News
Phosphorus-fighting projects get $400,000 from Canadian government

Five southwestern Ontario projects to find ways to keep phosphorus out of the Thames River, one of the biggest contributors of phosphorus to Lake Erie, are getting a boost with $400,000 in federal and provincial cash.

The money from senior governments will help test ways to remove phosphorus from water whether in farm drainage systems or municipal pumping stations. The five projects, selected from a pool of 11, include various strategies and technologies to remove phosphorus from water, including absorbent materials, filtration systems and specialized technologies that react with phosphorus particles to create a product that can be removed from water. 

“These projects will test different technology and determine their practicality, and we’ll be able to get a sense of the costs of what works. At the end of the day, it needs to be very practical so farmers can do it themselves,” said Charles Lalonde, project director for the Thames River phosphorus reduction collaborative. Since 2009, London, one of the major cities involved, reduced the amount of phosphorus it sends to the Thames River by 30 percent. | READ MORE