The Worst Red Tide Bloom in a Decade Is Wiping Out Marine Life in Florida

Algal blooms like these happen annually in Florida, but this summer blooms affecting the Gulf and Florida’s Lake Okeechobee are having a devastating impact on tourism and the environment. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

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Devastating algal blooms have swept across Florida’s Gulf Coast and waterways like Lake Okeechobee in recent months, and some are calling the proliferation the worst in over a decade.

In a recent Instagram post, Kelly Slater posted a handful of images and videos that have gone viral – depicting dead fish, birds, turtles, and manatees suffering from the unprecedented proliferation of the algae, Karenia brevis, commonly known as “red tide.” His post targeted algal blooms in Lake Okeechobee, the nation’s second largest freshwater lake, and continued efforts by the sugar industry to delay cleanup efforts. According to an article in the Orlando Sentinel, algal blooms in the lake are tied directly to warmer temperatures and nutrients from cattle ranches and farms. Two years ago, the article explains, the sugar industry successfully lobbied the state to push back a cleanup deadline another 20 years. On Monday, Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a state of emergency in an effort to make resources available to tourism operators facing a major downturn due to the algae.

#SouthFlorida has been inundated with a toxic algae infestation directly tied to the #BigSugar industry. They’re in a state of emergency. Dead manatees, turtles, dolphins, fish, etc. inundating beaches and waterways has become the norm as of late. Some shark migrations have also dwindled offshore. A small snippet from one news article reads….’On issue after issue, regulators, legislators and governors have erred on the side of softening the impact of adverse rules and regulations on cane growers and other powerful and polluting agriculture interests, including cattle operations north of Lake Okeechobee. The sugar industry beat back a voter-approved amendment that would have forced it to pay for cleaning up its own nutrient-rich runoff into the Everglades, instead shifting much of the cost to taxpayers. Etc, etc, etc’. When boats hit manatees they create speed limits and slow zones but when the whole place goes south and everything dies, nobody seems to be doing much to fix it, seemingly due to the players at hand and their power in influencing state government decisions. On a separate issue, The #IndianRiverLagoon system in #CentralFlorida suffers from pesticide runoff, sewage overflows (20M gallons of raw sewage spilled/released into the rivers during Hurricane Irma), and brown algae caused from a number of different sources killing sea grass which feeds and protects manatees, fish, and crustaceans. Oysters, clams, scallops, and fish have been dying en masse for years in water devoid of oxygen that looks more like olive-brown/red chocolate soup. The bloom in the #CocoaBeach area has been going on so long it’s hard to remember the last time our canals and rivers were clear. As kids we ate fish and clams from the rivers. Today, I wouldn’t even think about it. In 2013, 50 dolphins, 111 manatees, and around 300 pelicans died in the Indian River Lagoon. This year looks to be starting with prime conditions for algal blooms earlier in the summer. I’m not sure what the solutions are and I can’t seem to get any solid info about what’s being done to resolve the problems. Maybe this is a good place to start and get to the right people. Thoughts? #EverythingsDying

A post shared by Kelly Slater (@kellyslater) on Aug 2, 2018 at 12:49am PDT

In the Gulf, a red tide has gone on unabated for roughly nine months having a similar impact on coastal tourism and the environment. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, the algae attacks animals’ central nervous system with a lethal toxin called brevetoxin.

This year alone, red tide has killed nearly 80 of the already-vulnerable population of Florida Manatees. And the tides have certainly turned to reveal less-than-ideal photos of once-packed beaches. The algal bloom has left a trail of dead fish scattered along frequent summer hotspots like Siesta Key and Fort Myers; and these images are spreading as fast as the algal bloom, itself.

Red tides like these are by no means a new phenomenon. They typically occur every summer as temperatures climb. And while some researchers argue that climate change is likely to result in more frequent and longer-lasting algal blooms in fresh water. Oceanic researchers argue it’s difficult to pinpoint climate change as the main culprit in the oceans. “[We] don’t have enough data to really answer the question,” Richard P. Stumpf of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration told the New York Times.

Floridian’s and tourists are asking that action be taken to curb the impacts of algal blooms so they can revisit the beaches they love again.

“It is nasty here,” wrote Beth Camisa, from Englewood, in a Facebook post. “Haven’t been to the beach in weeks.”