Forecasters: Lake Erie Algae Bloom Shaping Up As Big, Possibly Harmful

"This year's bloom is predicted by NOAA to be much larger than average - just under the size of the 2014 bloom that left 500,000 without drinking water".

"The forecast for western Lake Erie for later this summer into fall?: Green and mucky.

The algae blooms that have plagued the lake in recent years are expected to be worse than normal this year, well above the size at which they can potentially become harmful to aquatic life and even humans, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasters announced Thursday.

This year's algae bloom, which usually begins in late July and can continue into October, is expected to measure 7.5 on a severity index developed by NOAA and other researchers, but could range between 6.5 and 9.5. The largest blooms since the problem returned to Lake Erie in the late 1990s, in 2011 and 2015, were 10 and 10.5, respectively, on the severity index."

Keith Matheny reports for the Detroit Free Press July 13, 2017.