Author Topic: Horrendous Red Tide and Bluegreen Algae Blooms in Florida  (Read 10288 times)

FloridaWindSUP

  • Sunset Status
  • ****
  • Posts: 335
  • Marine Biologist, Riviera Paddlesurf Ambassador
    • View Profile
    • James' Blog
Horrendous Red Tide and Bluegreen Algae Blooms in Florida
« on: August 05, 2018, 02:00:04 PM »
I'm not sure if this is making it to the national news yet, but we are in the midst of a colossal environmental disaster in South Florida, on the scale of last summer's hurricanes, or the Exxon Valdez or Deepwater Horizon oil spills, or the mega California wildfires.

Millions of fishes, hundreds of sea turtles and manatees, dolphins, and even giant whale sharks are dying and washing up on the shores of our lakes, rivers, estuaries, and beachfronts. The culprits are two types of toxic algae blooms of unprecedented size; freshwater bluegreen algae (a cyanobacteria; Microcystis aeruginosa) and saltwater red tide (a dinoflagellate; Karenia brevis). The culprit behind both deadly blooms seems to be excess nutrient input from various forms of pollution, due to decades of rampant reckless development concurrent with a systematic dismantling of the state's environmental regulatory capacity by the current corrupt governor, commissioner of agriculture, attorney general, etc. 

Though the red tide has been simmering since October, it really metastasized about a month ago, at the same time that the bluegreen algae bloom was exploding. A lot of it relates to botched "replumbing" of Lake Okeechobee, which is now drained through canals to the East and West coasts instead of flowing south and filtering through the Everglades. 

The consequences for SUP'ing have been serious. The beaches in SW Florida are almost all very badly afflicted, to the point where you start coughing and get headaches and itchy eyes as soon as you step out of the car, and the freshwater and estuarine areas with the bluegreen bloom are so putrid and toxic that no one would even dare put a board in. We've driven inland to a few blackwater rivers that flow out of unpolluted swamps and are still relatively safe. It's a bad, bad situation, though.

If you want to learn more, I wrote a blog about it.

http://jimbodouglass.blogspot.com/2018/07/eutrophication-word-every-floridian.html
14x23 Riviera RP
14x27.25 Fanatic Falcon
11'8 Exocet WindSUP
10'4 Angulo WindSUP
...and a bunch of windsurf stuff

spirit4earth

  • Peahi Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 875
    • View Profile
Re: Horrendous Red Tide and Bluegreen Algae Blooms in Florida
« Reply #1 on: August 05, 2018, 06:06:53 PM »
That’s heartbreaking.  It has made it to the news, but because human life hasn’t been lost, it hasn’t been getting much coverage, unfortunately.

Tom

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 2993
    • View Profile
Re: Horrendous Red Tide and Bluegreen Algae Blooms in Florida
« Reply #2 on: August 05, 2018, 06:08:54 PM »
Im starting to see more  on the national news but have been seeing the devastation on some environmental sites I follow.  Alot of people are blaming `big sugar ` and the Florida government. Not sure what's behind those accusations.

Ichabod Spoonbill

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 2174
  • Hudson Valley, NY
    • View Profile
    • HVH2O
    • Email
Re: Horrendous Red Tide and Bluegreen Algae Blooms in Florida
« Reply #3 on: August 05, 2018, 06:15:23 PM »
Tom, from what I understand, these algae blooms are coming from an excess of nutrients in the water from agricultural runoff. Since sugar is the main crop, their fertilizers seem to be the culprit. It's most likely a combination of things, but the sugar runoff the main one.
Pau Hana 11' Big EZ Ricochet (Beluga)

cocoloco

  • Waikiki Status
  • *
  • Posts: 5
    • View Profile
    • Email
Re: Horrendous Red Tide and Bluegreen Algae Blooms in Florida
« Reply #4 on: August 05, 2018, 06:30:05 PM »
Thanks for the article. Will share with fellow surfers and paddlers here in Miami Beach. I could not believe how much seaweed we have been wading through before reaching clear water recently! I can't remember it being worse than this. keep us posted on what else we can do.

burchas

  • Custom Built
  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 2508
    • View Profile
    • Email
Re: Horrendous Red Tide and Bluegreen Algae Blooms in Florida
« Reply #5 on: August 05, 2018, 07:46:12 PM »
Had the "pleasure" to experience that shit few months back on the your side. As you say, HORRENDOUS and SAD :'(
in progress...

gone_foiling

  • Sunset Status
  • ****
  • Posts: 460
    • View Profile
    • Email
Re: Horrendous Red Tide and Bluegreen Algae Blooms in Florida
« Reply #6 on: August 05, 2018, 09:25:42 PM »
Had the "pleasure" to experience that shit few months back on the your side. As you say, HORRENDOUS and SAD :'(

You ain’t seen nothing yet, my friend. Outrageous. Been to the beach twice since I came from maui.
Addicted to foiling at the moment.
My shenanigans on insta @gone_foiling

burchas

  • Custom Built
  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 2508
    • View Profile
    • Email
Re: Horrendous Red Tide and Bluegreen Algae Blooms in Florida
« Reply #7 on: August 06, 2018, 09:01:11 AM »
Had the "pleasure" to experience that shit few months back on the your side. As you say, HORRENDOUS and SAD :'(

You ain’t seen nothing yet, my friend. Outrageous. Been to the beach twice since I came from maui.

Sorry buddy! I feel your pain. I guess all the more reasons to move...
in progress...

eastbound

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 2995
    • View Profile
Re: Horrendous Red Tide and Bluegreen Algae Blooms in Florida
« Reply #8 on: August 06, 2018, 01:58:50 PM »
clearly we need less government and less regulation

the "invisible hand" is taking good care of our health and that of our precious environment

youd think protection of our environment and precious natural resources would not be a partisan issue

NOT

what a revolting situation the likes of scott zinke pruitt and their ilk are actively perpetrating

i mean look at FL, where tons of lawns are now underwater at high tide for most of every month--scott made it illegal to mention climate change in any state documents!!!!!

look at the sugar industry in FL--theyve bought politicians off for years, and received loosened environmental regulation--and, on top of that, they've received subsidies to overproduce--SUBSIDIES--while they trash the ecology of FL--democracy?? whuhhh--you mean kleptocracy

can america wake up? i mean yeah, racists and the rich have a lot to be happy about, but what of the rest of us?

sorry but this thread cant be other than political--yeah this is sad and ill pray and all--but politicians have shepherded FL to this situation--they need badly to be voted out
Portal Barra 8'4"
Sunova Creek 8'7"
Starboard Pro Blue Carbon  8'10"
KeNalu Mana 82, xTuf, ergoT

 


SimplePortal 2.3.7 © 2008-2024, SimplePortal