The San Francisco Bay Area is experiencing an unprecedented red tide that is killing thousands of fish and other marine creatures and causing their carcasses to wash ashore. This is causing a bad smell that, according to experts, could get worse during this weekend's anticipated heat wave. Crews started clearing dead crabs, bat rays, striped bass, and other fish that had accumulated on Oakland's Lake Merritt's rocky shores over the weekend. The lake is a popular destination for joggers, walkers, and people seeking to be in nature.
According to Eileen White, executive officer of the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control, the fish die-off in Lake Merritt and throughout the Bay Area may be caused by a hazardous algae bloom that has been spreading in the area since late July. Algal blooms often occur in the summer. The size of this one and the presence of fish kills, though, make it exceptional, according to White.
In most cases, algal blooms last for about a week. But according to White, a triple-digit heat wave predicted for the holiday weekend might spur even greater growth in the Bay Area. She claimed that beginning last week, reports of dead fish began to arrive. We don't know when it will finish because this was a natural phenomenon brought on by Mother Nature, she said.
Initially discovered in the Alameda Estuary, a microbe known as Heterosigma akashiwo created a bloom, according to White. Despite the fact that it is constantly present in the water, researchers are still attempting to understand what led to its prolonged and extensive expansion. A protracted drought, they claim, has prevented stagnant water from draining into the ocean, and unusually warm and sunny weather may be promoting the growth of algae. High concentrations of nutrients like phosphorus and nitrogen in wastewater, according to Jon Rosenfield, a scientist with the San Francisco Baykeeper environmental organization, also promote the growth of algae blooms.
He claimed that the only way to handle the issue was to lessen the amount of fertilizers that the 40 wastewater treatment facilities operating in the area were dumping into the harbor. Rosenfield said sewage treatment plants are cleansing the water of solid particles and bacteria, but they’re not meant to draw out nitrogen and phosphorus. According to White, people would be responsible for paying the billions of dollars necessary to treat the water for nutrients.
The impacts of nutrients that have been present in the water since people first began settling the region, she claimed, are being studied by water districts, who are funding them. The sight of so many dead fish, according to Cely Aquino, who frequently visits Lake Merritt, made her unhappy. Many dead fish were present, and I also noticed a few dead stingrays. It's so sad, she said. I believe that nature will take care of everything, though. Following these numerous confirmation from divers sets of people,a great concern is being raised on the aquatic lifestyle as this might be showing signal of what bad is to come.
References