Kasey Dresser| February 4, 2019 This weeks segment looks at new technology for detecting harmful algal blooms. Transcript: Scientists may soon be able to detect harmful algal blooms from the sky. This is the Iowa Environmental Focus. A team of researchers at the University of Iowa is developing a drone to detect harmful algal blooms … Continue reading On The Radio- Detecting algal blooms
Eden DeWald | May 30th, 2018 With the first day of summer well on its way, so are toxic algal blooms. Cyanobacteria, also referred to as blue-green algae, are a type of photosynthetic bacteria that produce microcystin toxins. These pose both short term exposure and a long term exposure threats to humans. Skin contact with … Continue reading Rise in toxic algal blooms
Nick Fetty | July 19, 2016 While not expected to be as severe as last summer, Iowa outdoor recreation enthusiasts should be mindful of blue-green algal blooms this time of the year. Warm July temperatures coupled with excess phosphorus that often runs off of farm fields into lakes and waterways creates the ideal breeding ground for blue-green … Continue reading July marks peak season for blue-green algal blooms in Iowa
Nick Fetty | July 15, 2015 As temperatures rise algal blooms are popping up in Iowa waterways. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has posted advisories cautioning swimmers to stay out of the water at 11 state parks because of harmful algal blooms. Algal blooms are caused by a combination of phosphorus pollution and high temperatures which creates microcystin toxins … Continue reading Algal blooms hit at least 14 Iowa beaches
August 24, 2015 This week’s On the Radio segment looks at public health concerns over the record number of blue-green algae blooms in Iowa this summer. Listen to the audio below, or continue reading for the transcript. Transcript: Blue green algae causing health concerns Toxins from dangerous algal blooms are appearing in record numbers across … Continue reading On the Radio: Record blue-green algae blooms causing health concerns
This week’s radio segment discusses cyanobacteria and the potential harm to humans. Read the transcript below or listen to the audio here.
Julia Poska | January 25, 2019 Sometimes Jerry Schnoor looks like a typical engineer, running models and making projections using computers and mathematics. Other times he looks more like a forester, working with soil and seeds to clean up chemical contamination through a process called phytoremediation. The co-director of the UI Center for Global and … Continue reading CGRER Looks Forward: Co-director Jerry Schnoor
Katelyn Weisbrod | August 9, 2018 Scientists found the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico is smaller this year than in years past. The zone of water lacking sufficient oxygen to support aquatic life at the end of the Mississippi River measured just over 2,700 square miles — about the size of the state … Continue reading Dead zone in Gulf of Mexico smaller this year than expected
Katelyn Weisbrod | July 6, 2018 The safety of drinking water should be something Iowans don’t have to worry about. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case for 20,000 residents in nine Iowa counties for two weeks in June. The Creston Water Treatment plant experienced a mechanical failure that led to unsafe municipal water. Residents were told … Continue reading Should Iowans worry about their water?
Jenna Ladd| August 31, 2017 There has been an increase in harmful algal blooms worldwide and in Iowa in recent years, and climate change is adding to the problem. A recent analysis from Climate Central points out that warmer waters make conditions favorable for toxic algae to grow faster than other beneficial varieties. Toxic algae … Continue reading Warming climate produces more toxic algae
