News items from Eutrophication News

BALTIC SEA - Eutrophication is currently regarded as the most serious ecological problem for the whole Baltic Sea. Management of Baltic Sea eutrophication is challenged by the complex ecological characteristics of the eutrophication problem, societal differences across the Baltic Sea region, and the multitude of actors involved in governing these efforts.

ONTARIO, CANADA - Blue-green algae doesn't need to be a problem in Ontario. "While we know the cases and how to control it, we don't seem to (be doing anything)," David Schindler, of the department of biological sciences at the University of Alberta, said in a lecture on Wednesday. According to Schindler, who has studied blue-green algae causes and effects, phosphorus levels in lakes is responsible for algae blooms, which can be toxic.

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency has submitted a plan to the U.S. EPA to reduce levels of nitrogen and phosphorus in the state's water.

NEW ZEALAND - Environment Canterbury has made a submission on the Proposed Hurunui and Waiau River Regional Plan on behalf of the Hurunui-Waiau Zone Committee, reflecting the consensus from the committee on the difficult issue of nutrient load limits for the Hurunui catchment.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- State regulators on Thursday approved a pair of water pollution rules that are being administratively challenged by environmentalists who say they are too weak to stop algae blooms that are choking Florida's waters.

Islamabad—The speakers here on Thursday at a seminar urged for an integrated aproach for water quality protection to maintain biological integrity. The lecture was organized by Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI).

BANGKOK - As billions of cubic metres of water flow away from Thailand's devastating floods, experts and campaigners are warning that millions of sea creatures could be the next victims of the disaster.

New Mexico water regulators on Wednesday adopted a settlement that puts to rest a dispute over millions of tons of dairy industry waste produced each year in the state. The Water Quality Control Commission voted unanimously during a hearing in Santa Fe in favor of the settlement brokered by state attorneys, dairy farmers and environmentalists.

BANGKOK, Nov 17 (Bernama) -- Water quality has been found deteriorating in several canals and rivers in Thailand, caused by impacts from prolonged inundations, reports Thai News Agency (TNA).

The number of jellyfish found in the waters off British coast has risen dramatically. Experts are attributing the cause to three main factors: pollution, over fishing and climate change.

The rapid, large scale coastal development underway in the Middle East must be better planned and managed to avoid aggravating degradation and losses in the fragile marine ecosystems shared by eight Gulf countries – Bahrain, Kuwait, Iran, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates – warns a new report by the United Nations University (UNU). The report, by UNU's Canadian-based Institute for Water, Environment and Health, says fisheries and a broad range of other valuable resources and services provided by the Gulf's ecosystems are at risk of being lost because of inadequate environmental management.

Efforts to reduce nutrient pollution flows to Chesapeake Bay appear to be working, because data show the size of oxygen-starved “dead zones” in the bay has been declining — offering hope that a similar effort could pay off for Barnegat Bay.

EU member states agreed on Tuesday (15 November) to proposals aimed at reducing the use of phosphorus compounds in dishwasher and laundry detergents, taking a decisive step in tackling the formation of algae in Europe's waters.

DIPOLOG CITY, Zamboanga del Norte, Philippines – The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) recently issued a bulletin warning that shellfish collected from the seawaters of six Mindanao provinces are still positive for paralytic shellfish toxins beyond the regulatory limit.

SANTA CRUZ -- High-tech robots will warn us when blooms of toxic algae threaten the coast of California. A team of scientists led by researchers at UC Santa Cruz is deploying gliding underwater robots and sensitive underwater labs to identify where and when blooms begin.

Efforts to reduce pollution of the Chesapeake Bay are starting to pay off, a major new study says, finding that despite weather-driven ups and downs, the "dead zone" that stresses fish and shellfish every summer has actually shrunk, on average, in recent years.

Providence, RI – On Halloween, Environment Rhode Island Research & Policy Center unveiled the "Ten Scariest Facts about Narragansett Bay", showing that a frightening mix of pollutants including nitrogen, phosphorous, and heavy metals have made Narragansett Bay a ghost of its former self.

A vast tide of microscopic red algae off the coast of Texas is thought to have been responsible for the deaths of 4.2 million fish since September. The 'Red Tide' is a regular occurrence in the Gulf of Mexico during the autumn, but this year's deadly bloom is one of the largest seen and especially destructive to the Gulf's wildlife.

PORTLAND, Maine — The University of Maine is getting a $201,000 grant for research on red tide in the Gulf of Maine. Sen. Olympia Snowe says the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration grant covers funding for the first year of a three-year project to study early detection methods for red tide, the name for outbreaks of naturally occurring toxic algae blooms.

FLORIDA - The federally mandated “numeric nutrient criteria,” a set of standards to govern water pollution in the state of Florida, have been harshly criticized by industry, agriculture and even lawmakers — who argue the criteria are too stringent and would result in job losses and stymie business growth. But now a new set of critics have emerged: environmentalists, who feel the criteria aren’t quite stringent enough to make any real impact.