In a welcome twist on current events in the world of toxic algae blooms, scientists re-testing water in a canal infected with blue-green algae since June discovered it’s gone.
“It is important that the public exercise caution and good judgment: Blue-green algae blooms can move around or subside and then reappear when conditions are favorable again,” the health department wrote. “Residents and visitors are advised to avoid contact with the water if blooms are observed.”
Every week, or so, for months, the Florida Department of Health in Lee County has been issuing health advisories after positive tests for blue-green algae in the Caloosahatchee River.
The missives showed blue-green algae meandering down the river, not as a big mass but as spotty mats that often get caught in canals and stew.
Waterfront homeowners, fishermen, and boaters who endured a massive outbreak of the noxious cyanobacteria in the Caloosahatchee River in 2018 have been hoping for a result like the all-clear reported this week.
But there’s a catch. The tested water is from the Able Canal by Connie Avenue North in Lehigh Acres, which is fed by the Harnes Marsh Preserve in Buckingham -- neither is a direct offshoot of the river.
Especially since a large bloom of blue-green algae has filled Lake Okeechobee, which releases water into Caloosahatchee River when the lake gets too high.
But there’s a catch. The tested water is from the Able Canal by Connie Avenue North in Lehigh Acres, which is fed by the Harnes Marsh Preserve in Buckingham -- neither is a direct offshoot of the river.
The negative test from the separated canal, while a positive development, doesn’t indicate a broader resolution to the ongoing environmental crisis in the Caloosahatchee River.
Gil Smart is the director of VoteWater, a clean water advocacy group that opposes releases of blue-green algae-laden water from Lake Okeechobee in both the Caloosahatchee River to the west and the St. Lucie River to the east.
"It's far, far too early to suggest we've avoided a summer of slime,” he said. "We've got the meat of hurricane season yet to go. There's no way we can declare victory at this point.
Environmental reporting for WGCU is funded in part by VoLo Foundation, a non-profit with a mission to accelerate change and global impact by supporting science-based climate solutions, enhancing education, and improving health.
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