Issue no. 167 - Eutrophication, Cyanobacteria, and Cyanotoxins Newsletter

From the Mainstream Media / Dans les médias grand public

Taiwan: Nine reservoirs eutrophic

“A record nine of Taiwan’s 20 major reservoirs produced eutrophic quality water last year, statistics from the Ministry of Environment showed.”

USA: Chesapeake Bay restoration leaders, advocates divided on best path forward

“No one disputes that the nutrients nitrogen and phosphorus should be reduced. In the Bay, they spur algae blooms and lead to oxygen-starved “dead zones.” They also trigger blooms in rivers and streams, including some that produce toxins harmful to people and wildlife.”

Across Farm Country, Fertilizer Pollution Impacts Not Just Health, but Water Costs, Too

“Overuse of fertilizer means nitrates are on the rise in water supplies, and rural areas bear the brunt.”

New Hampshire, USA: Protecting NH Lakes: $1 Million in Funding to Prevent Cyanobacteria Blooms

“To date, cyanobacteria blooms have been documented in 113 waterbodies statewide and account for 64 water quality impairments to recreational use.”

USA: Revealed: Tyson Foods dumps millions of pounds of toxic pollutants into US rivers and lakes

“The Midwest is already saturated with nitrogen and phosphorus from industrial agriculture – factory farms and synthetics fertilizers – contributing to algal blooms that clog critical water infrastructure, exacerbate respiratory conditions like asthma, and deplete oxygen levels in the sea causing marine life to suffocate and die.”

Norway: “Our urine is worth its weight in gold”

“The researchers have created technology that dries the urine and turns it into pellets.”

South Dakota, USA: Researchers explore automated controlled drainage systems

“According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, nitrate from tile-drained fields in the Midwest and other sources — such as leaking septic systems — are a major contributor to hypoxia zones in the Gulf of Mexico.”

A Tale of Three Lakes

“Researchers are examining three of the Great Lakes to determine how different nutrients and temperature influence bloom growth and resulting toxins.”

Ohio, USA: Can ‘Capturing’ Phosphorus Reduce Blooms?

“Harmful Algal Bloom Research Initiative (HABRI) recently explored new potential methods to “capture” phosphorus released from cyanobacteria without harming other microorganisms and the ecosystem at large.”

Florida, USA: Fish along the Florida Keys are spinning in circles until they die—and no one knows why

“Robertson, Parsons, and colleagues are investigating the presence of natural algal toxins in ocean water, sediment, algae, and a variety of fish taken from the Keys.”

Ohio, USA: City of Toledo and others sue EPA over alleged failure to address harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie

“The lawsuit alleges that the EPA's consent order with the state of Ohio does not measure the actual amount of phosphorus from sources like manure that's getting into the Maumee River and the western basin of Lake Erie, primarily from unregulated large scale animal feeding operations called CAFOs.”

Maryland, USA: Nitrogen Management at Center of Climate Conversation

“The amount of rain we’ve had has made us add an additional 50 pounds (of nitrogen per acre) just because the rain flushes it down the system.”

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From the Scientific Media / Des médias scientifiques :

Recent Issues and Challenges in the Study of Inland Waters

“…the main threats are described together with a modern method for algae and cyanobacteria monitoring utilizing chlorophyll a fluorescence.”

Serum Microcystin-LR Levels Linked with Risk of Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Matched Case-Control Study in China

“Our study provides the evidence that serum MC-LR exposure is significantly associated with the risk of Inflammatory Bowel Disease in China.”

New records on toxic cyanobacteria from Brazil: Exploring their occurrence and geography

“Yet, compounds present in 75 % of the toxic extracts remained unidentified.”

Combined Earth observations reveal the sequence of conditions leading to a large algal bloom in Lake Geneva

“The combination of satellite remote sensing, in-situ measurements, ad-hoc biogeochemical analyses, and three-dimensional modeling proved invaluable in unraveling the complex dynamics of algal blooms highlighting the substantial role of littoral-pelagic connectivities in large low-nutrient lakes.”

How do seasonal temperature variations influence interplay between toxic and non-toxic cyanobacterial blooms? Evidence from modeling and experimental data

“Our numerical simulations suggest that the optimal temperature of the toxic genotypes is lower than that of the optimal temperatures of the non-toxic counterparts.”

Nutrient and sediment retention by riparian vegetated buffer strips: Impacts of buffer length, vegetation type, and season

“Riparian vegetated buffer strips with grasses often showed limited effectiveness in reducing nutrient levels in overland flow.”

Nutrients in smoke: Is there an effect on cyanobacteria in downwind waterbodies?

“Downwind of several high nutrient fires, remotely sensed cyanobacteria abundances increased in the days following intersection with smoke. This is suggestive of a relationship between nutrients from wildfire smoke and cyanobacteria bloom formation, with potential to impact drinking water and aquatic ecosystems in the western United States and other fire-prone regions.”