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What are algae blooms and why are they bad?

Innumerable microscopic algae help anchor aquatic ecosystems; they turn sunlight into food, and themselves serve as food for water-dwelling frogs, fish, snails, and insects.

But under the wrong conditions—warm water, too much sunlight, and excess nutrients from agricultural or sewage runoff—some species of algae can multiply uncontrollably, forming green, red, blue-green, or brown masses that smother the surface of waters and can produce potentially dangerous toxins.

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Articles of Interest

Toxic algae blooms: What you should know

Toxic algae blooms appear when nutrients from farm fertilizer and manure run off into rivers and streams and other bodies of water, triggering the growth of microscopic single-celled organisms. The blooms are actually cyanobacteria but widely referred to as algae. Blooms often have a rotten smell and resemble spilled blue-green paint or split-pea soup.

A Dreaded Forecast for Our Times: Algae, and Lots of It

If a growing number of scientists have their way — and can get federal funding they say is desperately need to protect the public — algae forecasts could become as common as weather reports, and as essential.

A New Old Way To Combat Toxic Algae: Float It Up, Then Skim It Off

In Florida, the Army Corps of Engineers is working to combat a growing environmental menace: blue-green algae. Nitrogen and phosphorus runoff from farms and subdivisions combines with warm summer weather to create massive blooms of algae in rivers and lakes that can be toxic. In central Florida, Lake Okeechobee has been hit hard in recent years.

Avoid Harmful Algae and Cyanobacteria

Algae and cyanobacteria are simple, plant-like organisms that live in water. Algae and cyanobacteria can quickly grow out of control, or “bloom.”

Blue-Green Algae: Iridescent but Deadly

Cyanobacteria can produce toxins that cause asthma-like symptoms, severe vomiting, diarrhea, or irritated skin or eyes.

Deadly Algae Are Creeping Northward

In a warming ocean, Alexandrium algae are shredding marine food webs—and disrupting beloved Alaska traditions.

Explainer: what causes algal blooms, and how we can stop them

So why don’t we have algal blooms all the time? This is because algae don’t just require nutrients to grow. Like any plant, factors such as temperature and light availability are also important in determining how quickly algae grow and whether they form blooms. Blooms also need slow moving or still water to become established.

Harmful Algae & Red Tides

The world’s lakes and oceans are teeming with phytoplankton. These microscopic photosynthetic organisms (mainly algae) make up the base of aquatic and marine food webs. Although phytoplankton play a critical role in sustaining life, some species of single-celled algae can be harmful when they occur in large numbers. When conditions are right, these species rapidly reproduce until they create huge masses of algal cells.

Harmful Algal Outbreaks and Drinking Water

Freshwater Harmful Algal Blooms happen most often where there are high levels of nutrients like nitrogen or phosphorus present in warm, still waters like lakes, ponds, or reservoirs. They can also occur in rivers, especially during summer months.

Researchers Race to Thwart Toxic Algae Outbreaks

Researchers are racing to find solutions to outbreaks of blue-green algae that are increasing in frequency and severity. Carpets of stinking algae have sickened people and animals and hurt the fishing and tourism industries.

The eco guide to algae

Toxic bloom is terrible for acquatic life – the good news is, we may be able to harness the sludge as a carbon-neutral biofuel.

Why Florida’s red tide is killing fish, manatees, and turtles

In a bloom, millions of these tiny organisms produce a paralyzing neurotoxin that prevents fish and marine life from respirating. It’s mildly dangerous for humans too: The toxin can go airborne and be dangerous for some people with respiratory sensitivities. And doctors aren’t sure what the long-term effects of breathing air with the toxin may be.

You might be inhaling bits of toxic algae

Breaking waves can send algal blooms airborne.

Resources

CDC

The long-term health effects of harmful algal blooms in people and animals remain unclear.

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

The excessive algal growth, or algal bloom, becomes visible to the naked eye and can be green, blue-green, red, or brown, depending on the type of algae. Algae are always present in natural bodies of water like oceans, lakes, and rivers, but only a few types can produce toxins.