Stephanie Byrne

The blue-green algae task force is looking for new approaches to battle the blooms and got together Wednesday to talk about the efforts to use hydrogen peroxide as well as ultrasonic waves in another location. First, the task force wants to see how the technology that is already in place has performed, so we’ll see […]

The Army Corps of Engineers on Monday went over multiple plans on how Lake Okeechobee is managed, which could affect algae, water supply, and more. The need for safe water is universal. “This is Bella, an 8-year-old boxer who lives with her family on the C-51 Canal. She became sick after ingesting some vegetation that […]

More efforts are underway to keep our waterways in Southwest Florida clear of blue-green algae. The state teamed up with Israel-based company BlueGreen Water Technologies Ltd. for a pilot program to take a crack at tackling our water crisis. It’s a much different situation along the Caloosahatchee River and at the Franklin Lock compared to […]

Sunsets across Florida could become more spectacular soon, as clouds of dust from the Sahara Desert are sweeping in across the Atlantic Coast in the coming days. Similar to the way humans need iron, Saharan dust provides iron to organisms in the water. In turn, it can fuel events such as red tide. FGCU professor […]

If you’re fed up with Lake Okeechobee releases or the blue-green algae that sometimes comes with them, you can have your voice heard. The Army Corps of Engineers is in the process of rewriting how it handles operations and recently released six new possible lake management plans. For those of us that live on the […]

Decaying algae is coming to the surface in the backyards of some Southwest Florida residents; now it’s leading to small dead fish, and neighbors want action to be taken. Rick Salkeld sees algae in his canal near the Matlacha Park Fishing Pier. “It’s not a happy time,” he said. Salkeld is not happy about having […]

Slimy and milky water is appearing in Matlacha Pass. “The smell is awful,” said Jeff Boone. Friends Boone and Sue McAfee were out on Matlacha on Wednesday looking for fishing spots but instead, the two ended up finding foul-smelling water. It’s not just noticeable from the fishing pier. A bird’s eye view of the water […]

It’s crunch time for our water quality as the Army Corps of Engineers gets ready to unveil its different options for a new Lake Okeechobee System Operating Manual (LOSOM) Lee County leaders met with the Army Corps to advocate for Southwest Florida. They want water in the Caloosahatchee when we need it, and no water […]

Environmentalists are wanting to give waterways a “voice” in the court system. Right now, they are working on a state constitutional amendment that would recognize your legal right to clean water. The amendment aims to do this by recognizing a waterway’s legal right to “… exist, flow, be free from pollution, and maintain a healthy […]

Manatees are one of Florida’s many well-known locals, but they’re dying at a staggering rate. In just the first five months of the year, 761 manatees died across the state. That’s already more than all of 2020, which totaled 637 deaths, according to FWC. Seagrass is a big food source for manatees, but the grass […]