First sign of Red Tide found in lower Tampa Bay, state says Zachary T. Sampson, Tampa Bay Times
Water samples taken this week off Manatee County showed low to very low levels of the organism found in Red Tide, the state said.
It is the first sign of Red Tide in Tampa Bay, a discovery that amplifies concerns that contaminated water pumped into the estuary from the old Piney Point phosphate plant property could fuel a bloom.
The presence of the Red Tide is “not thought to be a direct result of the Piney Point discharges,” the Florida Department of Environmental Protection said in a statement. “However, elevated nutrients have the potential to exacerbate these algal blooms, and increased sampling is ongoing.”
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Hello and welcome to Friday.
The daily rundown Between Wednesday and Thursday, the number of Florida coronavirus cases increased by 6,684 (0.3 percent), to 2,191,038; active hospitalizations decreased by 82 (2.3 percent), to 3,411; deaths of Florida residents rose by 80 (0.2 percent), to 34,696; 8,307,032 Floridians have received at least one dose of a vaccine.
Piney Point reservoir a disaster waiting to happen
By Betsey Piette posted on April 23, 2021
For decades, capitalist industries have produced wastewater by-products without serious plans for how to dispose of them. Their contents are usually toxic, often radioactive and generally hazardous to surrounding communities where they are stored and to the larger environment should they be released accidentally or otherwise.
While there are many thousands of such hazardous sites across the U.S., it is rare that they make the news. Case in point is the reservoir on the former 676-acre Piney Point phosphate mine site near Tampa, Fla. A state of emergency was declared April 3 when the walls of the storage pool, holding water polluted with phosphate and containing radioactive materials radium and uranium, threatened to burst.
“Flip My Florida Yard” a joint project involving the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the UF/IFAS network of county extension services, and various contractors and garden centers in communities across the state, reveals a Tallahassee backyard revamp in this weekend’s TV episode.
TV host Chad Crawford s Flip My Florida Yard shows Floridians how they can make small (and big) changes in their backyards that help to save water and protect wildlife.
This week, Esposito Garden Center helped correct an erosion problem in a steep backyard, one the homeowners had been dealing with for the 10 years since they bought the house, by creating a rain garden in one corner.
The last major outbreak of the microorganism that tainted the turquoise Gulf waters lasted from October 2017 to February 2019. It killed countless sea creatures, including dolphins, sea turtles and manatees. While fish kills have been reported in Charlotte and Sarasota County recently due to red tide, no dead fish were found in Manatee as of Friday afternoon.
A sample taken just off Robinson Preserve showed a low presence of red tide, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the lead agency on red tide. Low concentrations can sometimes cause respiratory irritation, possible fish kills and halt the harvest of shellfish.