Lake and Wetland Restoration: A Tale of Three Systems

Steinman, Alan

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/106926 Copy

Description

Title

Lake and Wetland Restoration: A Tale of Three Systems

Author(s)

Steinman, Alan

Issue Date

2017-04-27

Keyword(s)

• sustainable agriculture
• algae
• toxicity

Abstract

Alan Steinman - Director of Grand Valley State University's Annis Water Resources Institute (MI). Excess nutrient runoff is negatively impacting aquatic ecosystems in the Great Lakes and throughout the world. Understanding these impacts and how to mitigate them have become, for better or worse, something of a growth industry in the environmental and ecological disciplines. In this talk, I will describe three coastal systems located in west Michigan that have been exposed to a history of environmental abuses. Excess nutrients, phosphorus in particular, have resulted in impaired ecological structure and function, including potentially toxic algal blooms. I will discuss the unique attributes of each system, the nature of the key stressor(s), our restoration approach, and how successful we have been in meeting our restoration targets. Two key themes underpinning our efforts include: 1) a modest upfront investment in scientific investigations can save substantial resources in the long run, despite societal anathema to “studies”; and 2) post-restoration monitoring is critical to assess restoration success, and when necessary, be sufficiently nimble to make adjustments as necessary.

Series/Report Name or Number

Sustainable Seminar Series

Type of Resource

• text
• still image

Language

en

Permalink

• https://youtu.be/qKfmcEn9qpM
• http://hdl.handle.net/2142/106926

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