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BLACK WATER Local media coverage of the black water phenomenon observed off the southwestern coast of Florida has been rather sketchy, resulting in an unnecessary rush to judgment that, in some instances, has elevated spurious speculation above scientific fact. Although news coverage of the event has been fairly recent (late March, early April), Florida scientists have observed and studied the current phenomenon since January. According to Dr. Ron Jones, Florida International University and Director of the Southeast Environmental Research Center, “Black water is an apparent discoloration of the water possibly due to a diatom or another type of microscopic algae. Although interesting, the event had little consequence to the ecology of the area. Satellite photos show that it has probably occurred unnoticed several times in the past. It is not a red tide and not a toxic event -- there were no related fish kills.” On March 28,2004, a group of independent scientists held a conference to study the water phenomenon and determined that nitrogen in farm runoff, as speculated in the media, was not the cause. When these scientists concluded that there was absolutely no evidence to connect sugar farmers with the unusual water problems, reporter Cathy Zollo of the Naples Daily News wrote, “Scientists discarded theories that have been presented possibly attributing the bloom’s success to nutrient runoff from Florida’s rivers that empty into the Gulf.” Dr. Cynthia Heil, a researcher at the University of South Florida’s College of Marine Science, looked for nutrients in the water, saying, “There was very little nitrogen, and no nitrate.” Dr. Jones says, “I have operated water quality monitoring and research in that area, and with 11 years of data, there is certainly no evidence that any nitrogen from the Everglades Agricultural Area or the sugar farms has affected Florida Bay, Shark River, Whitewater Bay, or any other coastal areas.” According to Jones, the Best Management Practices that farmers have implemented to reduce phosphorus by 73% have actually reduced nitrogen levels an even greater extent. “Any nitrogen associated with farm water is effectively removed in the conservation areas before the water reaches Shark River, Florida Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.” Respected scientists who actually sampled the water (as opposed those who merely speculated) found “nothing atypical—no spikes of nutrients, pollutants, farm runoffs or natural organisms.” According to an April 2, 2002 report by the Florida Marine Research Institute in St. Petersburg, “The ‘blackwater’ is an event of marine and biological origin.” This conclusion was confirmed by St. Petersburg’s Mote Marine Laboratory personnel who said, “early results show the event did not originate from a freshwater source, but was marine in origin.” “At this point, this appears to be a normal occurrence, not an environmental catastrophe,” said Cheva Heck, Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, which is monitoring the event. “There is nothing in this sample that I would be afraid of or call dangerous,” said Paula Coble, a marine biochemist at the University of Florida. There was no evidence of anything toxic in the water. There is, in fact, no credible scientific evidence that the zone of discolored water was caused by nitrogen, much less scientific evidence to link any of it to sugar farms. Water from sugar farms has no negative impact on the west coast of Florida or the Florida Keys. Historically, nutrient levels have been at pristine background levels in the water being discharged into the Shark River Slough mangrove estuaries adjoining the Gulf of Mexico. Continued research by credible scientific institutions is important to all Floridians, and according to most reports, it is already being carried out. As the science becomes available, it should be made public in an effort to end speculation and to put an end to the unfortunate knee-jerk reaction of some to blame sugar farming for every environmental issue that comes along. Scientific Resource: Dr. Ronald
D. Jones |