Fighting The War On Algae: Ohio Ups State Funding To Wastewater Plants

By Sara Jerome
@sarmje

After the Toledo algae emergency, Ohio has announced it will provide additional funding sources to help utilities beat the problem. 

"Ohio’s environmental regulators laid out a plan to assist cities with testing and treating their drinking water, a first step in the state’s response to [the] water emergency in Toledo that left 400,000 people without clean tap water," the Associated Press reported

Ohio's EPA will spend $1 million to train water utility operators and update drinking water testing equipment. 

The state will also provide access to $150 million in low-interest and no-interest loans. The money will go to backup water sources and new water towers, as well as updating equipment at wastewater plants so less phosphorous winds up in environmental waters, the report said, citing state officials. 

"It’s a group effort. This is a good first step,” Craig Butler, director of Ohio's EPA, said in the report. 

Toledo's water plant is using chemical treatments to ward off dangers caused by algae. 

"With algae in full bloom and strong levels showing in untreated water, the city is adding additional chemicals to the water to fight microcystin. You may notice a film on the water. The City stresses this is not harmful, but is due to increased alum added to fight the algae. The chlorine has also been slightly increased, so you might smell it," 13 ABC reported. "[The plant] used activated carbon to absorb the toxin, alum to help settle it out and chlorine to help oxidize it.”

Toledo Mayor Michael Collins said the algae emergency will serve as a water safety wake up call. 

"Mr. Collins said in an interview…that just as 9/ 11 created a change in Americans’ attitude toward terrorism preparedness, so the great algae bloom of 2014 should not be ignored," the Toledo Blade reported

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