Toledo water crisis

Toledo water crisis
Name	Toledo water crisis
Location	Toledo, Ohio
Date	2014
Cause	Microcystis bloom (cyanotoxin)
Affected	Residents of Lucas County, Ohio; Maumee River
Outcome	Drinking-water advisory; regulatory and legal actions

Toledo water crisis The Toledo water crisis was a 2014 public-health emergency in Toledo, Ohio when cyanobacterial toxins from a harmful algal bloom forced a multi-day drinking-water ban for hundreds of thousands of residents and prompted investigations by federal agencies and state officials. The event prompted scrutiny of resource-management practices at the Maumee River, regulatory responses by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and litigation involving municipal authorities and agricultural stakeholders.

Background

The Maumee River watershed drains into Lake Erie, which supplies drinking water to Toledo, Ohio, Sandusky Bay, and parts of Detroit River tributaries; agricultural land use in Northwest Ohio and Southwestern Michigan had long been associated with nutrient runoff discussed in reports by the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Scientific studies from Ohio State University, University of Michigan, and the National Academy of Sciences had documented recurring harmful algal blooms on Lake Erie since the 1990s, with cyanobacteria genera such as Microcystis aeruginosa producing microcystins measured by labs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Ohio Department of Health. Prior policy engagement involved the Great Lakes Commission, the International Joint Commission, and state agencies in Ohio and Michigan addressing nutrient-management plans and wetland-restoration proposals.

Timeline of events

In early August 2014, residents of Lucas County, Ohio reported discolored tap water and odor while researchers from Bowling Green State University and technicians at the City of Toledo Water Treatment Plant tested for cyanotoxins; by August 2 officials from the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency issued a "Do Not Drink" advisory after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency confirmed microcystin levels above advisory thresholds used by the World Health Organization. The advisory affected customers serviced by the Toledo Municipal Water System, prompted emergency responses coordinated with the Ohio National Guard and nongovernmental organizations such as the American Red Cross, and was lifted after several days when testing showed reduction of toxin concentrations, with follow-up monitoring by the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory and academic teams from University of Toledo.

Causes and contributing factors

Analyses by researchers at Purdue University, Cleveland Clinic, and the Heidelberg University (Ohio) implicate excess phosphorus from agricultural fertilizer and manure applied on corn and soybean fields in the Maumee River basin, exacerbated by tile drainage systems common in Lucas County, Ohio and Wood County, Ohio. Climatic factors such as warm temperatures and storm-runoff events documented by the National Weather Service and climate assessments from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change increased stratification and nutrient availability in Lake Erie nearshore waters. Point sources including certain municipal wastewater treatment plants and industrial discharges regulated under the Clean Water Act were examined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, while conservation programs administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and initiatives by the Ohio Department of Agriculture were evaluated for effectiveness in reducing nonpoint-source pollution.

Public health and environmental impact

Public-health assessments by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Ohio Department of Health, and epidemiologists at Case Western Reserve University investigated acute and potential chronic exposures to microcystin; hospitals such as ProMedica Toledo Hospital and clinics in Lucas County, Ohio tracked gastrointestinal and dermatological complaints linked to the contamination. Environmental monitoring by researchers at the University of Michigan and the Great Lakes Observing System documented ecosystem impacts including fish kills, benthic habitat changes, and shifts in phytoplankton communities that affected commercial and recreational fisheries regulated by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Economic analyses by the Institute for Water Research at Rhodes University-style teams and local chambers such as the Toledo Chamber of Commerce estimated substantial costs to tourism, municipal operations, and bottled-water purchases.

Response and remediation

Emergency measures included deployment of alternative water supplies coordinated by the American Red Cross, technical assistance from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and testing protocols developed by laboratories at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Ohio Department of Health. Long-term remediation efforts involved nutrient-reduction strategies promoted by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, conservation programs funded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Conservation Reserve Program and Environmental Quality Incentives Program, and watershed planning led by the Maumee River Basin Commission and regional entities like the Great Lakes Commission. Research partnerships among University of Toledo, Wright State University, and NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory advanced remote-sensing detection of blooms and best management practices for tile-drained agricultural landscapes.

Legal and policy outcomes

The crisis spurred litigation and policy debates involving the City of Toledo, Lucas County entities, agricultural groups such as the Ohio Farm Bureau, and state regulators at the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. Federal inquiries by the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and oversight by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency influenced drinking-water advisory guidance and funding allocations from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and federal appropriations committees. State-level policy responses included revisions to nutrient-management plans overseen by the Ohio Department of Agriculture and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, while local ordinances and voluntary programs supported by the Conservation Technology Information Center aimed to reduce phosphorus loads to Lake Erie and its tributaries.

Category:Environmental disasters in the United States Category:Water quality