Discovering a Potential Treatment for Health Effects of Algal Toxin Exposure
2024-05-16 12:00 - 12:30 (America/Chicago)
Microcystins are some of the most abundant and potent harmful algal bloom toxins and have emerged as a public health concern due to the potential to cause severe organ injury including liver damage. While currently there are no targeted therapies to protect against microcystin exposure, previous research found that naturally occurring bacteria from Lake Erie had the ability to degrade algal toxins such as microcystin.
Drs. Steven Haller and David Kennedy of The University of Toledo have made significant progress in discovering a potential treatment for microcystin exposure through probiotics. Researchers ran in vitro experiments on human liver cells as well as model experiments on mice to find out if microcystin-degrading bacteria can function as probiotics to protect against organ damage from toxin exposure.
Join this Ohio Sea Grant Freshwater Webinar on May 16 to learn more!

Algal Bloom Action Team Webinar: Cyanobacteria in the Context of Climate Change
2024-06-05 11:00 - 12:00
This webinar focuses on cyanobacteria in the context of global climate change, including nitrate, reduced ice cover, and increased temperatures and light. Tune in to learn about the work of Rebecca North, Associate Professor at the University of Missouri’s School of Natural Resources and Silvia Newell, Director of Michigan Sea Grant and Professor at the University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability.

North Central Region Water Network Webinar - Multistate Water Work in Action
2024-06-12 14:00 - 15:00
The North Central Region Water Network is celebrating the 100th edition of The Current Webinar Series! To celebrate this milestone they will showcase several examples of multistate water work that are expanding the scope and positive impact of programs through multistate partnerships. This will include:

The Confluence for Watershed Leaders program
The Conservation Drainage Network, and
The upcoming North Central Agriculture and Climate Conference

Iowa Learning Farms Webinar: Understanding Cereal Rye N Cycling Benefits and Risks
2024-06-19 12:00 - 13:00
This Iowa Learning Farms (ILF) conservation webinar will feature Richard Roth, assistant professor and extension nitrogen education specialist, Iowa State University. His research and extension program at Iowa State University focuses on engineering and optimizing nitrogen and sulfur management strategies to improve the efficiency and environmental sustainability of cropping systems in the Midwest.
Roth will provide an overview of cereal rye cover crop systems and discuss how adopting cereal rye influences nitrogen cycling and potential subsequent impacts on growing crops. He will also introduce and highlight some management options to help overcome potential risks from the impacts of cereal rye on nitrogen cycling.
“Cereal rye is excellent at scavenging nitrogen from the soil profile, but not great at returning that nitrogen to the soil in a plant available form for growing crops,” said Roth. “Cover crops, specifically cereal rye, are one of the most effective tools in a farmer’s toolbox to help improve soil health and minimize nutrient losses from their fields, but understanding potential risks associated with cover crop adoption is key to success in these systems. I hope that participants learn the potential risks associated with cereal rye but also gain an understanding that shifts in management can be made to help overcome the risk.”

Webinar: Ruination to Restoration to Revitalization: The Story of a Great Lakes Area of Concern
2024-06-27 12:00 - 13:00 | Arkansas Water Resources Center
This Water Webinar will focus on the restoration of Muskegon Lake and its wetlands in Michigan. The presentation will cover water quality, ecosystem restoration, and socioeconomics. Muskegon Lake is a coastal river mouth lake with a history of environmental issues. Many restoration efforts reconnecting wetlands have improved water quality and lake habitat. A wetland restoration project reduced phosphorus concentrations from over 0.8 ppm (mg/L) to 0.03 ppm (mg/L), wow! Research efforts provided a sound basis for restoration design and implementation. These restoration efforts also showed a 5.8:1 return on investment with $1 billion in increased in shoreline development. The region experienced unexpected issues about public access and “blue gentrification.” A water [success!] story from which we all can learn here in Arkansas and across the USA.
SPEAKERS: Dr. Alan Steinman, PhD, Allen and Helen Hunting Research Professor, Robert B. Annis Water Resources Institute, Grand Valley State University, Allendale, Michigan

HABs/Algae 101 Webinar
2024-07-25 18:00 - 19:30
Join Michigan Sea Grant and partners for a FREE webinar all about algae, the tiny living things at the foundation of aquatic food webs. Learn about algae’s vital role in aquatic ecosystems and get to know cladophora, didymo, and other types of algae that cause problems.
Topic speakers will include:
Algal Ecology: Julianne Heinlein, Great Lakes Environmental Center
Cladophora/Green algae: Marcella Domka, Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council
Didymo: Jordyn Stoll, Trout Unlimited
Golden brown algae: R. Jan Stevenson, MSU (retired)

ILF Webinar: “Phosphorus Exchanges Between a River and its Floodplain”
2024-08-14 12:00 - 13:00
In the webinar, “Phosphorus Exchanges Between a River and its Floodplain,” Pete Moore will provide highlights and data from an ongoing study aimed at quantifying the inputs and outputs of sediment and sediment-borne phosphorus in the Nishnabotna River watershed located in southwest Iowa. He will present key results to date and what they suggest about opportunities and constraints for phosphorus management. Moore will also discuss the processes by which phosphorus is transported between water and floodplains. Streambank erosion is a significant source of phosphorus in waterways.
Moore is adjunct assistant professor, natural resource ecology and management at Iowa State University, and a geomorphologist who studies the erosion, transport, and deposition of sediment across the landscape.

Iowa Nutrient Research Center's Fall 2024 Seminar Series: Trends
2024-11-13 15:10 - 16:10 | 1306 Elings Hall, 605 Bissell Road, Ames, Iowa, United States
Nutrient and Sediment Loads Measured from the Chesapeake Bay River Input Monitoring Network
Presenter: Jimmy Webber, hydrologist, U.S. Geological Survey
Nutrient and sediment loads are changing over time in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. This presentation will describe how the USGS uses a river monitoring network to assess these water-quality trends. Recent load and trend results from this monitoring network will be presented and discussed in context with Chesapeake Bay water-quality goals.
In person: Elings Hall
Online: https://iastate.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0rduuhqzIsHNKqy1wf-NG2YvduKoOhzStH#/registration
