Jul 7, 2021 (COLUMBUS, Ohio) -- Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) Director Dorothy Pelanda announced today that H2Ohio's farmer incentive program is expanding into 10 additional counties in the Western Lake Erie Basin. The program, which offers funding to farmers who implement proven conservation practices that limit agricultural phosphorus runoff from fertilizer, is now open to farmers in Seneca, Huron, Erie, Wyandot, Richland, Shelby, Sandusky, Marion, Ottawa, and Crawford counties, bringing the total number of counties eligible for the program to 24. Phosphorus runoff is the primary factor behind algal blooms on Lake Erie. "Our food growers and producers in the Western Lake Erie Basin want to be part of the solution, as evidenced by the 1,800 farmers who participated in the program's first year," said Governor DeWine. "By expanding H2Ohio's farmer incentive program into more counties in the area, we'll continue to slow phosphorus runoff, which will ultimately contribute to a reduction in Lake Erie algal blooms over the long term."