© 2024 Western New York Public Broadcasting Association

140 Lower Terrace
Buffalo, NY 14202

Mailing Address:
Horizons Plaza P.O. Box 1263
Buffalo, NY 14240-1263

Buffalo Toronto Public Media | Phone 716-845-7000
WBFO Newsroom | Phone: 716-845-7040
Your NPR Station
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Ohio agency fines three men for fish kills

Ohio fish kill
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
Ohio fish kill
Ohio fish kill
Credit Ohio Department of Natural Resources
Ohio fish kill

Tens of thousands of fish were killed off in streams in the western Lake Erie basin earlier this year. Now the state of Ohio is holding three men responsible for the fish kills.Elizabeth Miller on fish kills

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources says the men applied manure to farm fields and it ran into streams during August storms.  That can cause problems because ammonia from the manure depletes oxygen levels.

In northwest Ohio, more than 66,000 fish and other animals were killed in streams in three counties. 

Ohio fined the three men a total of $32,782.87. Individual fines were related to the number and type of fish. 

Manure and commercial fertilizer contribute heavily to water quality problems in western Lake Erie.

Sandy Bihn, executive director of the Lake Erie Foundation, an environmental group, says the fish highlights a conflict between the state’s reliance on agriculture and its concern about Lake Erie’s water quality.

“We keep adding more cows, hogs, and poultry to the basin is a major issue,” she says. “While we’re trying to reduce the amount of nutrients going into Lake Erie on one hand, we’re adding more manure from these animals on the other hand.”

Great Lakes Today could not reach the men for comment.

Copyright 2017 Great Lakes Today

Reporter/producer Elizabeth Miller joined ideastream after a stint at NPR headquarters in Washington D.C., where she served as an intern on the National Desk, pitching stories about everything from a gentrified Brooklyn deli to an app for lost dogs. Before that, she covered weekend news at WAKR in Akron and interned at WCBE, a Columbus NPR affiliate. Elizabeth grew up in Columbus before moving north to attend Baldwin Wallace, where she graduated with a degree in broadcasting and mass communications.
Elizabeth Miller
Reporter/producer Elizabeth Miller joined ideastream after a stint at NPR headquarters in Washington D.C., where she served as an intern on the National Desk, pitching stories about everything from a gentrified Brooklyn deli to an app for lost dogs. Before that, she covered weekend news at WAKR in Akron and interned at WCBE, a Columbus NPR affiliate. Elizabeth grew up in Columbus before moving north to attend Baldwin Wallace, where she graduated with a degree in broadcasting and mass communications.
Related Content