The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association projects a smaller toxic algae bloom on Lake Erie this year as compared with 2019.
NOAA predicts on a scale of one to 10, a bloom with a severity between three and five. Laura Johnson is with the National Center for Water Quality Research at Heidelberg University, which releases the projection:
But Johnson says the projection does not reveal much about the toxicity of the bloom:
Researchers examined phosphorus loads from the Maumee River to determine the size and severity of the bloom. Johnson says with drier ground and fewer rainfall events during the late spring, less water is expected to make its way from the river into Lake Erie. The typical bloom season runs from July to October. NOAA will issue a seasonal forecast on July 9th, which features a more comprehensive prediction.
