Every day, crews have been hauling away up to 200 kilograms — or almost 450 pounds — of dead marine life due to a harmful algal bloom along a South Australian coastline, according to The Guardian. While this bloom is not lethal to humans, it has created noxious sea foam that irritates eyes and throats and has already killed tens of thousands of animals.
What’s happening?
The culprit of this deadly bloom is Karenia mikimotoi, an algal species that has now spread across more than 4,500 square kilometers — more than 1,700 square miles — of South Australian ocean waters since January.
Earlier this summer, the bloom had killed at least 9,000 animals across more than 390 species. By late August, The Guardian had reported that 34,000 animals representing close to 480 different species had died.
The toxicity of Karenia mikimotoi is not fully understood, but it seems the species releases several toxic compounds lethal to marine life, leading to mass die-offs.
“We don’t see it stopping anytime soon,” Tyron Bennetts, a city coordinator of parks and biodiversity, told The Guardian. “It’s been a difficult time for everyone — particularly the community.”
The disaster has left workers and residents concerned. Researchers at the University of South Australia are documenting the collective trauma and “ecoanxiety,” with one survey participant comparing the sight of dead fish to “seeing the death of a loved one.”
Why are algal blooms concerning?
Marine heat waves, driven by rising ocean temperatures, are making extreme blooms like this more likely. Scientists say this event in South Australia was fueled by overheated waters, nutrient runoff, and upwelling.
The result is a slow-motion ecological disaster: Food chains collapse, residents worry, and tourism-dependent coastal economies tumble. The consequences can multiply and compound, and, as too many coastal dwellers already know, these dangers aren’t confined to Australia.
In Florida, toxic red tides regularly blanket the Gulf Coast. According to NPR, an algal bloom in Tampa Bay wiped out an estimated 600 tons of marine life in 2021. The bloom forced officials to close beaches and strained small businesses reliant on fishing and recreation.
What’s being done about algal blooms?
In South Australia, state and federal governments have pledged $28 million to fund cleanup efforts and long-term monitoring. A parliamentary inquiry is also underway to investigate the impacts, causes, and management of the bloom.
Locals have also joined council staff in Adelaide to remove carcasses, witness the impacts, and voice concerns. In the face of environmental trauma and devastation, community members are showing how collective action can help address global disasters.
And just as toxic blooms and their impacts are not limited to Australia, neither are the benefits of climate-smart actions to mitigate the underlying problem of rising global temperatures.
Ultimately, reducing the heat-trapping gases that drive up atmospheric and ocean temperatures will be needed to properly address toxic blooms. The transition to cleaner, renewable, more affordable energy sources can save money too, and those funds may come in handy when governments need to invest in innovative technologies to fight toxic algae, as they did last year in Florida.
Conserved funds can also benefit research projects — some scientists are even exploring the potential use of toxic algae to store carbon.
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