GREEN BAY, Wis. (WFRV) – Algae blooms are an occurrence that’s hard to overlook in northeast Wisconsin.
These blue-green algae blooms, also known as cyanobacteria, become a growing concern with warmer-than-average summers and an increase in the use of fertilizers in lakeshore properties.
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Research Scientist Gina LaLiberte with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) Bureau of Science Services says that these blooms are growing in intensity as 2024 was one of their most reported years on record.
“I will say we had a big uptick in blooms last year, 2024. We had blooms reported throughout the state, and the majority were people who lived on the lakes or on the water, and they see the change in conditions and recognize it more easily. I think in part that may have been due to the drastic change from 2023 to 2024. We started 2024 with record warm temperatures, so that was a large contributor to the uptick in blooms that summer.”
Gina LaLiberte
LaLiberte continues to tell us how we can help manage blooms on a smaller scale. While we do not have much control over the warmth of summer, we can manage how many activators we use for blooms. Activators would be items such as lawn fertilizers that are transported into the water following runoff.
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Algae blooms can also be known to cause harm to local ecosystems. Blooms can reduce oxygen levels, block sunlight, and even harm or kill aquatic life.
While the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources does not respond to every bloom report, they do carefully analyze them. For information on bloom reports, as well as how to manage yearly blooms, can be found at: https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/lakes/bluegreenalgae
