TITLE: Boaters sought to sample Gulf for red tide study
BYLINE: JAN HOLLINGSWORTH
CREDIT: of The Tampa Tribune
EST. PAGES: 2
DATE: 08/11/97
DOCID: TPTT8117048
SOURCE: The Tampa Tribune; TPTT
EDITION: FINAL; SECTION: FLORIDA/METRO; PAGE: 6
(Copyright 1997)
SUMMARY: Gulf-going boats and captains are being enlisted
by the state and a volunteer environmental agency in the battle
against red tide.
TAMPA - The state Department of Environmental Protection and
a private organization dedicated to finding a way to control red
tide are looking for a few good boats - and captains - to help
with an upcoming research project.
The Manatee County-based group known as START - Solutions
to Avoid Red Tide - needs volunteers the week of Aug. 18 to collect
water samples in the Gulf of Mexico, from Naples to Tarpon Springs.
The one-day sampling is a prelude to a state research expedition
set to begin the following week. That project will be headed by
the state agency's Karen Steidinger, considered one of the top
red tide researchers in the world.
"Volunteers are being used to sample what the {algae}cell
counts are in various areas so they can assist DEP in locating
and tracking blooms," said START's president, Rob Haglund.
Red tide is caused by the massive multiplication of tiny, single-celled
algae called G. Breve.
The organism is found from the Gulf of Mexico to Chesapeake
Bay. But the damaging blooms are most common along Florida's west
coast, from Charlotte Harbor to Tampa Bay.
The organism is always in the water and causes no problems
at normal concentrations. Its numbers often begin to increase
offshore during August and September.
When it blooms, the organism gives off a powerful toxin that
turns water a brownish-red, depletes oxygen and suffocates fish.
It also releases airborne particles that cause respiratory problems
in humans.
A sporadic 18-month red tide during 1995 and 1996 likely was
responsible for the deaths of hundreds of manatees, seabirds and
turtles.
It also wreaked havoc with the west coast economy as resort
beaches filled with dead fish and noxious fumes.
START and its mission to promote red tide research was born
of that devastating episode. The grass-roots organization has
been supported largely by the individuals and businesses affected.
"We're trying to find a way to track and identify blooms so hopefully we'll have some way to mitigate red tide through future
research," Haglund said.
START already has recruited amateur researchers to take water
samples near Tarpon Springs and Sarasota.
Additional boat owners are needed for the St. Petersburg-Clearwater
area, Boca Grande, Naples and possibly Cedar Key, site of a recent
offshore bloom.
Volunteers will need a boat large enough to go out 50 miles
into the Gulf. The boats have to be equipped with a Loran or Global
Positioning System to document where the samples are taken.
The state will provide the necessary sampling equipment, which
will be delivered to volunteers by START members.
This is not the first time the boating public has been asked
to help the state gather information about the Gulf and its inhabitants.
The Department of Environmental Protection has established
a toll-free hot line for statewide reporting of fish kills and
other Gulf phenomena.
"It helps give us an accurate geographic distribution
of events like fish kills and helps us collect fresh samples,"
said Jan Landsberg, a research administrator with the agency.
Those who would like to participate in the red tide sampling
project can contact Haglund at (941) 378-4180.
To report fish kills or other unusual Gulf events, call the
agency's hot line at (800) 636-0511.