AquaDiary: Water Mysteries, Science & News – Details, episodes & analysis

What are toxic algae, and how dangerous are they really?

In this episode of AquaDiary, Ally breaks down the health risks of harmful algal blooms (HABs), including cyanotoxins like microcystin, how exposure can affect people and pets, why dogs can die within hours, what the health advisory limits are federally and by state, what toxic blooms mean for lakes and drinking water systems, how to find out if your state is monitoring for cyanotoxins, how to see if you're being exposed to toxins in your drinking water, and why public awareness still lags behind the science. She also explores emerging research into possible long-term neurological risks, including whether certain algae toxins may one day be linked to diseases like Alzheimer’s.

Topics covered: toxic algae, mattoon water crisis, harmful algal blooms (HABs), cyanobacteria, cyanotoxins, microcystin, anatoxin-a, BMAA, algae toxins, dog deaths from algae blooms, toxic lake water, harmful algal bloom health risks, cyanotoxins in drinking water, algae blooms and pets, lake water safety, tap water contamination, public health, water treatment, health advisories, emerging research, and environmental science.

References:

• Caller, T.A., et al. (2009). A cluster of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in New Hampshire:

• A possible role for toxic cyanobacteria blooms. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, 10(Suppl. 2), 101–108.

• Cox, P.A., et al. (2016). Chronic exposure to BMAA may trigger Alzheimer's-like pathology in primates. Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

• Durden, W.N., et al. (2025). Alzheimer's disease signatures in the brain transcriptome of estuarine dolphins. Communications Biology, 8(1), 1400.

• Environmental Working Group. Tap water database — does your state monitor microcystin https://www.ewg.org/tapwater

• Garamszegi, S.P., et al. (2023). Detection of BMAA in postmortem olfactory bulbs of Alzheimer's disease patients. Toxicology Reports, 10, 392–400.

• IPM Newsroom. (2025, September 5). What to know about algal blooms after Mattoon's water crisis.
• NPR Illinois. (2025, September 15). Toxic bacteria shut down Mattoon's water supply.
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2015). Health advisory for microcystins (0.3 µg/L children; 1.6 µg/L adults). https://www.epa.gov
• World Health Organization. Guidelines for drinking-water quality. [Microcystin-LR guideline: 1.0 µg/L]

Links:

• EWG Tap Water Database (microcystin by state): https://www.ewg.org/tapwater
• NY HABs Tracker (harmful algal bloom advisories): https://www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/77118.html
• Find your Annual Drinking Water Report: Search [your town name] + 'annual drinking water report' or https://www.epa.gov/ccr
• Water filter — tested for microcystin removal (Berkey): https://amzn.to/4t25nPY
• Microcystin regulations by state: https://static.ewg.org/reports/2019/microcystin/img/EWG_Microcystins-StateReg_C02.pdf

In 2014, a harmful algae bloom shut off drinking water for nearly half a million people in Toledo, Ohio. The city spent 65 million dollars responding. They've invested half a billion dollars in upgrades since. And every summer, the blooms come back.

Harmful algal blooms are getting worse. And the reason why is more complicated than most people realize, and more alarming than most officials or lake managers are admitting.

In this episode, environmental scientist and host Ally breaks down the full science of toxic algae blooms to help you think like a scientist, including the ancient biology behind them, how phosphorus fuels toxic growth, how lake stratification and turnover distribute nutrients through the water column, and why new peer reviewed research suggests that even lakes with reduced pollution are still experiencing blooms.

This is the science behind the headlines, explained.

References:

• Nürnberg GK. (2025). Importance of considering internal phosphorus loading during climate change. Lake and Reservoir Management, 41:3, 165–179.
• Jane SF et al. (2023). Longer duration of seasonal stratification contributes to widespread increases in lake hypoxia and anoxia. Global Change Biology, 29(4), 1009–1023.
• Harrison JW et al. (2025). Hypolimnetic photosynthesis precedes a Microcystis bloom in a temperate, oligo-mesotrophic reservoir. Lake and Reservoir Management, 41:194–209.
• Meyers K et al. (2025). National forecasting of cyanobacterial harmful algal bloom events: a 3-year model evaluation. Lake and Reservoir Management.
• Chaffin JD et al. (2023). Microcystin congeners in Lake Erie follow the seasonal pattern of nitrogen availability. Harmful Algae, 127, 102466. 
• Taranu ZE et al. (2014). Nitrogen forms influence microcystin concentration and composition via changes in cyanobacterial community structure. PLOS ONE.
• NOAA/NCCOS ongoing research: Evaluating the Effects of Nitrogen Form and Concentration on Toxin Phenotypes of Microcystis. coastalscience.noaa.gov
• CDC MMWR report: McCarty CL et al. (2016). Community Needs Assessment After Microcystin Toxin Contamination of a Municipal Water Supply — Lucas County, Ohio. MMWR, 65(35):925–929.
• Schopf JW. The Fossil Record of Cyanobacteria. In: Whitton BA, editor. Ecology of Cyanobacteria II. Springer; 2012. — 3.5 billion year stromatolite evidence
• Gueneli N et al. (2024). Oldest thylakoids in fossil cells directly evidence oxygenic photosynthesis. Nature. — 2.1 billion year undisputed confirmed fossil
• CNN. (August 3, 2014). 400,000 in Toledo, Ohio, water scare await test results. CNN.com
• Circle of Blue. (2015). The Toledo Water Crisis, One Year Later. circleofblue.org
• The Statehouse News Bureau. (August 2, 2024). A decade ago, Toledo lost access to its water. statenews.org
• University of Toledo. (July 15, 2024). 10 Years After Water Crisis, UToledo Researchers Remain Committed to Protecting Region's Drinking Water. 
• Chaffin JD, Westrick JA, Reitz LA, Bridgeman TB. (2023). Microcystin congeners in Lake Erie follow the seasonal pattern of nitrogen availability. Harmful Algae, 127, 102466. DOI: 10.1016/j.hal.2023.102466. — nitrogen availability influences microcystin congener composition and therefore bloom toxicity; more toxic forms dominate late season as nitrogen depletes
• Lisboa, MS, RL Schneider, LG Rudstam, MT Walter. 2025. Groundwater phosphorus contributions comparable to tributaries in a large, mesotrophic, polymictic lake. Science of the Total Environment. 1008:180978. doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.180978

Beach closures after rain aren't random. They're the result of a stormwater and sewer system that was never designed to handle what we're asking it to do — and in hundreds of American cities, including many in New York State, that system is sending raw sewage and dozens of chemicals directly into lakes and rivers when it downpours.

In this episode, environmental scientist Ally breaks down how stormwater runoff works, what combined sewer systems are and why they overflow, what the New York State Sewage Pollution Right to Know Law means for you, and why your lake looks and smells different after a heavy storm - scientific facts, articles, and research - all in plain English.

Topics covered: stormwater runoff, combined sewer overflows, CSOs, impervious surfaces, water pollution, beach closures, New York water quality, drinking water safety, lake pollution, SPDES permits, green infrastructure.

The water in your glass right now has existed for over four billion years. It has been part of oceans, glaciers, clouds, rivers, and yes — other living things. It is the same water, cycling endlessly.

In Episode 1 of AquaDiary, environmental scientist and host, Ally breaks down the water cycle - not the oversimplified version you learned in school, but the full picture. How water moves through evaporation, condensation, precipitation, transpiration, and infiltration. What a watershed actually is and why it determines the quality and quantity of your drinking water. What a water budget is, how aquifers work, how long water can actually stay in a lake or glacier, and why water residence time matters more than most people realize.

This is the foundation of everything AquaDiary covers. Understanding how water moves is understanding why it gets polluted, why some places run out of it, and why protecting it is more complicated than it looks.

Owasco Lake supplies drinking water to 45,000 people in central New York. In 2016, it made history, for the wrong reason. Cyanobacterial toxins were detected in the finished drinking water of a New York State public water system for the first time ever. Since then, the blooms have gotten worse, the lawsuits have piled up, and a number that gets cited constantly in the press may not be telling the whole story. In this episode, environmental scientist and Owasco local, Ally Berry, goes inside the science, the data, and the regulatory fight that has turned one Finger Lake into a test case for water policy across New York State. What's really driving the algae blooms? Where is the phosphorus actually coming from? And why is the science more complicated (and more interesting) than the headlines suggest?

References:

• Anderson, H.S., et al. (2021). Accelerated Sediment Phosphorus Release in Lake ErieDuring Seasonal Anoxia. Limnology and Oceanography. https://coastalscience.noaa.gov/news/lake-erie-eutrophication-exacerbated-by-release-of-sediment-phosphorus-during-anoxia/
• Cayuga County Health Department (October 8, 2024). Low Levels of Algal Toxins Detectedin Auburn and Owasco Drinking Water. Reported via CNY Central. https://cnycentral.com/news/local/toxins-detected-in-auburn-owasco-drinking-water-still-safe-to-use
• City of Auburn, NY (January 5, 2023). Public Notice: Total Trihalomethanes MCL Violation. https://www.auburnny.gov/home/news/public-notice-city-auburn-public-water-supply-users-updated-april-14-2023
• City of Auburn, NY. Harmful Algal Blooms Information.https://www.auburnny.gov/water-billing-service/pages/harmful-algal-blooms-information
• Earthjustice Press Release (August 2025). Court Orders New York State to Act on Drinking Water Crisis.https://earthjustice.org/press/2025/court-orders-new-york-state-to-act-on-drinking-water-crisis-in-cayuga-county
• Earthjustice Press Release (May 2025). Court Determines NYS-DOH Cannot Shirk Responsibility.https://earthjustice.org/press/2025/court-determines-nys-doh-cannot-shirk-responsibility-to-protect-drinking-water-supplies-from-agricultural-contamination
• Finger Lakes Regional Watershed Alliance, as reported in Inside Climate News (October2024). 2024 Harmful Algal Bloom Report Data. https://insideclimatenews.org/news/23102024/new-york-finger-lakes-toxic-bloom-record/
• Inside Climate News (October 2024). Toxic Blooms in New York's Finger Lakes Set Recordin 2024. https://insideclimatenews.org/news/23102024/new-york-finger-lakes-toxic-bloom-record/
• New York State DEC. 2017–2018 Finger Lakes Water Quality Report (CSLAP). https://extapps.dec.ny.gov/docs/water_pdf/2018flwqreport.pdf
• Orihel, D.M., et al. (2017). Internal Phosphorus Loading in Canadian Fresh Waters.Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/cjfas-2016-0500
• Owasco Lake Watershed Nine-Element Plan for Phosphorus Reduction. https://waterfrontonline.blog/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/owasco9elementplanphosphorous.pdf
• OWLA. Judge Rules DOH Has Authority to Adopt Rules and Regulations. https://www.owla.org/news/judge-rules-that-the-state-department-of-health-has-the-authority-to-adopt-rules-and-regulations-to-protect-owasco-lake
• Steinman, A.D., et al. (2015). Laboratory-Determined Phosphorus Flux from Lake Sediments.Journal of Visualized Experiments. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4143148/
• Wallington, K., et al. (2023). Updating SWAT+ to Clarify Understanding of In-StreamPhosphorus. Water Resources Research. https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2022WR033283
• WaterFront / Peter Mantius (March 2023). As Cyanotoxins Soar in Owasco Lake. https://waterfrontonline.blog/2023/03/31/as-cyanotoxins-soar-in-owasco-lake-threatening-tap-water-cayuga-county-ends-support-for-water-monitoring/

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Sign up for CSLAP!What is CSLAP? – NYSFOLA

Welcome to AquaDiary, where the gap between water issues and scientific reality finally gets filled in.

Understanding Water, Beneath the Surface.

You’ve seen the stories: water contamination scares, mysterious lake phenomena, harmful algal blooms, fish kills, water crises, shifting water laws. But what do they actually mean? And how concerned should you be?

Behind every story is context that rarely makes it into the hands of the public. Scientists understand it. Reporters summarize it. But the full picture often gets lost somewhere in translation.

This is a podcast for anyone who drinks water, lives near a waterbody, or has ever wondered about water science and the manmade systems that manage it. No technical background or fancy lab coat required.

Together, we’ll build a foundation in water science so you can understand the how and the why behind any story you encounter. We’ll unpack complex headlines, explore recurring environmental issues, explain water science and manmade systems, and dive into lake mysteries and folklore that keep curiosity alive.

This is the story of water: explained clearly, honestly, and directly to you.

If there’s a topic you’d like covered, leave a comment.

On the night of August 21, 1986, the residents of Cameroon's Nyos valley went to sleep and never woke up. Nearly 1,700 people and thousands of livestock were found dead by morning. No signs of struggle, no visible cause. Just silence and 4 very confused survivors.

The lake was the murderer.

In this episode, we cover the full story of Lake Nyos: the night of the disaster, the survivors who described a strange smell and sudden darkness, the scientists who pieced together what happened, and the remarkable engineering now keeping it from happening again.

We also break down the science of limnic eruptions: how volcanic CO₂ silently accumulates in deep water under immense pressure, what causes a lake to suddenly "explode," and which lakes around the world (Lake Kivu) are still primed to do the same thing today.

This is a story about geology, chemistry, tragedy, survival, and what happens when nature operates by rules most of us never knew existed.

Resources:

• Kling, G.W. et al. (1987). The1986 Lake Nyos Gas Disaster in Cameroon, West Africa. Science, 236(4798). — Thefoundational post-disaster scientific paper.
• Evans, W.C. et al. (2005).Degassing Lakes Nyos and Monoun: Defusing Certain Disaster. Proceedings of theNational Academy of Sciences. https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.0502274102
• Halbwachs, M. et al. (2020).Final Step of the 32-Year Lake Nyos Degassing Adventure. Journal of AfricanEarth Sciences.https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1464343X19302286
• Anzidei, M. et al. (2023).Evidence of Lake Nyos-Type Behavior in the Geological Record: A Review.ScienceDirect.https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0012825223002921
• Britannica: Lake Nyos Disaster.https://www.britannica.com/event/Lake-Nyos-disaster
• Atlas Obscura: The InvisibleThreat Beneath Cameroon's Deadly Lake Nyos.https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/lake-nyos-1986
• Mental Floss: Killer Lakes — WhyLimnic Eruptions May Be the World's Rarest Natural Disasters.https://www.mentalfloss.com/science/geology/limnic-eruptions-volcanic-lakes
• HowStuffWorks: How Did Lake NyosSuddenly Kill 1,700 People?https://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/earth/geophysics/lake-nyos.htm
• FairPlanet: Cameroon: Lake NyosDisaster Survivors Afflicted by Civil War.https://www.fairplanet.org/story/glimmer-of-hope-for-lake-nyos-disaster-survivors/
• VOA News: Cameroon Lake NyosDisaster Survivors Feel Abandoned.https://www.voanews.com/a/survivors-1986-lake-nyos-disaster-cameroon/3474673.html
• University of Michigan —CO2-Driven Lake Eruptions resource.https://websites.umich.edu/~youxue/lakeerupt.htm

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The AquaDiary Podcast | Patreon

Syracuse, New York gets its drinking water directly from Skaneateles Lake. No filtration plant, no treatment beyond chlorination... and it has worked perfectly for 130 years. Then in 2024, the lake recorded 145 confirmed harmful algal blooms. The year before: 19. This episode is about what changed, what the science actually shows, and what 165,000 people probably don't know about the water coming out of their tap.Environmental scientist Ally and Finger Lakes local covers the full story: the strange mechanism shaking phosphorus loose from the lakebed, the research from Syracuse University and SUNY ESF happening right now, the gaps in the watershed management plan, what you should and shouldn't do if you have a private intake, and a cautionary reference to Toledo, Ohio — where 400,000 people lost safe tap water for three days in 2014. Toledo had a filtration plant. It still failed. Syracuse doesn't.This is not a scare piece. The finished drinking water tested clean in 2024. But the trajectory is worth understanding before it becomes a crisis instead of a question. Only 165,000 people depend on it.

Citations are not included in this episode as it exceeded the character limit.

Please support the show on Patreon for $3 a month to see the full citations and script before it's released. https://www.patreon.com/c/TheAquaDiaryPodcast

Bottled water is less regulated, less safe, and less transparent than your tap — and the industry spent billions making sure you never found out.

In this episode of AquaDiary, environmental scientist Ally breaks down the science, the scandals, and the corporate playbook behind the bottled water industry. From FDA loopholes and hidden contamination to Nestlé pumping 130 million gallons for $200 a year while Flint had no clean water. This is the episode the bottled water industry doesn't want you to see.

What we cover:

1. Why bottled water is regulated by the FDA (not the EPA), and what that actually means for your safety
2. 45–64% of bottled water is just filtered tap water with a mountain on the label
3. The 60,000% markup you're paying, and where that money goes
4. Bottled water contamination cases the public was never told about
5. How chemicals leach from plastic bottles into your water
6. The Nestlé extraction scandal, and the communities that fought back
7. What 23 million private well users need to know
8. What you should actually drink, and how to filter it affordably

Read your water quality report free at EPA.gov. Test your well. Know what's in your glass.

Well water test kit recommendations + affiliate links:

• Varify: https://amzn.to/4eTDaHh
• Tapscore: https://amzn.to/3OChncN
• Safe Home: https://amzn.to/49ogLOP

Full reference list available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/TheAquaDiaryPodcast

Lead pipes and lead poisonings aren't problems we've solved. They're under streets across the country right now, and new evidence suggests the problem is significantly larger than official data ever indicated.

In this episode, environmental scientist Ally breaks down the full story of lead in American drinking water: the aging infrastructure nobody wants to pay to fix, the chemistry that keeps most of us safe and exactly what destroys it, and the cities across New York and the northeast with lead levels that should be making national headlines.

What we cover:

1. How East Coast water infrastructure came to be
2. The science inside lead pipes that most reporting gets wrong
3. What really happened in Flint — and the one detail nobody explains
4. New York cities with lead levels higher than Flint at its worst
5. A new study suggesting utilities manipulated lead reporting data5. What lead exposure does to children and adults
6. Five things you can do to protect yourself starting today

There is no safe level of lead exposure. But there are things you can do, and understanding the science is the first one.

• 🔗 EPA certified filter guide: https://www.epa.gov/water-research/consumer-tool-identifying-point-use-and-pitcher-filters-certified-reduce-lead
• 🔗 NRDC lead pipe interactive map: https://www.nrdc.org/resources/lead-pipes-are-widespread-and-used-every-state
• 🔗 NY lead service line map (NYLCVEF): https://nylcvef.org/lead-service-lines-in-new-york-state-interactive-map/
• 🔗 Syracuse lead service line map: https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/f6f39da4d69b436584b174de9fddf2d8
• Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/TheAquaDiaryPodcast