NOAA Issues Red Tide Warning

March 11, 2010 -- Last week scientists from the NOAA-funded Gulf of Maine Toxicity Project (GOMTOX) issued an outlook for a significant regional algal bloom of Alexandrium -- the toxic algae that cause red tides. Red tides are a chronic problem in the Gulf of Maine, an area with a large shellfish industry. Filter-feeders such as oysters, mussels, and clams accumulate the toxins produced by red tides, making the shellfish dangerous for human consumption. Major blooms in 2005 caused an estimated $20 million in losses to the Massachusetts shellfish industry alone, and a large bloom in 2008 caused losses on a similar scale.

The GOMTOX research team estimates that this year’s bloom could be comparable to those of 2005 and 2008, and affect shellfish bed areas sooner than in previous years. Some scientists think red tides are happening more frequently and heavily for a variety of reasons, including nutrient runoff from industrial and agricultural areas near coastlines as well as natural events such as unusual weather patterns, large winter snowmelts, heavy spring rains, and increased sun.

A 2000 National Research Council report examines the problems of nutrient over-enrichment in coastal waters, including dangerous algal blooms. Clean Coastal Waters: Understanding and Reducing the Effects of Nutrient Pollution proposes both immediate local action by coastal managers and a longer-term national strategy. The 1999 Research Council report From Monsoons to Microbes: Understanding the Ocean's Role in Human Health takes a look at helpful and harmful aspects of ocean life and processes – such as seafood contamination by toxins found in red tide organisms. Another report, Earth Science and Applications from Space: National Imperatives for the Next Decade and Beyond, released by the Research Council in 2007, addresses the utility of monitoring and reporting of red tides and other environmental events using Earth observations from space.

• NOAA Microbial Life Education Resource on Red Tide
• NOAA New England Red Tide Information Center
• Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Information on Red Tides
• National Academy of Sciences: Pollution in the Ocean
• National Academy of Sciences: Oceans and Human Health