Seven Issues Facing Lake Erie

Considered the poster child of water pollution in the 1960s, Lake Erie recovered, thanks to comprehensive phosphorus restrictions and inter-agency collaborations, and became a success story of what ecosystem recovery efforts can accomplish in just a few years. The lake became a major economic player once again, producing more fish than the other four Great Lakes combined and supporting thousands of jobs. But over the past 10 years, the lake has been facing threats in the form of seven environmental issues that challenge its future. Learn more here.

Linking Nitrogen to Lake Erie’s Harmful Algal Blooms

A new Ohio Sea Grant-funded research project at Kent State University is investigating the role that nitrogen, a common nutrient found in fertilizers, plays in supporting the growth of cyanobacteria—more commonly called blue-green algae and a frequent culprit in harmful algal bloom events.

Educators Update Climate Science Materials

Dr. Rosanne Fortner and Lyndsey Manzo are leading the effort to update the Great Lakes climate change curriculum first developed by Ohio Sea Grant in 1995 to help students localize climate change to their own backyard instead of seeing it as an abstract global phenomenon.

Leadership Academy Trains Local Officials

Ohio Sea Grant Extension’s 10-week Ohio Local Government Leadership Academy graduated 55 local government officials from Toledo, Findlay, and Youngstown this year. Since 2002, the Academy has equipped more than 400 graduates to make farsighted decisions and better serve their constituents.

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Turning Trash into Treasure

Launched by Ohio Sea Grant’s Ohio Clean Marinas Program in 2006, the Shrink Wrap Recycling Program has kept more than 1.7 million pounds of plastic out of landfills. A partnership with an Ohio plastics company turns the junk plastic into more than 250,000 highway guardrail blocks, taking trash and turning it into a useful resource. [ Learn more here ]

Volunteers Ready Stone Lab for Summer Classes

Over April 20 – 23, 62 volunteers logged nearly 560 hours of work, painting, cleaning, weed pulling, wood cutting and splitting, and brush removal on Gibraltar Island as part of the annual Spring Work Weekend. Sponsored by the Friends of Stone Lab and other Ohio State University alumni organizations, the event prepares the island and buildings for summer classes.
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Huntley Fills in as Ohio Tourism Association Director

Ohio Sea Grant Sustainable Tourism Director Melinda Huntley began a three-month term as Interim Executive Director for the Ohio Travel Association (OTA) on April 2 as the OTA Board of Trustees finalizes its search to permanently fill the position. Huntley has been in the tourism industry for nearly 25 years and has served as an OTA Board Member and Board President.

News Releases

	Lake Erie Synthesis Team
	Space Still Open for Stone Lab Classes
	AVC Offers Visitors Up-Close Look at Lake Erie Science

Upcoming Events

	State Science Day May 5, 2012
	Communicating Climate Change to the Public Webinar May 9, 2012
	Beyond Polar Bears: Teaching Great Lakes Climate Science June 11, 2012