Climate change, red tide, algae an environmental disaster

The most recent generations have been spoiled with the gifts of industrialization and all the wealth and conveniences that came with it. But with this gift, our generation carries a heavy burden.

For a moment, just imagine the position we’ve been put in: by the end of the century, scientists have forecasted the likelihood of countless worst-case scenarios throughout the planet from climate change and sea level rise. Before any of that happens, we will continue to see the consequences of environmental destruction unfold in real time, especially in Southwest Florida. 

Just this August, Lee County hauled over 2,000 tons of dead marine life off its shores. We’ve seen the size, power, and frequency of category 4 and 5 hurricanes dramatically increase over the past few decades. Florida’wetlands have been all but eradicated, making the loss of the state’s natural barriers to hurricanes all the more troubling.

The midterm elections just passed. This was an important opportunity to get politicians elected who cared about the environment. Now though we must continue to pressure reelected officials over the course of their terms. Cecil Pendergrass, just reelected to the Lee County Board of County Commissioners, featured water quality as a prominent issue on his campaign website. He previously declared a state of emergency in order to clean up the beaches, but red tide and toxic algae is really the symptom of a larger environmental water crisis. 

Red tide is a natural phenomenon, but this fact is rhetorically spun for political gain. The exacerbation of red tide is undeniably human-caused. According to Dr. William Mitsch FGCU scholar of Everglades research, fertilizer and other pollutants provide a “booster shot” to the red tide, accelerating its growth. This is what led to the disastrously toxic blue-green algae and red tide explosion that occurred this year. If we don’t do something to make it better, it will get worse. If the current trends continue, we will live most of our lives in a world where such catastrophic phenomena become a persistent occurrence.

We always hear that the solution to red tide is to "send the water south." It is much more complicated than that. According to Mitsch, any water that is sent south must be clean, otherwise we’re simply moving the problem from Fort Myers to the Keys. 

The Everglades restoration project was once again placed on hold in an extraordinary fashion. The plan to create a reservoir in order to reduce the discharge of Lake Okeechobee was secretly postponed by South Florida Water Management District. Under the distraction of the highly publicized midterm recounts, the board renewed the lease in favor of the sugar giant Florida Crystals. The lease renewal critically impedes Everglades restoration efforts and abatement of toxic algae.

The solution must always start locally. Officials cannot simply respond after the crisis is well underway. Instead, Southwest Florida policy makers must be held accountable for the routine decisions they make that radically alter the natural environment and overburden the man-made infrastructure responsible for managing waste discharges to our aquatic systems.

The past is prologue, meaning the transaction costs of our modern comforts inherently decide our future. If we continue down the path of mass environmental exploitation, the fundamental and unique aspects of Southwest Florida that we all enjoy and should cherish will be gone. What kind of legacy should be left to future generations, one of ethical sustainability or one where the spread of toxic algae and massive marine die-offs are considered the new normal?

Brandon Kaiser is a third-year political science student at Florida Gulf Coast University. Tom Shlomi is a math major in his first year at Florida Gulf Coast University​​​​​​​.