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Blue-Green Algae Returns to Fort Myers Shores

Blue-Green Algae Returns to Fort Myers Shores

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jan 9, 2020 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Press

Blue-Green Algae Returns to Fort Myers Shores Originally published by WINK News on January 8, 2020 John Cassani, the Calusa Waterkeeper, said to see algae in the middle of the dry season is unusual. ”When it’s calm and the wind starts blowing, those tend to stick...
Health Department will Post Warning Signs for Blue-Green Algae Spotted in Calossahatchee

Health Department will Post Warning Signs for Blue-Green Algae Spotted in Calossahatchee

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jan 8, 2020 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Press

Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett-Williams on January 8, 2020 Just in time for the height of tourist season, patchy slicks of blue-green algae are showing up in the Caloosahatchee, including at one of the river’s popular access points, the Davis...
Florida Officials Urged to Set Standards to Protect People, Wildlife From Harmful Algae Blooms

Florida Officials Urged to Set Standards to Protect People, Wildlife From Harmful Algae Blooms

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Nov 18, 2019 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms

Conservation Groups Send a Letter Urging Florida Officials to Set Water-quality Standards for the Harmful Toxins in Algal Blooms. The groups are calling on the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to establish legal limits for cyanotoxins that pose severe...
Dead Sea Life, Red Drift Algae Piled up on Fort Myers Beach

Dead Sea Life, Red Drift Algae Piled up on Fort Myers Beach

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Oct 20, 2019 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Press

Originally published by WINK News on October 20, 2019 Beachgoers felt the effects of water quality issues along some Southwest Florida beaches this weekend. John Cassani, ecologist and founder of Calusa Waterkeeper, says red tide continues to cause fish kills along...
Battle Over Water and Public Health Returns to Florida Lawmakers

Battle Over Water and Public Health Returns to Florida Lawmakers

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Oct 18, 2019 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Press, Science

As seen in a News-Press OpEd submitted by John Cassani & Howard Simon, Calusa Waterkeeper, October 18, 2019 After the last prolonged outbreak of red tide and blue-green algae, it seemed every politician vowed to “do something.” The spin from the last session was...
Waterkeepers Florida Recommends State Standards for Cyanotoxins

Waterkeepers Florida Recommends State Standards for Cyanotoxins

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jun 20, 2019 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Uncategorized

Florida’s DEP urged to include cyanotoxins in water quality standards Cyanobacteria, harmful algal blooms (HABs), and their root causes have been well-known problems in Florida’s waters for quite some time. The state’s first Harmful Algal Bloom Task...
Florida Petitioned to Protect People From Harmful Algae Blooms

Florida Petitioned to Protect People From Harmful Algae Blooms

by Calusa Waterkeeper | May 23, 2019 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Press

State Would be First to Set Water-quality Standards for Cyanotoxins The Center for Biological Diversity, Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation and Calusa Waterkeeper petitioned the Florida Department of Environmental Protection today to protect the public from...
How Much Algae Toxin is too Much? Environmental Groups Urge EPA to Adopt Stricter Guidelines for Recreational Exposure

How Much Algae Toxin is too Much? Environmental Groups Urge EPA to Adopt Stricter Guidelines for Recreational Exposure

by Calusa Waterkeeper | May 23, 2019 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Press

Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on May 23, 2019 Amid rising concern about the potential health effects of toxic algae, the Environmental Protection Agency released official safety advice Wednesday that advocates say falls far short of...
CDC Plans to Uncover the Health Effects of Blue-Green Algae

CDC Plans to Uncover the Health Effects of Blue-Green Algae

by Calusa Waterkeeper | May 20, 2019 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Press

Originally published by WINK News on May 20, 2019 It is dangerous. But what can it do to your health? That is the question at the center of the water quality crisis. Now, researchers with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are trying to get you answers....
CDC to Study How Inhaled Algae Toxins Affect Lake Okeechobee Fishing Guides

CDC to Study How Inhaled Algae Toxins Affect Lake Okeechobee Fishing Guides

by Calusa Waterkeeper | May 20, 2019 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms, Press

Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on May 20, 2019 Federal scientists plan a first-ever study of Lake Okeechobee fishing guides to help understand the long-term health effects of the lake’s cyanobacteria blooms. The Centers for Disease...
Florida Legislature Must get Serious About Nutrient Pollution in the Water

Florida Legislature Must get Serious About Nutrient Pollution in the Water

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 10, 2019 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Policy, Press, Water Testing

As seen in a News-Press OpEd submitted by John Cassani, Calusa Waterkeeper, April 10, 2019 So far, the Florida legislative session has not adequately addressed the nutrient pollution time bomb that leads to harmful algal blooms (HABs). Great sums of public dollars...
Researchers Find Blue-green Algae Toxin in Dolphins that also have Brain Disease

Researchers Find Blue-green Algae Toxin in Dolphins that also have Brain Disease

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 25, 2019 | Featured, Harmful Algal Blooms

As reported by Chad Gillis of the Naples Daily News on Mar 25, 2019. A toxic blue-green algae that choked the Fort Myers-Cape Coral area last summer has shown up in dolphins with brain disease. Researchers tested 14 stranded dolphins from Florida and Massachusetts,...
New Study Shows Alzheimer’s-like Brain Disease in Dead Florida Dolphins

New Study Shows Alzheimer’s-like Brain Disease in Dead Florida Dolphins

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 21, 2019 | Harmful Algal Blooms

Originally reported by WINK News on Mar 21, 2019. Toxic blue-green algae hit it Southwest Florida hard in 2018. Dolphins washed up on our shores by the dozen. Research at UM is shining a light on what happened to these animals. Newly released research by scientists at...
Lake Okeechobee Releases Cause Concerns about Water Quality & Algae Blooms

Lake Okeechobee Releases Cause Concerns about Water Quality & Algae Blooms

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 28, 2019 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Lake Okeechobee, Press

Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on February 28, 2019 Lake Okeechobee releases started again last week, and the results are a mixed bag for the Caloosahatchee River and its delicate estuary. The volume of water is not concerning to many local...
Green Algae Spotted at Franklin Lock in Alva

Green Algae Spotted at Franklin Lock in Alva

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 8, 2019 | Harmful Algal Blooms

Originally reported by WINK News on February 8, 2019. WINK News spotted green algae at the W.P. Franklin Lock and Dam in Alva Friday, where algae build up is mainly seen at the south end of the lock. “A friend had said a couple weeks ago that there was algae out...
Battle Over Water and Public Health Returns to Florida Lawmakers

Federal Report Shows Salt Causes Release of More Blue-Green Algae Toxins into Local Waters

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Dec 5, 2018 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Press, Science

Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on December 5, 2018 A federal report suggests that the presence of salt causes blue-green algae cells to burst and release all toxins into the water. The United States Geological Survey report shows that while...
Where did Toxic Algae Vacuumed from Lee County Canals Go?

Where did Toxic Algae Vacuumed from Lee County Canals Go?

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Dec 1, 2018 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Press, Science

Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on December 1, 2018 Southwest Florida’s recent toxic algae blooms were unprecedented in scope, persistence and sheer nastiness. Also unprecedented was how Lee County disposed of some of the crud, shown by...
Research Shows Algae Toxins are Airborne and Reach Deep into Human Lungs

Research Shows Algae Toxins are Airborne and Reach Deep into Human Lungs

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Nov 29, 2018 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Press, Science

First featured in a News-Press article written by Amy Bennett Williams and published on November 29, 2018 Anyone breathing near the dense blue-green algae blooms that plagued the region last summer likely inhaled some toxins deep into their lungs, FGCU research...
Take Action on Florida’s Harmful Algae Blooms

Take Action on Florida’s Harmful Algae Blooms

by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jul 9, 2018 | Harmful Algal Blooms

Many of our backyards and favorite waterways in Southwest Florida are being impacted by blue-green algae blooms originating in Lake Okeechobee. Here’s Cape Coral resident and Calusa Waterkeeper Ranger Jason Pim’s...
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