MONROE, MI (AP)-- State officials in Michigan say voluntary efforts are paying off to cut down the pollutants feeding algae in Lake Erie.
Michigan's agriculture director says data shows the amount of phosphorus going into the lake from a tributary in southeastern Michigan has been cut in half over the last seven years.
Algae blooms have become an annual problem in the lake and in Ohio it led to the shutdown of Toledo's drinking water system just over a year ago.
An official with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality says the state also has made progress in lowering the amount of phosphorus that comes out of Detroit's wastewater plant and makes its way into the lake.
Ohio, Michigan and Ontario, Canada, have pledged to cut the flow of phosphorus.
