After the Environmental Protection Agency found high toxin levels in the drinking water in the East Toledo and Point Place neighborhoods of Ohio, the city instructed over 400,000 people to avoid using their tap water for the weekend. While the water was safe for adults to shower in, many avoided using the contaminated supply altogether and had to bathe children with bottled water. Ingestion of the toxin can cause nausea, diarrhea, vomiting and acute liver failure, so using the water for cooking or brushing teeth was not an option. The Ohio governor, John Kasich, declared the situation a state of emergency and the state sent truckloads of bottled water to the area. Today, Toledo's mayor D. Michael Collins lifted the ban, declaring the water safe to consume again.
Though the water may be considered safe now, the issue of lake pollution remains. Water plant operators who work around Lake Erie have been concerned about this situation for a long time, as these toxins did not just suddenly appear. Algae blooms have been changing the color and consistency of the water whilst leaving behind dangerous toxins. For the past decade, farm runoff and sludge from sewage have also been polluting the lake. Just last year, a town close to Toledo banned its 2,000 residents from using tap water.
The algae blooms are driven by waves and wind throughout the lake and, in this specific instance, were pushed closer to the shore near where Toledo extracts its water supply. So while the blooms may have drifted away from the coast, this problem is not temporary.
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