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Algal threat to Olympic sailing

algae-water getty.BMPA massive outbreak of algae is threatening to destroy the Chinese Olympics’ sailing event.

The sea off the city of Qingdao has been turned green by the algae and a vast number of fishing boats have been drafted in to deal with the problem. Have a look at AP’s photo gallery for an idea of the scale of the problem, which has led both AFP and Bloomberg to note that this is not quite the ‘green Olympics’ China had in mind.

“It’s a climatic disaster and we can only hope the heavens will be kind to us in August,” Wang Haitao, sailing spokesman for the games told Bloomberg. “We can only haul the blue-green algae manually and we’re doing all we can with our arms full and by the boat-load.”

Michael Jones, director of Australia’s sailing team, says the boats should be able to deal with the problem. They have previous experience, he told Radio Australia.

“First year we were there we had a massive problem with jellyfish. I have just never seen so many jellyfish and the size and density of them in my life, and so again they mobilised a fleet of, we are talking 200-300 so of junk type boats, and they just worked day and night trawled the area.”

AFP points out that Qingdao means Green Island.

Image: stock photo / Getty

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    Russell Seitz said:

    This revives shuddering memories of the 1988 America’s Cup races, sailed atop the kelp forest off San Diego.

    Blades had to be installed on rudder and keel skegs to sever the architeuthys-sized leaves of the stuff floating about.

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    redtidetoxinalert said:

    Harmful Algal Blooms (HAB) are proliferating worldwide, particularly along the Gulf of Mexico coastline. Sea mammals are washing ashore stricken by the potent neurotoxins that the HAB produce. More emergency room visits are logged by humans exposed to the HAB toxins.

    Researchers say that the HAB toxin called brevetoxin (red tide outbreaks) has no long-term affect on humans, yet the studies are few and far between. It kills animals in the sea by the tons, however.

    Those protecting the seaside economies tell you that the HAB toxin affect is temporary; they won’t tell you about the life-threatening symptoms being reported. Children with strange, recurrent rashes; elderly patients with debilitating lung problems; young people with chronic fatigue and mysterious infections; middle-aged victims with chronic asthma, leukemia, or other cancers.

    HAB neurotoxins invade the cells of the lymphatic system in animals, bind in the fatty tissues; and cause cellular DNA changes, yet we are told that symptoms are temporary and should go away when we leave the beach. Hmmmm…what’s wrong with this picture?

    Industry claims that run-off, excessive nutrients, and pesticides are not to blame. They say that HAB are a naturally-occurring phenomena and that the evidence does not point a finger at industry pollution. Hmmm…would the oceans wipe out their own animal life? Would the oceans suddenly create an imbalance in nature that results in serious ecosytem changes?

    Any logical human being would say this sounds like a big cover-up. The question is are humans safe when in the HAB? Though it is downplayed, human anecdotal records may show that the HAB toxins are far more dangerous than we are being told. The more important question is what is being done to protect those who know nothing about the power of a deadly HAB toxin?

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    texxs said:

    Looking back on this is it fortunate or sad that we can say “This algae bloom could have been much worse.”

    I’m sure they have a long way to go but the situation did encourage China to improve their Environmental protections a bit didn’t it?

    Probably not far enough. . .

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