Health Considerations of the Lake Okeechobee Discharges that create Blue Green Algae (Cyanobacteria) Harmful Algae Blooms HABs as the Center for Disease Controls likes to call them have been in the government’s radar for quite some time. The earliest written records of HABs were in China over 1000 years ago. The variations and effects of the several different types of HABs have been documented worldwide and are increasing in their frequency and intensities. There have been noted fatalities and the most recent studies are linking exposures to Motor Neuron Disease (AMD) and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Research dealing with toxins coming from HABs commonly centers around Cyanobacteria. These HABs often include the most prolific and dangerous toxins. This is the same type of algae that is identified in the Indian River Lagoon. Many times HABs are relatively small sections or blooms that cluster in a particularly poor water column. The CDC describes Cyanobacteria as follows: Cyanobacteria, also known as blue‐green algae, grow in any type of water and are photosynthetic (use sunlight to create food and support life). Cyanobacteria live in terrestrial, fresh, brackish, or marine water. They usually are too small to be seen, but sometimes can form visible colonies, called an algal bloom. Cyanobacteria have been found among the oldest fossils on earth and are one of the largest groups of bacteria. Cyanobacteria have been linked to human and animal illnesses around the world, including North and South America, Africa, Australia, Europe, Scandinavia, and China. “Visible colonies” that can be viewed from space. How did the most diverse and important estuary in North America turn into this since the middle of May 2013? Effect on Water Resources There is a daily bombardment of unwanted, nutrient rich “fresh “ water being introduced at a rate exceeding an average of 1 billion gallons per day. Fresh only in it is has no salinity. The water is full of potassium and nitrates from fertilizers and runoff, which act to hasten the blooms. When a billion plus gallons of fresh water hits a (brackish) saltwater estuary with a measurable difference in temperature, a phenomena called turbidity occurs which creates a churning or mixing of the very different waters. This stirs up the silt, detritus, and muck from previous discharges creating a perfect environment for more cyanobacteria to form. It feeds itself from the sun while blocking needed light from the rest of the organisms in the lagoon. EPA‐810F11001, dated July 2012 is a report from the EPA on Cyanobacteria and Cyanotoxins: Information for Drinking Water Systems. This reports details among other things the shocking lack of consideration for cyanotoxins that are created by the Blue Green Algae. The most widespread of the cyanotoxins are the peptide toxins in the class called microcystins. There are at least 80 known microcystins, including Microcystin‐LR, which is generally considered one of the most toxic……..No federal regulatory guidelines for cynobacteria or their toxins in drinking water or recreational waters exist at this time in the United States. From the same report the Environmental Protection Agency indicates that the primary organs affected by Cyanotoxin are the liver and kidneys. The Anatoxin classification that the EPA provides is a separate group of toxins because it is most common in the US and is also the most dangerous as it attacks the nervous system. Symptoms include tingling, burning, numbness, incoherent speech, salivation, respiratory paralysis leading to death. The cyanotoxins include neurotoxins (affect the nervous system), hepatotoxins (affect the liver), and dermatoxins (affect the skin). The presence of high levels of cyanotoxins in recreational water and drinking water may cause a wide range of symptoms in humans including fever, headaches, muscle and joint pain, blisters, stomach cramps, diarrhea, vomiting, mouth ulcers, and allergic reactions. Such effects can occur within minutes to days after exposure. In severe cases, seizures, liver failure, respiratory arrest, and (rarely) death may occur. There is evidence that long term exposure to microcystins and cylindrospermopsin may promote the growth of tumors and may cause cancer. The EPA goes on in the report to outline a number of screening and detection methods along with suggestions for what to do and not to do for drinking water managers. This indicates that the several Federal agencies are aware of the potential dangers and application to control even small outbreaks of this type of algae. Hundreds of acres of this algae have spread out of control in the back yards of several coastal communities. Something must be done to address this problem. Effect from Human Contact Aside from the spores coming off floating blooms and the fact that the toxins can become airborne from agitation, humans can also be affected via contact. The symptoms reported so far include respiratory difficulties, headaches, nausea, dizziness, aches, rashes, infections, and lesions. Below are some reported examples. Direct human affect can be immediately seen and measured. The toxins in the river are taking out the entire food chain and what organisms do survive are carriers of the toxins that may be linked to Cancer, Parkinson’s, and Alzheimer’s. Much like other toxins such as mercury, these toxins from the blue green algae can be stored in the tissues of seafood. Cigueatera is one of the more well known diseases that is caused by eating fish that contain toxins. The CDC summarizes: Ciguatera fish poisoning (or ciguatera) is an illness caused by eating fish that contain toxins produced by a marine microalgae called Gambierdiscus toxicus. Barracuda, black grouper, blackfin snapper, cubera snapper, dog snapper, greater amberjack, hogfish, horse‐eye jack, king mackerel, and yellowfin grouper have been known to carry ciguatoxins. People who have ciguatera may experience nausea, vomiting, and neurologic symptoms such as tingling fingers or toes. They also may find that cold things feel hot and hot things feel cold. Ciguatera has no cure. Symptoms usually go away in days or weeks but can last for years. People who have ciguatera can be treated for their symptoms. Another disease associated with poor water conditions and bacteria in the water columns is Vibrio vulnificus bacteria otherwise known in the media as flesh eating bacteria. There have been over 25 reported cases and 9 deaths in the State of Florida attributed to this group of toxins. The latest fatality was in Volusia County and two more deaths have occurred in Lee County, both of which are connected to water bodies that receive discharges from Lake Okeechobee. There are also local reports of people with less severe cases flesh eating infections. Existing wounds or sores seem to contract this from infected water in a rapid fashion. Symptoms should be taken seriously as the infection can spread extremely quickly. The World Health Organization classifies its discussion of cyanobacterial toxins under water related diseases, “Cyanobacteria or blue‐green algae occur worldwide especially in calm, nutrient‐rich waters”. Once the daily deluge finally stops and the water settles into the back creeks, fingers and canals of the St. Lucie, the are hundreds of acres of now even more nutrient rich calm waters. What is supposed to be a nursery of life now becomes a caldron of death. There are over 80 different known types of cyanobacteria. The most prevalent types in North America cause multiple symptoms in degrees of severity, including death. The very nature of the discharges creates thousands of acres of shallow warm relatively calm waters that create the most optimal conditions for these HABs to occur with alarming frequency and duration. Once the bloom dies then the toxins enter the water and the organisms creating long term, multi‐generational problems. There are currently no federal guidelines or policy to deal with cyanobacteria even though it is found regularly in over 20 states. Notwithstanding that fact, the Clean Water Act would likely be sufficient to protect the people that live, work, and eat from the lagoon if the polluter were an individual or corporation. Unfortunately, the polluter is the US Army Corps of Engineers that enjoys immunities from both the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act through a rule called the Water Transfer Rule. The ACOE justification for creating widespread calamity in two separate regions is to avoid the 1%‐40% chance of a disaster in the Lake community. The communities that suffer from the continual discharges feel that they are indeed being deprived of their freedoms to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness at the hands of a military bureaucracy. Referenced Materials http://water.epa.gov/scitech/swguidance/standards/criteria/nutrients/upload/cyanobacteria_factsheet
.pdf http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/hsb/hab/default.htm http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/diseases/cyanobacteria/en/ http://www.science20.com/australian_researchers_discover_potential_blue_green_algae_cause_motor
_neuron_disease_mnd_als‐121193 http://dmnewsi.com/2013/09/30/florida‐man‐dies‐in‐just‐28‐hours‐after‐infection‐from‐flesh‐eating‐
bacteria/ Save Our Indian River Lagoon Steve Edmonds Concerned Citizen 407‐701‐9045