Hi all…for those of you who deal with raw water reservoirs or lakes that are under threat from cyanobacterial blooms (potentially associated with the regulated microcystin LR) you may find this article interesting. It doesn’t go too deeply into each of the issues it identifies but it does touch on a fair number of topics which help to frame this emerging problem.
Bill
Rise of toxic cyanobacterial blooms in temperate freshwater lakes: causes, correlations and possible countermeasures
Stefanie N. Scholz, Maranda Esterhuizen-Londt & Stephan Pflugmacher (2017): Toxicological & Environmental Chemistry, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02772248.2016.1269332
Abstract
“The progressive degradation of surface freshwater quality due to the mass proliferation of toxic cyanobacterial blooms is of growing global concern. The occurrence of cyanobacterial blooms is not a new phenomenon. However, a global increase in the frequency, duration, and distribution of toxic cyanobacterial blooms could be observed in the past decades. Evidence suggests that this trend might be attributed to a complex interplay of direct and indirect anthropogenic influences. The underlying causes and interrelations for this development have not been fully clarified. Nonetheless, all evidence points to the fact that mitigation of toxic cyanobacterial blooms will be a key challenge of the 21th century. This review addresses the underlying causes for the increased incidence of toxic cyanobacteria in temperate freshwater lakes and attempts to reveal possible reciprocities between bloom promoting factors. Selected approaches for the prevention of toxic cyanobacterial blooms as well as the mitigation of their potential negative impacts on humans will be presented.”
