In 1969, scientists began fertilising Ontario’s Lake 227 with nitrogen and phosphorus; they stopped adding nitrogen in 1990, but annual algal blooms continued for decades as phosphorus additions remained https://www.byteseu.com/2402049/ #AlgalBlooms #eutrophication #ExperimentalLakesArea #FreshwaterEcosystems #InternationalInstituteForSustainableDevelopment #Lake227 #LongTermEcologicalResearch #NitrogenFixingCyanobacteria #NutrientManagement #PhosphorusControl #Science
#algalblooms — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #algalblooms, aggregated by home.social.
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Nearly 1,700 sea dragons reported dead during SA's algal bloom
By Malcolm SuttonDragon Search SA has studied reports of dead sea dragons made during the state's harmful algal bloom amid hopes of boosting numbers as breeding season nears.
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Citizen scientists maintain dolphin vigilance amid bird flu threat
By Caroline HornThroughout the algal bloom crisis, citizen scientists off the coast of South Australia helped with research. Now, with deadly bird flu impacting wildlife, they are taking to the ocean to keep watch.
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South Korea study finds algal blooms speed plastic bags’ path to microplastics
Every summer, algal blooms can transform lakes and rivers into thick, green soup. Now, researchers in South Korea…
#EuropeSays #Korea #KR #SouthKorea #algalblooms #disposableplastic #Microplastics #plasticbags #plasticsurface #plasticwaste #pollutionproblems
https://www.europesays.com/korea/106079/ -
Satellite images show when toxic algae flared up in the Blue Mesa Reservoir after some dry seasons in Colorado. #algalblooms
https://phys.org/news/2026-07-satellites-reveal-toxic-algal-blooms.html
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What science tells us about the algae bloom in the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool
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@metrochemgroup.wordpress.com
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However, when all that wastewater washed down the drain, it acted like a massive super-fertilizer for natural waterways. It triggered cataclysmic algal blooms (#eutrophication) that choked the oxygen out of lakes and rivers, killing off fish and ruining entire aquatic ecosystems. Zeolite 4A completely solved this by providing the same cleaning power with zero toxic environmental runoff. -
https://www.europesays.com/africa/204584/ Rainbow-colored phantom lakes emerge around Namibia’s ‘Great White Place’ — Earth from space #AlgalBlooms #GreatWhitePlace #Namibia #NASAEarthObservatory #RainbowColoredLakes #WildlifeConservation
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Barka aka Murray-Darling Rivers Algal Blooms https://overland.org.au/2025/09/south-australias-algal-bloom/
#AlgalBlooms #Art #Barka #EavBrennan #FossilFuels #illustration #MurrayDarling
#Rivers -
March 2026 #4Corners tv show #ToxicTide
https://iview.abc.net.au/video/NC2603H005S00July 2025
“As humans continue to pollute these environments with nutrients from wastewater treatment plants, urban, industrial and agricultural runoff, and as we continue to change and warm the climate, we will see more of these events; so monitoring and expanded research is needed.”
https://biodiversitycouncil.org.au/news/experts-outline-human-drivers-of-harmful-sa-algal-bloomMay 2025
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-05-24/sa-algal-bloom-outbreak/105300602 -
🌊 We blamed fertilizer. Turns out plastic is the quiet lever. Petroleum microfragments thin the grazers, algae scales. The bloom is a systems failure, bottom up plus top down. Food webs as collateral in a polymer economy.
On the other hand, warming waters, stronger stratification, altered currents, and extreme rainfall events all intensify blooms. Plastics may interact with these trends, but temperature and hydrology shifts are foundational drivers.
https://www.earth.com/news/plastic-pollution-may-be-supercharging-algae-blooms/ #AlgalBlooms
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‘We don’t see it stopping anytime soon’
Every day, crews have been hauling away up to 200 kilograms — or almost 450 pounds — of…
#NewsBeep #News #Wildlife #algalblooms #Australia #CA #Canada #harmfulalgalbloom #oceantemperatures #Science #SouthAustralian #theGuardian #UniversityofSouthAustralia
https://www.newsbeep.com/ca/144644/ -
SA Marine Mortality Events 2025
Data gathering for South Australia 2025 marine mortality events. This project is set to automatically add aquatic vertebrates and macroinvertebrates annotated 'dead' from Feb 2025 onwards.
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/sa-marine-mortality-events-2025
Toxic Algal Blooms enlarges. (July 2025)
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/jul/20/sas-toxic-algal-bloom-is-twice-the-size-of-the-act-has-killed-12000-animals-and-is-filling-even-the-experts-with-dread -
New publication: Light and temperature as triggers for surface filamentous green #algalblooms in shallow #freshwater systems. #climatechange #biodiversity #filamentousgreenalgae
https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.70169 -
Fossil fuels, Marine heatwaves and Runoff: The bloom pulsates
"Algal blooms are complex, but the prevailing theory is that the 2022-23 floods washed nutrients down the Murray-Darling Basin system and out to sea. A marine heatwave and an “upwelling” of nutrients from the bottom of the ocean combined to create the perfect conditions for Karenia mikimotoi to flourish."
>>
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/aug/25/were-trying-to-call-on-everybody-that-we-can-south-australia-scrambles-to-fight-its-pulsating-algal-bloom
#FoamAndBlooms #FossilFuels #ocean #RangeShift #AlgalBlooms #HABs #neurotoxins #FishKills #MarineLife #wildlife #ecosystems #pollution #floods #MDB -
🦪 Need someone to interview about the marine life around SA's #algalblooms?
🔦 Chat to today's #EXPERTSPOTLIGHT marine ecologist Dr Dominic McAfee from #UniofAdelaide
🔎 Find his details here: https://www.scimex.org/experts?name=dominic-mcafee&a=1158908
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@miki_lou "The new study details a timeline of algal bloom observations in Great Slave Lake, confirming they are a new phenomenon and becoming more frequent.
" 'This was quite a surprising result,' Cederwall said.
" 'It’s quite the unusual type of blooms that we’re seeing up here and kind-of the rapid change that we’ve been seeing.' "
https://cabinradio.ca/249051/news/environment/algal-blooms-becoming-more-common-in-great-slave-lake/
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#Spain: Authorities failed to manage record levels of #pollution from hundreds of #pig & #poultry farms. Years of unexplained #health complaints, severe #algalblooms & acute odour left businesses floundering & locals fearful to leave their homes. Culprits are… (1/2) www.euronews.com/green/2025/0...
Landmark ruling says Spanish p... -
#Spain: Authorities failed to manage record levels of #pollution from hundreds of #pig & #poultry farms. Years of unexplained #health complaints, severe #algalblooms & acute odour left businesses floundering & locals fearful to leave their homes. Culprits are… (1/2) www.euronews.com/green/2025/0...
Landmark ruling says Spanish p... -
@bouriquet You know, I thought that could be a solution, but some folks in Australia are thinking that might not be a good idea.
#Desalination and #AlgalBlooms
24 May, 2025
"The recent activation of the #Adelaide desalination plant and the coincidental toxic algal bloom causing the widespread deaths of marine fauna is cause for concern. As shown by the chlorophyll map above, the bloom including the toxic marine alga #KareniaMikimotoi occurred close to the Adelaide plant which discharges brine and maintenance chemicals into a relatively sheltered nearshore environment. Notably, to reduce harmful impacts, dispersion jets are used to rapidly dilute brine and potentially toxic chemicals at the point of discharge. In doing so, the strong jets can mobilise sediments and release nutrients and previously dormant cysts of toxic algal species including algae causing the current devastating bloom. The disturbance to nearshore sediments, and conditions favourable for rapid increase in the growth of toxic algae such as elevated temperature, nutrients, and sunlight, present plausible causes of the bloom. Such conditions are likely to be more prevalent with climate change. Public statements which exclude or aim to diminish the role of desalination discharge as a cause are inconsistent with desalination plants elsewhere in the world which have been associated with harmful algal blooms. This underscores the considerable risk presented by a proposed desalination plant off Port Lincoln which is adjacent to a designated aquaculture zone. It is generally recommended that desalination plants be situated on high energy coastlines away from valuable biological resources."
https://globalmarineresourcemanagement.com.au/2025/05/24/desalination-and-algal-blooms/
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#Algae May Speed Melting of Antarctic Ice https://eos.org/articles/newly-discovered-algae-may-speed-melting-of-antarctic-ice paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-57725-6
"On the basis of sampling and satellite images, the scientists estimated that #AlgalBlooms covered around 20% of the ice cap’s surface. The newly discovered algal communities may represent one of the largest photosynthetic habitats in #Antarctica... algae can contribute up to around 2% of the total daily melting on the ice cap."
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#DomoicAcid can also accumulate in #shellfish & small #fish that feed on the #algae, leading to poisoning in larger #marine animals & humans who consume contaminated #seafood.
Addressing the urgent need to monitor the impact of harmful #AlgalBlooms on #MarineSpecies requires collective strategies. The destructive #California #wildfires, which have contaminated our #oceans & are threatening #MarineLife, serve as a critical call to action for collaborative efforts to protect marine environments….
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#Wildfires, including the #EatonFire & #PalisadesFire, have significant repercussions on #marine #ecosystems. The ash & debris from these fires can enter waterways & eventually the #ocean, altering nutrient levels & fostering conditions favorable to the growth of harmful #AlgalBlooms. The #toxic byproducts from these fires can exacerbate #OceanWarming, further promoting the frequency of these toxic blooms. This can lead to increased production of #DomoicAcid.
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#DomoicAcid is a potent neurotoxin produced by certain phytoplankton species, which are significant contributors to harmful #AlgalBlooms. These toxins accumulate in the tissues of #MarineMammals & other #wildlife consuming contaminated prey. Recent changes in #ocean conditions,…intensified by #environmental factors such as the #EatonFire & #PalisadesFire, have accelerated the proliferation of these harmful algal blooms.
#ClimateCrisis #climate #MarineLife #wildfires #ecosystems #science
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New publication: Hydrological isolation accelerates #algalblooms in #floodplain lakes: Biomarker evidence from #DongtingLake, China and its satellite #lake. #pigmentbiomarkers #palaeoecology
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2025.123430 -
#AlgalBlooms can significantly affect #MicrobialCommunities in #WetlandEcosystems. Yi Wu et al. investigate the #TemporalPatterns of #SedimentBacterialCommunity structure and function succession during algal blooms in order to utilize microorganisms for #EcologicalManagement of algal blooms.
Details: https://doi.org/10.1093/jpe/rtae038 -
How Cleaning Up Harmful #AlgalBlooms Could Help Fight #ClimateChange
"BlueGreen’s method uses hydrogen peroxide to trigger programmed cell death, which results when the bacteria experience oxidative stress.
[However,]
Some substances that kill the algae can cause other kinds of bacteria to grow in the water instead. Others cause the algae to release all of the cyanotoxin within them when they die, poisoning fish and other organisms in the lake.." -
While commonly associated with the summer, algal blooms can also persist into the fall. As of late October 2024, blooms were still present along the southern shores of Lake Erie. #algalblooms #greatlakes
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New publication: The future of #algalblooms in lakes globally is in our hands. #climatechange #eutrophication #lakewaterquality #FossilFuels
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2024.122533 -
#Sewage dumped illegally in #Windermere over 3 years
by Joe Crowley
October 17, 2024"A water company repeatedly dumped millions of litres of raw sewage illegally into one of #ngland's most famous lakes over a three-year period, the BBC can reveal.
"More than 140 million litres of waste were pumped into Windermere between 2021 and 2023 at times when it was not permitted, our analysis shows, and #UnitedUtilities failed to report most of it.
"It means the company's #IllegalDumping of #sewage into the lake went on for far longer, and was far more extensive, than was previously known.
"United Utilities said some of its sewage releases into #Windermere were 'potentially non-compliant' but that it #SelfReports 'over 94% of potential pollution incidents to the #EnvironmentAgency'.
"Matt Staniek, a campaigner against sewage pollution and founder of #SaveWindermere, said Windermere was 'the jewel in the crown of the #LakeDistrict #NationalPark, and it's being used as an open sewer'.
"It is sometimes necessary to release sewage into rivers and lakes to stop the wastewater system from being overwhelmed by #HeavyRain but this #pollution can damage the environment, causing harmful #AlgalBlooms and even killing fish.
"In January this year - after BBC Panorama revealed the company had downplayed the severity of dozens of #pollution incidents, some involving Windermere - United Utilities retrospectively reported some discharges into the lake from October 2023 onwards."
Read more:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdrj70dynk1o#WaterIsLife #SelfReportingCompanies #Crapitalism #FishKill #IllegalDumping #UK
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Hunting down giant #viruses that attack tiny algae https://phys.org/news/2024-09-giant-viruses-tiny-algae.html
Single-cell RNA-seq of the rare #virosphere reveals the native hosts of giant viruses in the marine environment https://www.nature.com/articles/s41564-024-01669-y
"#GiantViruses inhabiting the oceans infect, among others, various species of single-celled #algae... Viral infection can cause a rapid collapse of #AlgalBlooms"
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A decade of dinoflagellate #genomics illuminating an enigmatic eukaryote cell https://bmcgenomics.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12864-024-10847-5
"#Dinoflagellates are a remarkable group of #protists, not only for their association with harmful #AlgalBlooms and #CoralReefs but also for their numerous characteristics deviating from the rules of eukaryotic biology. #Genome research on dinoflagellates has lagged due to their immense genome sizes in most species (~ 1-250 Gbp)."
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Sinking in Saltwater: #Maine’s #coastal #marshes at risk as sea levels rise
Between 28 and 57 percent of the state’s coastal marshes could disappear by the end of the century, victims of a rising sea, coastal #development and #PollutedRunoff.
By
Kate Cough
July 28, 2024PORTLAND — "It takes hundreds of years for a #SaltMarsh to form, for fine sediment brought in on the tides to settle in sections of shoreline sheltered from the worst of the wind and waves. As salt-tolerant plants — smooth #cordgrass, #SaltmarshHay, #saltgrass, #BlackRush — begin to grow, their dense stems and roots trap more sediment, and the marsh builds more rapidly, up and out.
"#Crabs, #shrimp and #worms arrive, drawn to the rich food of dying marsh grasses, followed by a variety of #fish — #alewives, #StripedBass, #smelt and Sea-run #BrookTrout among them — many of which eventually migrate between the marsh and the sea.
logo for the sinking in saltwater series"Acre by acre, a healthy salt marsh anchors a #FoodWeb 'more productive than most midwestern #farmland,' according to a 2003 paper published by the University of Maine.
"The same dense grasses that are so good at trapping silt also excel at ensnaring pollutants, pulling out nitrogen and nutrients that cause #AlgalBlooms, and burying #toxic #contaminants in the peat.
"Once established, plants in salt marshes grow quickly, fed by the rich soil, and pull #carbon from the atmosphere. Salt marshes are ten times more effective at storing carbon than tropical forests, and, left undisturbed, can trap the gas in the ground for centuries, a phenomenon scientists refer to as 'blue carbon.'
"Maine has some of the most extensive blue carbon reservoirs in the northeast — second only to Massachusetts, according to a study published by the Environmental Protection Agency in 2023.
"But as sea levels rise and development presses in, these reservoirs, and the habitats they create, are at risk of disappearing.
"An analysis by the University of Maine suggests that a significant portion of the Maine’s salt marshes — between 28 and 57 percent, depending on the sea level rise scenario — could be gone by the end of the century. They are also threatened by polluted runoff from #pesticides, #septic systems and #AgriculturalWaste.
"'The decisions Mainers make over the next 10 years are going to determine whether these important ecosystems persist,' said Bates professor Beverly Johnson, who has been studying blue carbon for years, speaking to The #MaineClimateCouncil in December.
"Over the past 25 years, nearly 300 acres of Maine’s wetlands — both fresh and saltwater — have been impacted by or lost to development, according to a Press Herald/Maine Monitor analysis of data from the state’s In Lieu Fee Compensation Program. The program allows developers to fill or convert certain #wetlands if they pay a fee, money that is used for conservation projects elsewhere."
Read more:
https://themainemonitor.org/sinking-in-saltwater/#BlueCarbon #SeaLevelRise #SaveTheMarshes #SaveTheWetlands #SaveSearsIsland #ScarboroughMarsh #SaveSmilingHillFarm #GorhamConnector #RedBrook #WaterIsLife #OceansAreLife #PesticideRunoff #SewageRunOff #Pollution #WebOfLife
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#ClimateChange Contributes to Shift in #LakeErie’s Harmful #AlgalBlooms
Blooms over the past decade have started earlier in July and had longer peaks, according to #NOAA researchers.
By Kathiann M. Kowalski
July 26, 2024"Lake Erie’s harmful algal blooms have started sooner and had longer peak periods over the past decade compared to earlier years, newly released data shows. Warming temperatures linked to climate change are a cause, according to researchers for NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, with interactions among species likely playing a role as well.
"The NOAA scientists discussed the shift and forecast a moderate to above-moderate algal bloom for the lake’s western basin this summer during a briefing last month at Ohio State University and Ohio Sea Grant’s Stone Laboratory, off the coast of Put-in-Bay on Lake Erie.
"Algal blooms occur when #cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, grow out of control due to a combination of excess #nutrients, #weather patterns and other #ecological factors. The blooms can be a serious public health problem because some types of cyanobacteria produce toxins. #Microcystin, for example, can lead to skin rashes, gut problems and liver and kidney issues. Relatively high levels of it in August 2014 prompted a two-day shutdown of #Toledo’s public #WaterSupply, which comes from Lake Erie."
Read more:
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/26072024/lake-erie-harmful-algal-blooms-climate-change/#HABs #ToxicAlgae
#Fish #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis #WaterIsLife
#WaterTemperatures -
Algal Toxins and Wildlife Health
By National Wildlife Health Center September 30, 2019
"Harmful #AlgalBlooms (#HABs) have the potential to harm fish and wildlife, domestic animals, livestock, and humans through toxin production or ecological disturbances such as oxygen depletion and blockage of sunlight.
"To investigate the effects of algal toxins on wildlife, the USGS National Wildlife Health Center (NWHC) has examined over 300 dead animals collected during freshwater and marine #HAB events since 2000. Varying levels of algal toxins were found in over 100 of these animals. In some cases, the history, clinical signs, and high toxin levels have allowed scientists to attribute mortality to algal toxicosis. Recent events have included Kittlitz’s #murrelets (Brachyramphus brevirostris) in Alaska that died after consuming sand lance (Ammodytes hexapterus) high in #saxitoxin (Shearn-Bochsler et al. 2014), #GreenTreeFrogs (Hyla cinerea) in Texas with suspected #brevetoxicosis in association with a #RedTide event (Buttke et al. 2018), and #LittleBrownBats (Myotis lucifugus carissima) in Utah found dead during a HAB event at a reservoir commonly used for recreation and as a source of municipal #DrinkingWater (Isidoro-Ayza et al. 2019).
"In other cases, algal toxins have been detected in wildlife, but their contribution to mortality remains unclear. Part of the reason these detections have been difficult to interpret is that the toxic dose of many algal toxins in wildlife species is unknown and the microscopic lesions (if any) particularly in birds, have not been well described. To better understand the effects of these toxins the NWHC is conducting laboratory exposure trials to determine the lethal dose of toxin in birds and to examine the repeated exposure of waterfowl to sub-lethal toxin ingestion. In addition to exposure trials, NWHC is undergoing a retrospective review of previous detections of algal toxin from NWHC’s case archives to examine demographic, spatiotemporal, and diagnostic features associated with wildlife exposure to algal toxins."
https://www.usgs.gov/centers/nwhc/science/algal-toxins-and-wildlife-health
#AlgaeBlooms #WaterIsLife
#Cyanobacteria
#ToxicAlgae #Wildlife -
$16.7 Million for #MarineTechnology Innovation Through #Biden' Inflation Reduction Act
https://cleantechnica.com/2024/06/27/16-7-million-for-marine-technology-innovation-through-the-inflation-reduction-act/"Funding will support #NOAA’s efforts to provide communities with decision-making tools and information necessary for coastal resilience... to support the development of technologies focused on #sustainability, #equity, #biodiversity, and #climate adaptation: marine biodiversity observation, animal tracking, monitoring of harmful #AlgalBlooms, understanding of #OceanAcidification, etc"
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CSIRO Aquawatch A World-First Weather Service To Bolster Seafood Industry In Spencer Gulf
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https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-12-15/csiro-aquawatch-spencer-gulf-water-monitoring-weather-service/103229250 <-- shared media article
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https://research.csiro.au/aquawatch/about/ <-- about Aquawatch
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“KEY POINTS:
• CSIRO has completed initial testing of a ‘weather service’ for water quality in the Spencer Gulf in South Australia
• The industry’s production in the Spencer Gulf region is worth over $238 million a year
• The data could warn seafood industry of harmful marine events like algal blooms, which can kill fish..."
#GIS #spatial #mapping #model #modeling #aquawatch #weather #weatherservice #waterquality #marine #hydrospatial #SpencerGulf #Australia #foodsecurity #marine #seafoodindustry #marineconservation #algalblooms #algae #monitoring #watersensors #satellites #remotesensing #AI #realtime #forecasts #temperature #salinity #fish #fishstocks
@CSIRO #CSIRO -
#NASA #scientists test new tool for tracking #AlgalBlooms https://phys.org/news/2023-09-nasa-scientists-tool-tracking-algal.html
First Light Demonstration of Red Solar Induced #Fluorescence for #HarmfulAlgalBlooms Monitoring https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2022GL101715
"#space-based instrument #TROPOMI was able to peer through thin #clouds to uncover powerful clues about #Karenia brevis... K. brevis events are especially concerning because the #algae produce a potent #neurotoxin that in high concentrations can cause massive #fish kills and poison #MarineLife."