Corn Subsidies Fuel Toxic Algae Blooms
The author is a Sophomore at Laurel School in Ohio. Laurel School is YEPT’s first-ever state Chapter. To inquire about becoming a YEPT Chapter, contact our adult advisor at Jim@earthcharterindiana.org
As spring dawns its face and the frigid winter ice fades into history, early season application of agricultural fertilizer is just getting started. In a few months, the bodies of water into which these farmlands drain will harbor the growth of a toxic amount of algae.
Although pre-industrial and organic societies have used natural manures in agriculture for centuries, the nitrogen-based synthetic fertilizers employed today by the vast majority of US farmers were developed in 1908 by German chemists Fritz Haber and Carl Bosche. When these nutrient-packed applications run-off into nearby lakes, reservoirs, and waterways, the excess of nitrogen and phosphorus feed rapid algae growth. Large-scale algal blooms can produce enough toxins to be harmful to plant and animal life in contact with or in the water.
According to NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, “[harmful algal blooms] occur more often, last longer, and have spread to new places.” In addition to being detrimental to ecosystems and biodiversity, algae blooms are expensive. Algae blooms threaten the jobs of fishermen, lower coastline housing values, decrease tourism income, pose risks to public health including the safety of drinking water, and require expensive fixes from the government.
In August of 2014, intense algal bloom conditions in the western Lake Erie basin resulted in contamination of Toledo drinking water. Nearly half a million residents could not drink their tap water. “Every year we hold our breath to make sure that we can drink our water again,” said Toledo community organizer Alica Smith in a 2024 interview with the Ohio NewsRoom, a decade after the event.
A satellite view of a 2017 harmful algal bloom in Lake Erie. Credit: NASA Earth Observatory
To make matters worse, the US government heavily subsidizes one of the most nitrogen intensive crops: corn. At $116 billion in cumulative payments between 1995 and 2023, corn receives the most government subsidies of any US crop. This is more than twice what the second most heavily subsidized crop receives. Corn is also the most nitrogen intensive of the five largest US crops, comparing the nitrogen recommendations of corn, rice, wheat, soybeans, and cotton.
Of this corn, about 59% is used as fuel in the form of ethanol, 40% goes to feeding livestock, and only 1% is food grade. US “specialty” crops (fruits and vegetables) insurance subsidies are equal to only 17% of “traditional” crops (corn, soy, cotton, rice, and wheat) subsidies as of 2021 according to a US congress report. The vast majority of crop subsidization does not go to feeding the population, rather to supporting less energy efficient animal agriculture products — foods associated with adverse health outcomes.
In addition to algal blooms resulting from fertilizer runoff, long term use of these synthetic, nitrogen-based fertilizers contributes to soil degradation and nutrient depletion, furthering the necessity for and levels of fertilizer application.
In Ohio, after two decades of tracking the progression of toxic algal blooms in Lake Erie, a new initiative, H2Ohio, was launched in 2019 to improve lake water quality. H2Ohio’s goal as stated on its website is to “reduce algal blooms, stop pollution, and improve access to clean drinking water by supporting best farming practices, road salt runoff reduction, litter cleanup, dam removal, land conservation, and water infrastructure revitalization.”
In a 2023 statement about his new initiative, Ohio governor Mike Dewine said, "We know that river health in Ohio has improved tremendously in the last several decades, but there is still more work to do…Water is one of Ohio's greatest assets, and my administration is dedicated to protecting this invaluable resource."
But on March 26, 2025, Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman announced plans for a 44% ($120 million) cut to the program over the next two years. In response, Great Lakes water program director for the National Wildlife Federation, Gail Hesse, stated, "Slashing funding for H2Ohio isn’t just a budget cut — it’s a gamble with Ohio’s water, health, and economy. Harmful algal blooms don’t negotiate, and they don’t take years off. Without sustained investment in proven solutions like wetland restoration and agricultural best practices, we’re inviting another crisis like Toledo’s 2014 drinking water shutdown.”
Corn is still heavily subsidized.
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