLEB, visit Michigan.gov/MDARD-WLEB.

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Adapted and updated from an article by Michelle Selzer, Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, and Alison Bressler, University of Michigan Water Center, in the 2024 Michigan State of the Great Lakes Report.