Researchers have long suspected that climate change leads to stronger and more frequent algal blooms, and a new fusion of climate and watershed models have proven those suspicions right. For Lake Erie, the number of severe blooms will likely double over the next 100 years. The findings hold implications for hundreds of coastal regions around the world where nutrient runoff and climate change intersect, causing a toxic algae problem. Hans Paerl, of the Institute of Marine Sciences at UNC, is evaluating a variety of algae mitigation and control strategies. "It should be noted," he said, "that no matter what types of physical or chemical treatments we use to mitigate blooms, they should be accompanied by nutrient input reductions.”
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