by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jul 23, 2026 | Events, Featured, Press, Science
Published in the international journal Toxins, the study documents ADAM, an innovative monitoring system developed in Southwest Florida to better understand airborne exposure to harmful algal toxins. Calusa Waterkeeper and Brain Chemistry Labs have announced the...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jul 20, 2026 | Cape Coral Spreader Canals, Featured, Press, Science
Originally published on Fort Myers News-Press by Vanessa Norris on July 20, 2026 Matlacha Pass is impaired by excessive nutrients and fecal bacteria under the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Impaired Waters Rule. According to John Cassani,...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jul 18, 2026 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Lake Okeechobee, Press, Science
Originally published on Phys.org on July 18, 2026 Research on Southwest Florida cyanobacterial blooms shows that the toxins they produce are aerosolized and potentially inhaled by people far from contaminated water bodies. Sometimes known as blue-green algae,...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jul 16, 2026 | Bacteria Monitoring, Featured, Press
Originally published in the Fort Myers News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on July 16, 2026. The 450,000-gallon raw sewage spill that fouled a creek flowing to the Caloosahatchee was not an isolated event. State records show the city’s wastewater system has been...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jul 11, 2026 | Bacteria Monitoring, Featured, Press
Originally published in the News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on July 11, 2026. An estimated 450,000 gallons of raw sewage spilled for more than three days from a LaBelle wastewater pipe into a Hendry County creek that flows into the Caloosahatchee just upstream of...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jul 6, 2026 | Events, Featured, Press
Special event invites fans to enjoy baseball, support clean water, and celebrate community impact in Southwest Florida Calusa Waterkeeper invites the community to join them for a special evening at Hammond Stadium on Saturday, July 18, 2026, as the Fort Myers Mighty...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jun 30, 2026 | Events, Featured, Press, Science
CWK Rangers Amanda Zirzow and Narrie Magturo to present on citizen science efforts, regional seagrass monitoring, and current watershed conditions across Southwest Florida Calusa Waterkeeper invites the community to its Q3 State of Our Water meeting, offering an...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jun 26, 2026 | Bacteria Monitoring, Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Science
A large plume of Saharan dust approaching Florida is making headlines for hazy skies, colorful sunsets, lower air quality, and its ability to temporarily suppress tropical storm development. But for Calusa Waterkeeper, this dust cloud also raises an important...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jun 5, 2026 | Events, Featured, Press
New partnership highlights the connection between clean water, environmental stewardship and local economy of Southwest Florida Calusa Waterkeeper and Chubby Mermaid Brewing Company have announced a new partnership focused on supporting clean water advocacy and...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | May 12, 2026 | Bacteria Monitoring, Featured, Press, Water Testing
Originally published in Gulf Coast News by Samantha Carlson on May 12, 2026 Fort Myers has reduced discharge into the river by 50% over the past two years, which Sciandra described as “a huge benefit to the environment.” The city stopped testing for human...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 27, 2026 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Press, Water Testing
Originally published in Florida Weekly by Roger Williams on April 27, 2026 Research scientists make the undeniable connection between blue-green algae and the growing public health crisis Connections are good — unless they’re not. Take the connection between algal...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 11, 2026 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Press, Water Testing
Originally published on Gulf Coast News by Natacha Casal on April 11, 2026 Researchers and environmental advocates gathered at Florida Southwestern State College to address the health and environmental impacts of harmful algal blooms, including airborne toxins and...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 9, 2026 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Press, Water Testing
Originally published in the News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on April 9, 2026 Why dolphins sometimes strand themselves on shore, often to die, has long troubled scientists and beachgoers alike. A recently published article explores whether their brains may warn...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 30, 2026 | Cape Coral Spreader Canals, Featured, Press, Science
Originally published on Gulf Coast News by Evan Dean on March 30, 2026 Among the places the non-profit is working to protect is Glover Bight. It’s a cove along the Caloosahatchee River, near The Westin Cape Coral Resort. “In the federal registry, this is known as...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 24, 2026 | Cape Coral Spreader Canals, Featured, Press, Science
Originally published on WINK News by Bridget Bruchalski on March 24, 2026 A rare sawfish nursery in the Caloosahatchee River faces mounting threats from development and rising sea levels. Joe Cavanaugh, Calusa Waterkeeper, took WINK News to one of only two known...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 17, 2026 | C43 Reservoir, Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Lake Okeechobee, Policy, Press
Originally published in Florida Weekly by Roger Williams on March 7, 2026 How agricultural runoff, septic systems and policy gaps are fueling Florida’s water emergency Starting in mid-February, a bloom of toxic blue-green algae erupted across more than 40 miles of the...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 3, 2026 | Events, Featured, Press, Science
“Algal Toxins & Alzheimer’s Disease” will be the keynote address by David A. Davis, Ph.D. of the University of Miami Brain Endowment Bank Calusa Waterkeeper will welcome Dr. David A. Davis of the University of Miami Brain Endowment Bank as the keynote speaker...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 25, 2026 | Bacteria Monitoring, Featured, Press, Water Testing
Originally published in Gulf Coast News by Nehilah Grand-Pierre on February 25, 2026 Fort Myers has received a $6 million grant from the Department of Agriculture to clean polluted canals, including Manuel’s Branch and Billy’s Creek. The grant will fund...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 18, 2026 | C43 Reservoir, Featured, Policy, Press
Originally published on Gulf Coast News by Evan Dean on February 18, 2026 The C-43 is designed to capture runoff and water releases from Lake Okeechobee during the rainy season, clean the water while it’s being stored and then release it down the Caloosahatchee River...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 18, 2026 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Press, Water Testing
Originally published in the News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on February 18, 2026 The algae stretches for miles along the Caloosahatchee: clouding the shoreline, murking up canals and choking oxbows, a dull avocado taint that signals nothing good. Despite a health...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 10, 2026 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Press, Water Testing
Originally published in the News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on February 13, 2026 With drought and coldburn browning most of Southwest Florida, the upriver Caloosahatchee is one of the few green places around. The culprit? Cyanobacteria, AKA blue-green algae, a...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jan 26, 2026 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Press, Water Testing
Originally published in the News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on January 26, 2026 Health officials are warning of a toxin-producing algae bloom in the Caloosahatchee. The cyanobacteria – also called blue-green algae – appeared in an upriver Alva canal. Alva resident...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jan 7, 2026 | Bacteria Monitoring, Featured, Press, Water Testing
Originally published in Gulfshore Business by Evan Williams on January 7, 2026 Elevated fecal indicator bacteria is a longstanding issue in Fort Myers and in urban waterways across Florida. Manuel’s Branch and Billy’s Creek, another urban tributary, have been...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jan 6, 2026 | Bacteria Monitoring, Featured, Press, Water Testing
Originally published on Fox 4 by Austin Schargorodski on January 6, 2026 Manuel’s Branch had been an issue since at least 2021, when the Department of Environmental Protection found that the city failed to address long-term elevated levels of bacteria. City council...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Dec 29, 2025 | Bacteria Monitoring, Featured, Press, Water Testing
Originally published in the News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on December 29, 2025 For years, Manuel’s Branch has failed Florida’s most basic test for public waterways: that they be safe for people to touch. There’s too much human poop in the creek, which flows...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Dec 16, 2025 | Featured, Press
Gregg Poulakis, Ph.D. of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will present “The Last Stronghold: Endangered Smalltooth Sawfish in Florida.” Calusa Waterkeeper Joe Cavanaugh will highlight potential development impacts to sawfish habitat in the...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Dec 2, 2025 | Bacteria Monitoring, Featured, Press, Water Testing
Originally published on Fox 4 by Miyoshi Price on December 2, 2025 Calusa Waterkeeper is calling on the city of Fort Myers to take immediate action after their independent testing revealed persistent human fecal contamination in Manuel’s Branch, a popular...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Nov 21, 2025 | Bacteria Monitoring, Featured, Press, Water Testing
Originally published on Fox 4 by Andrew Shipley on November 21, 2025 A two-year investigation by local environmental group Calusa Waterkeeper has found evidence of human-source fecal contamination in Manuel’s Branch, a small urban creek located just south of Lee...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Nov 19, 2025 | Bacteria Monitoring, Events, Featured, Policy, Water Testing
Calusa Waterkeeper volunteers and staff have collected evidence of persistent human sources of fecal contamination to Manuel’s Branch. The full report is available at CalusaWaterkeeper.org and the group will be presenting to the City of Fort Myers Environmental...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Nov 17, 2025 | Featured, Policy, Press
Originally published by Waterkeeper Alliance on November 17, 2025 Waterkeeper Alliance is sounding the alarm about the newly announced draft rule from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of the Army to revise the definition of the “waters...
