A Global Climate Emergency Through the Eyes of Cleveland, OH (Part II)
by Emily Qian
Part I of this series focused primarily on an overview of the global climate emergency as well as a deeper look into the impact of climate change on the temperatures of Cleveland, OH, over the last decade. In a continuation of Part I, this time I’ll be discussing a more regional issue pertaining to our city.
Let’s start by diving right into the fresh water of our local Lake Erie – figuratively speaking of course. If you were to jump into Lake Erie at the moment, you would most likely find yourself covered in a thin, slimy layer of blue-green algae. These floating sheets of algae blooms have emerged as a serious issue over the past decade, with 2019 exhibiting one of the worst years to date, at its peak coating more than 620 square miles of Lake Erie’s surface.
Lake Erie in July of 2019 (https://news.wbfo.org/post/harmful-algal-bloom-lake-erie-expected-be-severe) The approximate location of Cleveland is indicated in red.
These algae blooms are caused by different types of cyanobacteria and algae, which need nutrients such as iron, potassium, and nitrogen, all of which are readily found in their environment. However, less naturally abundant is phosphorus, an equally essential nutrient to these blooms, and this is where the climate emergency makes its first major mark. With an increase in precipitation frequency and intensity that’s characteristic of climate change, more and more fertilizer is being washed down into Lake Erie, supplying the water with the magic ingredient: phosphorous. Through this process of runoff pollution, the algae blooms, finding that they have all the necessary nutrients to prosper, have been able to take advantage of their situation and proliferate throughout Lake Erie.
The climate emergency serves an even more direct impact as well. Part I of this series revealed a small insight into the growing crisis of warming temperatures. Unsurprisingly, that issue is majorly linked to this one, as the algae and bacteria prosper off of the warmer waters. Moreover, the heat prevents water from mixing, allowing the blooms to grow into a thick layer at the surface of the lake. Combined with high carbon dioxide concentrations due to the greenhouse effect, all these factors culminate to produce the perfect incubation chamber for the rapidly growing algae blooms. Lake Erie is hit especially hard by these conditions, since it’s both the warmest and shallowest of the Great Lakes.
The algae growth cycle is demonstrated by a series of helpful graphics from the Chicago Tribune:
Some of the cyanobacteria cultivating in these blooms are toxic, with species such as Microcystis aeruginosa (the most prevalent type in Lake Erie) causing a range of symptoms including vomiting, diarrhea, dizziness, or numbness. Not only does this affect those who come in direct contact, but it also poses significant issues for our fresh water supply. In the Toledo water crisis of 2014, toxins found in the drinking and faucet water resulted in a water shut down for more than half a million residents. This incident may find itself repeated along the cities bordering the Great Lakes, and with approximately 11 million individuals dependent on Lake Erie for their fresh water supply, this may have grave implications for the fresh water prospects of lakeside residents and the United States as a whole.
The ever-escalating problem of algae blooms may continue to have far reaching effects on our health, fresh water supply, and even economy (recreation, commercial fishing…) if not swiftly and effectively addressed. Especially for those of us living along Lake Erie, this issue is certainly one to keep on the radar. Faced with these prevailing issues, there’s so much that we can and must do to attempt to resolve them.
This concludes Part II of this series, “A Global Climate Emergency Through the Eyes of Cleveland, OH. Part III, the final article in the series, will end on a positive note, including a report on the current environmental efforts of our city.