Project

Managing Pyrodinium Outbreaks in the Indian River Lagoon

Full Title: Controlling Pyrodinium Outbreaks in the Indian River Lagoon Estuarine System (IRLES) using Low-cost Biochars Prepared from Sargassum
Harmful algal blooms (HABs), particularly involving Pyrodinium bahamense, threaten the Indian River Lagoon Estuarine System (IRLES), leading to economic losses and public health risks from saxitoxin (STX) contamination. This project seeks to combat HABs in IRLES with a cost-effective and systematic approach in line with the comprehensive conservation and management plan (CCMP) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) goals for a healthy ecosystem and increased public awareness.
Lead Investigator: Dr. Toufiq Reza Associate Professor Chemistry and Chemical Engineering [email protected], Dr. Spencer Fire, Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, Florida Institute of Technology [email protected], Dr. Anwar Sadmani, Assistant Professor, Department of Civil, Environmental and Construction Engineering, University of Central Florida [email protected].
Project Team: Holly Abeels, Florida Sea Grant Extension Agent, University of Florida IFAS Extension Brevard County [email protected], Dr. Vincent Encomio, Martin and St. Lucie County Extension Agent [email protected]
Collaborator: NOAA, University of Central Florida, Indian Riven Lagoon National Estuarine Program, Treasure Coast Shellfish, Green Carbon Solutions, Air Burners, USFS
Award Amount: $186,868
Year Funded: 2022
Award Period: 2/1/22 – 1/31/24
Project Abstract:

The Indian River Lagoon Estuarine System (IRLES) frequently experiences harmful algal blooms (HABs), with Pyrodinium bahamense (hereafter as ‘Pyrodinium’) as one of the major bloom-forming phytoplankton species. Pyrodinium produces saxitoxins (STX) in their growth phase. STX is a group of neurotoxins which cause paralytic fish poisoning (PSP) and shellfish poisoning- resulting in major economic losses for the Atlantic coast of Florida. HABs formed by Pyrodinium in the IRLES have been responsible for seafood contamination, including a 2002-2004 pufferfish poisoning event involving 28 human cases and fish STX concentrations nearly 300 times of the federal regulatory limit. Co-PI-Fire’s group has detected STX in several other commercially and ecologically important finfish and shellfish species in the IRLES, as well as in important marine sentinel species such as the bottlenose dolphin. Traditional methods to control HABs have proven to be either costly or ineffective. Thus, many important marine resources of IRLES (e.g., shellfish beds, aquaculture pens) are at risk of contamination during such STX-producing HABs. As a result, IRLES has been experiencing nearly 80% decline of profit from commercial harvested clams, oysters, crabs, and shrimps ($20.1 million in 1994 to $4.3 million). Not only on marine industries, HABs have shown serious impact on the recreation and visitor related sectors, resource management sector, and living resources sectors, which are the major fractions of IRLES’s income of $2.6 billion. Therefore, HABs were identified in the IRLES’s comprehensive conservation and management plan (CCMP) as one of thirty-two vital signs of IRL health. Each vital sign has been ranked based on 4 levels of estuary health concerns (critical, serious, stable, and undetermined). HABs were ranked as a “critical” estuary health issue: “Condition threatens immediate and long-term prognosis for Lagoon health. Indicators are unfavorable. Trend is negative. Immediate and aggressive intervention is urgently needed to stop and reverse trend”. In this FL Sea Grant project, we propose a systematic study to control IRLNEP’s HABs in an economically viable and environmentally sustainable manner. Therefore, our project aligns with the IRL CCMP – Looking Ahead to 2030. This project will also be aligned with two of the EPA goals for IRL namely, (a) Goal 2: To attain and maintain a functioning, healthy ecosystem which supports endangered and threatened species, fisheries, commerce and recreation; Goal 3: To achieve heightened public awareness and coordinated interagency management of the IRL ecosystem.

Project received a no cost extension through `1/31/25. The project started late during the award negotiations and subcontracting. Additional time was also needed to source Pyrodinium for the project as well as for the project subcontractor at UCF to complete their task on toxin characterization.

 

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