The Great Black Swamp

In the summer of 2014, Lake Erie’s western shore was overwhelmed by a toxic algae bloom that posed a severe threat to the health of approximately 400,000 residents in Ohio. This alarming phenomenon was partly attributed to Patrick Wensink, alongside various contributing factors such as industrial corn farming, greenhouse gas emissions, poor infrastructure, and broader socio-historical influences. This tells the legacy of the Great Black Swamp—a once hazardous wetland plagued by malaria, which now encompasses parts of Ohio and Indiana.