Agricultural runoff

When it rains, excess fertilizer and manure from farm fields flow into streams and rivers that feed the Great Lakes. This pollution fuels algal blooms that can make water toxic to fish, wildlife, and people.

Visit our campaign page to learn about stopping agricultural pollution at the source. Learn more about agricultural runoff below.

Blog

February 26, 2025

Water Advocacy at the Ohio Statehouse: A Call for Clean Water Policies

On Thursday, January 30, the Alliance for the Great Lakes, alongside our partners—The Nature Conservancy, Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association, The Junction Coalition, and the Ohio Environmental Council (OEC)—came […]

Blog

January 29, 2025

How Washington Can Support the Great Lakes in 2025

Significant progress continues to be made in protecting and restoring the Great Lakes, but much more needs to be done. The federal government plays a major role in this work […]

Press Release

October 24, 2024

Monitoring Milestone in Fight Against Lake Erie Pollution

Lansing, Michigan (October 24, 2024) – A critical milestone in the fight against algal blooms on Lake Erie was reached as the installation of water quality monitoring equipment in five […]

Blog

July 30, 2024

New Targeting Strategies to Fight Algal Blooms

This August marks the 10-year anniversary of when residents of Toledo, Ohio awoke to urgent warnings not to drink or use their tap water. Half a million people were unable […]

Press Release

April 3, 2024

New MDARD Partnership Will Improve Water Quality Monitoring

LANSING, MI (April 3, 2024) – Nutrient pollution is a severe threat to water quality across the Great Lakes region and is particularly important in the Western Basin of Lake […]

Blog

February 20, 2024

Top 5 Great Lakes Federal Policy Priorities for 2024

Significant progress continues to be made in protecting and restoring the Great Lakes, but much more needs to be done. Although increased federal funding from the Infrastructure Investment Act these […]

Press release

February 6, 2024

Health of the Lakes and Strength of Local Economies Relies on Reauthorization of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative

WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 6, 2024) – Today, Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH), Representative Debbie Dingell (D-MI), and Representative David Joyce (R-OH) sponsored the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative […]

DC Update

January 24, 2024

Are Great Lakes Priorities Advancing After a Year of Divided Government?

At the beginning of 2023, we announced an ambitious Great Lakes federal policy agenda. We noted that it was the start of a new Congress and an era of divided […]

Blog

November 1, 2023

Charting the Future of the Great Lakes: Insights from the HOW Conference and Governors’ Summit 

Note: This blog was co-written by President & CEO Joel Brammeier and Vice President of Policy and Strategic Engagement Crystal M.C. Davis. For four days in Cleveland on the shores […]

Diving Deep for Solutions

October 4, 2023

Complicated Crops: Agriculture is a major economic engine in the Great Lakes, and poses the greatest threat to their waters

For our Diving Deep for Solutions series, we commissioned author and journalist Kari Lydersen to examine big issues facing the lakes today and how our expert team at the Alliance […]