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Old 19-09-2018, 17:45   #1
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Red Tide

I had occasion to iron Jenny today from the North Gandy Channel, around the southern Pinellas Peninsula, and north through the Boca Ciega Bay. What I saw broke my heart. The water is a dark green color with no translucency. Dead fish and eels float in random patches, and I and my crew experienced respiratory issues. This algae bloom has devastated the central and southern Gulf Coasts of Florida, as well as Tampa Bay. The Red Tide forms each year ten to twenty miles offshore, and this has been going on since at least the 1700's. The problem for humans arises when westerly winds and tides overrule the prevailing trades and wash it to our beaches. There are Red Tides elsewhere, but the Karenia Brevis algae that is temporarily killing our ecosystem is unique to the Gulf of Mexico. Cooler weather and water will likely abort this Red Tide in a month or two, and scientists have successfully tested an ozone device that works to kill the algae and remove the toxins it produces from the water. The huge scale of the problem is the challenge I really hope we can somehow beat or moderate this ugly part of the ecosystem; tourism is taking a hit, and tourism is our bread and butter here.
Local mariners are asked for their comments and experiences with Red Tides.
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Old 19-09-2018, 18:19   #2
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Re: Red Tide

I'm pretty nervous about getting anywhere near that stuff since I have developed reactivate airway disease.

It can be found in the Gulf of Mexico. Where else?
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Old 19-09-2018, 18:30   #3
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Re: Red Tide

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Originally Posted by Chotu View Post
I'm pretty nervous about getting anywhere near that stuff since I have developed reactivate airway disease.

It can be found in the Gulf of Mexico. Where else?
Many other places in the world. BC experiences it however there as in many places it is toxic in shellfish. It is linked to the biblical plagues. However the problem has grown over the last few years. It can kill you if you eat sea food contaminated with it.

Edit: I should have said famine instead of plagues. It is thought to have been linked to the famine in the Nile river.

I believe that Blue/Green Algae are similar but not positive. Blue/Green algae blooms are occurring in many lakes, including the Great Lakes, Lake Winnipeg and Lake Manitoba and are believed to be exacerbated by agricultural run off.
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Old 19-09-2018, 18:45   #4
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Re: Red Tide

I thought huge blooms were linked to excessive fertility. This could certainly be heightened by the fertilizer stream pouring in from the Mississippi.

Sargasso blooms are making a mess in the Caribbean for the last few years now. I wondered about the flume from Rio and other polluted S American rivers possibly being part of the problem.
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Old 19-09-2018, 18:58   #5
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Re: Red Tide

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Many other places in the world. BC experiences it however there as in many places it is toxic in shellfish. It is linked to the biblical plagues. However the problem has grown over the last few years. It can kill you if you eat sea food contaminated with it.
I'm mostly concerned with the toxins getting aerosolized and breathing them in. That can potentially kill me due to the Reactivate Airway Disease. Even pollens in Florida have sent me to the hospital. Now I have a kit to manage the pollen reactions myself.

I've been sailing my whole life and have been lucky enough to have never run into a bloom like Florida is experiencing right now. I have only developed these allergies in the past 8 years after living aboard a boat with lots of mold.

I'm kind of wondering where to avoid sailing so I don't get into a Bloom and have my breathing compromised.
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Old 19-09-2018, 19:10   #6
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Re: Red Tide

The bloom in Florida is extreme however I believe that Chili has experienced large fish kill offs and other places in the world have experienced large blooms including the Texas coast. I'm not sure that you can be guaranteed not to run into Red Tide but in most places it is not a health hazard unless you eat contaminated shell fish.

I would suggest you check local news sources of the places you want to sail to at the time of sailing. And get rid of the mould in your boat.
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Old 19-09-2018, 19:24   #7
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Re: Red Tide

Here is a link to a Montana State University paper. The outbreak in Florida has resulted in so many Google searches that it is difficult to find other resources. Wikipedia is one source.

https://serc.carleton.edu/microbelif...ide/index.html
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Old 19-09-2018, 19:35   #8
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Re: Red Tide

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The bloom in Florida is extreme however I believe that Chili has experienced large fish kill offs and other places in the world have experienced large blooms including the Texas coast. I'm not sure that you can be guaranteed not to run into Red Tide but in most places it is not a health hazard unless you eat contaminated shell fish.

I would suggest you check local news sources of the places you want to sail to at the time of sailing. And get rid of the mould in your boat.
Red tide is a huge health hazard to me. Take a read.

https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/artful-amoeba/red-tides-attack-by-air-too/

That mold was 2 boats ago. But yeah. I gotta start looking at red tide forecasts I suppose.
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Old 19-09-2018, 19:39   #9
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Re: Red Tide

Another link;

https://web.whoi.edu/seagrant/wp-con...-Red-Tides.pdf
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Old 20-09-2018, 01:50   #10
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Re: Red Tide

Quote:
Originally Posted by DeepFrz View Post
Many other places in the world. BC experiences it however there as in many places it is toxic in shellfish. It is linked to the biblical plagues. However the problem has grown over the last few years. It can kill you if you eat sea food contaminated with it.

Edit: I should have said famine instead of plagues. It is thought to have been linked to the famine in the Nile river.

I believe that Blue/Green Algae are similar but not positive. Blue/Green algae blooms are occurring in many lakes, including the Great Lakes, Lake Winnipeg and Lake Manitoba and are believed to be exacerbated by agricultural run off.
There was a blue green algae bloom in Florida's inland Lake Okeechobee this year, which washed down into the Gulf of Mexico, complicating the existing Red Tide.
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Old 20-09-2018, 01:51   #11
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Re: Red Tide

Quote:
Originally Posted by Nicholson58 View Post
I thought huge blooms were linked to excessive fertility. This could certainly be heightened by the fertilizer stream pouring in from the Mississippi.

Sargasso blooms are making a mess in the Caribbean for the last few years now. I wondered about the flume from Rio and other polluted S American rivers possibly being part of the problem.
When Spanish galleons first anchored in the Gulf, they wrote about Red Tides in their logs.
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Old 20-09-2018, 01:53   #12
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Re: Red Tide

Quote:
Originally Posted by Chotu View Post
I'm mostly concerned with the toxins getting aerosolized and breathing them in. That can potentially kill me due to the Reactivate Airway Disease. Even pollens in Florida have sent me to the hospital. Now I have a kit to manage the pollen reactions myself.

I've been sailing my whole life and have been lucky enough to have never run into a bloom like Florida is experiencing right now. I have only developed these allergies in the past 8 years after living aboard a boat with lots of mold.

I'm kind of wondering where to avoid sailing so I don't get into a Bloom and have my breathing compromised.
I live on Sand Key, and follow the daily beach reports in the area. It's everywhere, and and each day varies about where it's worst. I would advise you to stay off the water until this bloom is over.
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Old 20-09-2018, 01:58   #13
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Re: Red Tide

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Originally Posted by Chotu View Post
Red tide is a huge health hazard to me. Take a read.

https://blogs.scientificamerican.com...ck-by-air-too/

That mold was 2 boats ago. But yeah. I gotta start looking at red tide forecasts I suppose.
This is definitely a health hazard for even healthy adults. It's nature consuming itself, and when we cast off the dock lines, we are part of that. The daily reports the Gulf Coast now are "dark water, bad smell, high respiratory irritation."
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Old 20-09-2018, 02:26   #14
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Re: Red Tide

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Originally Posted by danielamartindm View Post
This is definitely a health hazard for even healthy adults. It's nature consuming itself, and when we cast off the dock lines, we are part of that. The daily reports the Gulf Coast now are "dark water, bad smell, high respiratory irritation."
Get used to it, obtain medication or stay home. The red tide is a part of nature.
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Old 16-10-2018, 14:37   #15
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Re: Red Tide

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Get used to it, obtain medication or stay home. The red tide is a part of nature.
What "medication" is there for the terrible smell of rotting, dead fish and toxins that cause runny nose and respiratory irritation? You think people should just take an antihistamine and tough it out because YOU say so? Typhoid is a part of nature too. Get used to it, take medicine or remain in isolation?
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