Floridas Toxic Algae Blooms: Could This Happen in North Carolina?
Summary
Stormwater-based solutions include the implementation of non-structural practices such as stream buffers along with the design and installation structural stormwater pollution controls such as retention ponds, constructed wetlands, and rain gardens (bioretention) on agriculture, new development, and redevelopment.The impacts of stormwater pollution and the need for controls are already being felt in coastal communities in the form of beach and shell fishing areas as a result of health concerns due to bacteria and pathogens.Raleigh, NC, July 20, 2016 --( PR.com )-- Mark Senior, PE, Senior Project Engineer with WK Dickson, consulting firm specializing in total community infrastructure solutions, researched and provided the following written piece on the current state of our coastal environment.Mark can be reached at msenior@wkdickson.com The recent toxic algae problems in Florida have generated widespread media attention and led many to ask “what’s going on?” The blooms on the east coast of Florida began in May as algal blooms in the nutrient enriched Lake Okeechobee, then moved down the St. Lucie River to the estuary and ultimately to Florida’s “Treasure Coast” as a result water releases by the Corps of Engineers.Stormwater-based solutions include the implementation of non-structural practices such as stream buffers along with the design and installation structural stormwater pollution controls such as retention ponds, constructed wetlands, and rain gardens (bioretention) on agriculture, new development, and redevelopment.The impacts of stormwater pollution and the need for controls are already being felt in coastal communities in the form of beach and shell fishing areas as a result of health concerns due to bacteria and pathogens.Algal blooms are not new, may happen almost anywhere, and occur naturally, but it appears that their frequency and magnitude are on the rise.