The Effects of Red Tide

Britney Mata
Aug 31, 2018 · 4 min read

The State of Florida has been under a declared state of emergency for over six weeks. The toxic algae stretching all over Southwest Florida is to blame for this phenomenon. Red tide or better known as Algal Bloom is a natural occurrence. The Bloom has been around since the early 1970’s. However, over the past several years, conditions have gotten worse due to The Army Corps of Engineers. The Army deliberately keeps releasing contaminated water from Lake Okeechobee: in their defense, it’s because of high water levels caused by Hurricane Irma.

Photo by EYEONMIAMI

The source being Lake “O” is infected with a key ingredient in fertilizer — phosphorus. From the North, animal manure created by nearby farms flows into the lake. In the South, excess water from sugar cane fields gets deposited into the lake. The contaminated water flows in east and west canals and ultimately — the ocean. These decisions created by big corporations and government officials have been effecting our marine ecosystem. Florida beaches instead of having its beautiful impeccable colors now have a dark color. The bloom of red tide has wiped out thousands in marine life and tourism in its path. Take Siesta Key as an example, it’s one of the most known beaches on the coast — is now a dead town. “When the concentration of red tide is high it kills everything,” says Dr. Rick Bartleson, a research scientist at The Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation. Hundreds of tons marine life have washed up on shore with numbers still escalating. “The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has documented about 300 sea turtle deaths since the bloom started last October” -Fox News. An easy solution; let the water flow its natural course, reconnect Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades.

Gif by VICELAND/Giphy.com

The Everglades started at 3 million acres — now it’s a third of its original size. Fertilizers from the south and north of Lake Okeechobee made their way into the Everglades, estuaries from east and west, and directly into the Beaches Florida is known for. The “River of Grass” currently dammed, the flow must be restored, or it will continue to suffer, affecting Florida’s tourism. There is a protest group called “Buy the Land” aimed to fight political corruption and injustice by the U.S Sugar Program. They strive to buy the land within the Everglades Agricultural to move water from Lake Okeechobee and reduce contaminated discharges to estuaries on the east and west coast. They’re fighting to send water south to restore fresh water in the Florida Bay. There are 200-plus scientists behind this project in hopes to better our waters.

Working together to come back into some normality and have our beautiful beaches back to its natural state in our beautiful Florida, can and will be accomplished by everyone using its resources and willpower until its complete. The day will eventually come when all occupants can have their beaches back full of marine life the way nature intended for it to be.

Photo by Nick Koudis

The purpose of my Storify is to bring light and awareness to the dangers of Red Tide. As a native of Florida, I’ve seen the damages first hand. I would like to motivate other inhabitants to speak on this issue and bring awareness to the Senate. Our governors and legislators aren’t doing anything, so it’s on us to bring awareness. The algae bloom is affecting our economy and our lives. Here in Florida, business owners rely on our bodies of water to create a living. Thousands of business have suffered the consequences of the contaminated water. Just a couple of days ago, we became considered a “dead zone” with no marine life activity. There are several organizations dedicated to help and ensure legacy, I urge you to follow them.

In my Storify, I showed Pathos and Ethos through the picture illustrating Lake Okeechobee as a toilet. Around the Big Sugar land, you can see palm trees and umbrellas drowning in the brown water. Most Florida natives feel strong emotions toward their beautiful state. Citizen’s feel the pain of the animals, they suffer with them. What our government officials are doing is inhumane and unethical. I aim to shine a light on the issues that are being constantly ignored. I appeal to Logos in my Storify by including the skyrocketing numbers of marine life deaths. It goes to show how bad the contaminated water really is. Thousands upon thousands of marine lives have died, including whales and dolphins. If my years of living in Florida have taught me anything it’s to take care of the Sea.

I absolutely applied a series of Rhetorical strategies in my essay. One of them being persuasion — I want to urge Florida natives to open their eyes and see what’s in front of them. Our oceans are being used as dumping grounds. It’s extremely important to make sure to vote for the right government officials, as they have the ultimate say in how long our oceans will last. When including facts and pictures, I show my audience the truth. By providing the cause and effect the dirty waters have done, I have hopes it will get the attention it deserves.


Works Cited

“Breaking up the Big Sugar Cartel in Florida … by Gimleteye.” Flight Paths over Miami’s Downtown: About 650 Departures per Day. By Geniusofdespair, 17 Mar. 2016, eyeonmiami.blogspot.com/2016/03/whats-wrong-with-florida-listen-by.html.

Koudis, Nick. “GREEN CAUSES.” NICK KOUDIS, www.koudis.com/green/.

(@carliserrano), Carlos Serrano. “Red Tide: Florida Powerless to Stem Killer Algae Bloom.” BBC News, BBC, 24 Aug. 2018, www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-45288774.

Rise. “Viceland GIF by RISE — Find & Share on GIPHY.” GIPHY, GIPHY, 2 Mar. 2017, gph.is/2mKVrdH.

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