With a red tide bloom lurking offshore, many of our readers have been asking why we can’t control these blooms or get rid of them altogether. In fact, scientists have been looking at ways to do this for many years. One of the first major trials to control red tide took place back in the 1950s when U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and State of Florida scientists used copper sulfate to attempt to eliminate a red tide in coastal Florida waters. Although the copper sulfate killed some of the red tide cells, it led to the release of toxins that, along with the copper sulfate, had negative effects on other marine organisms. Other control methods that have been considered include ozone, algicides, clay flocculation and even simple household bleach. Many of these effectively kill Karenia brevis cells, but as we saw from the copper sulfate experiment, they may also have other unexpected and unwelcome consequences. The question of control also becomes one of scale. How much of a substance would it take to control a bloom and over what area? One reader suggested that heating the water might be a simple way to control a bloom; however, if you consider the heat capacity of water, this would be a very complicated undertaking. The ocean can absorb a lot of heat with very little overall change in temperature. The amount of hot or cold water that would need to be added would be enormous and also detrimental to other marine life. But that doesn’t mean we’ve stopped looking at control mechanisms altogether. Scientists are currently looking at whether K. brevis has naturally occurring parasites that might help control blooms. This work is in its early stages. One main focus today, however, is helping to prevent people from becoming sick when red tide comes to shore by offering information, education and outreach so coastal residents and visitors have all the facts to protect themselves. We’ve also established early warning systems for red tide blooms — in fact, this system is how we know there is a major offshore bloom. It’s important to remember that red tide is a natural occurrence that has been going on for hundreds of years or more, before man made influences would have caused blooms. Perhaps viewing the occurrence of red tide like hurricanes will give us a better perspective on how we can prepare for them. We currently do not know how to stop hurricanes from happening, but we do know what safety precautions to take. This is the same as with red tide. We do not have a way to stop them from occurring, but we do know how to avoid the effects! For other FAQs please visit: myfwc/research/redtide/faq/ https://flickr/photos/myfwc/5807660623/in/set-72157626901129940
Posted on: Thu, 28 Aug 2014 17:54:59 +0000
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