Another wetter-than-average Ohio spring has experts worried that severe toxic-algae problems will return to Lake Erie this summer.

Storms that drenched northwestern Ohio have so far this year nearly doubled the average amount of phosphorus that washes off farm fields each spring and flows down the Maumee River to Lake Erie. Phosphorus, a key ingredient in fertilizers, helps blue-green algae grow.

Jeffrey Reutter, director of the Ohio Sea Grant Program, shared the data during an Ohio Senate Finance Subcommittee hearing yesterday. He said it doesn’t guarantee that a record algae bloom will spread across the lake as it did during the summer of 2011.

The International Joint Commission (IJC) today released a report on how the health of the Great Lakes has changed over the past 25 years.

While sustained governmental and public efforts have measurably improved Great Lakes water quality, rapid reduction in ice cover and the resurgence of some pollutants like excess nutrients are among the indicators currently raising concerns. Based on contributions from a wide range of U.S. and Canadian experts, the report reveals a mix of achievements and challenges.

"With the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement just revised in 2012, both Canada and the U.S. have renewed and strengthened their commitment to protect and restore the Great Lakes," said Joe Comuzzi, Canadian Chair of the IJC. "Tight budgets on both sides of the border mean that cooperation and coordination of clean-up efforts are even more important, and the recommendations in this report can help."

Don’t be alarmed if you notice hundreds of dead fish appearing in and around the various shores of Lake Ontario, there’s nothing fishy about them.

The fish in question, more commonly known as the alewife, is prone to large seasonal mortalities in the Great Lakes as they suffer from a number of stressors that often occur simultaneously in the spring.

WATERLOO REGION — They have no natural predators, eat nearly everything in sight and can take over lakes and rivers like an invading army.

Conservationists are sounding the alarm after a 40-pound Asian grass carp, an invasive species of monster fish that has wreaked havoc in U.S. waterways, was caught by an angler last week in the mouth of the Grand River near Dunnville.

“They have the power to remake an aquatic ecosystem to meet their needs and they just push out the native species,” said Dave Schultz, spokesperson for the Grand River Conservation Authority.

This year’s fishing season is starting on the wheels of stocking trucks, new regulations and programs to attract more participants.

The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) said its $9 million program is stocking 19 million fish – 370 tons – including eight trout and salmon species and four cool-water species, including walleye and muskellunge.

This year, DNR’s fish-stocking vehicles will travel nearly 138,000 miles to more than 700 spots around the state.