(Columbus, OH) There's one more possible solution to Lake Erie's algae problem-- restore part of the Great Black Swamp.
A well-known wetlands researcher and Ohio State University professor contends "wetaculture" may be the answer to the toxic algae blooms plaguing Lake Erie and the Maumee River this fall.
He recently published a scientific paper, proposing to restore ten percent of the northwest Ohio swamps, or 100,000 acres of wetlands to soak up and sponge off agricultural runoff along the Maumee River. He proposes the so-called “wetlaculture” in the watershed would cut the phosphorus needed to make a big difference. He even has a test site under construction on a Defiance farm.
An Ohio Farm Bureau spokesman tells the Dispatch there's a reason the Black Swamp was drained in the first place-- to produce food. He also believes it would be a hard sell to get farmers to temporarily convert fields to wetlands.