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The shores of Indian River County were covered with dead fish on October 17, 2018. Red tide was detected at medium to high levels off the coast, according to the Wildlife and Fish Conservation Commission of Florida. MARY HELEN MOORE / TCPALM
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James Sullivan, executive director of Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute in Fort Pierce, talks about harmful algal blooms on Wednesday October 24, 2018 as part of the institute's lecture series.(Photo: TYLER TREADWAY / TCPALM)
FORT PIERCE – Hurricane Willa may be bad news for Mexico, but maybe good news for the east coast of Florida, invaded by red algae.
The hurricane moving from west to east across Mexico is expected to result in westerly winds in east over Florida, which should help move the red tide off Treasure Coast and Space. Coast early next week, James Sullivan, executive director of the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, said Wednesday night.
"If we get a good shot, we could get rid of it," Sullivan told a hundred people gathered for a presentation titled "2018 Status of Damaging South Florida Algae Bloom".
More: Hurricane Willa makes landing in Mexico
More: Tropical depression possible during the weekend as the system develops in the Atlantic
Dead fish continue to fail on the closed beaches of Indian River County, such as the Golden Sands Park, seen on Thursday, October 18, 2018 due to the red tide.
Xavier Mascareñas and Jeremiah Wilson, Treasure Coast Newspapers
Saying goodbye to the red tide would be beneficial to the countless coastal populations that have been coughing, red-eyed and runny nose since arriving in late September – though it would be too late for countless fish dead toxins in the algae.
Say goodbye, said Sullivan, but do not forget.
"People tend, when the flowers disappear, to forget that they happened," he said. "Do not do that."
More: The wind blowing this weekend could lead to a red tide of more than 100 miles
More: Where is the red tide? View the FWC map
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Sullivan said this election year, vote for candidates who are working on drinking water issues. "And after their election, continue after them to spend money for research on the proliferation of algae.
More:The long-term effects of the red tide need to be studied, said Nelson
Asked what could be done to stop the proliferation of harmful algae – including the red tide, the blue-green algae that covered parts of the St. Lucia River this summer and the brown tide that caused the death of fish in the north of the Indian River Lagoon – Sullivan noted that blooming need sun, warm weather and nutrients.
More:Did the red tide kill fish in the lagoon of Indian River, in St. Lucia County?
There is not much to do for the first two, but we can work to reduce the nutrients – nitrogen and phosphorus from leaking fertilizer runoff and leaking septic tanks – into the water.
These nutrients, combined with East Sea winds, have kept the tide in local waters for so long and with such intensity.
Water samples collected on Monday at Pepper Park Beach and Avalon Beach State Park on North Hutchinson Island in St. Lucia County had high levels of red tide, according to data released Tuesday night. by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Environment reporter Tyler Treadway answers questions about the red tide, including how she went to the Treasury Coast and whether residents should be concerned about its effects on their health.
Maureen Kenyon, [email protected]
Also Monday, researcher Malcolm McFarland of Harbor Branch, discovered an intense red tide in South Beach, south of Vero Beach, on the barrier island located in the Indian River County.
The highest red tide ever recorded on the Treasure Coast: 9 million cells per liter. McFarland was found on October 17 at Turtle Trail Beach, south of Wabasso, in Indian River County.
More: Could the red tide kill manatees, dolphins, sea turtles on the east coast?
The FWC considers levels higher than 1 million cells per liter as "high". At this concentration, it is likely that respiratory problems and fish losses are killed, and the reddish brown cells that give the red tide are visible in the water.
Cleaning the red tide
On Wednesday morning, a contractor recruited by the county began picking up dead fish on a 5-mile beach around Pepper Park. A county-wide coastline cleanup with an outside contractor that began Saturday in Indian River County is expected to last about three weeks, said county coastal engineer James Gray.
More: Cleanup efforts at red tide beaches could cost more than $ 145,000 to Indian River County
Relatively few dead fish have been reported in Martin County, so the county's employees do the cleaning themselves, said spokeswoman Martha Ann Kneiss.
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