Possible blue-green algae reported at marina on St. Lucie River

RIO, Fla. (CBS12) — Is the threat of harmful, toxic blue-green algae being contained to Lake Okeechobee this summer?

There have been reports of increased amounts of toxic algal blooms on Lake Okeechobee, and now there's a possible algae bloom reported in the St. Lucie River in Martin County.

But how is it possible for the blue-green algae to pop up on the St. Lucie River if there have been no discharges from Lake Okeechobee into local estuaries this summer?

The new sighting of possible blue-green algae was reported by a marina employee to the owner of Outboards Only in Rio on Monday.

"He said there's blue-green algae floating in the marina," said Phil Norman, owner of Outboards Only. "I said 'oh yeah I will go down and look at it later,' and he said here I could show you photos."

The employee described the water as neon green and said the algae was coming from the St. Lucie River into the main dock area of the marina.

"You can see a little of the green tinge; a little flex of algae here," said Mike Conner, local fishing guide and clean water advocate.

Conner joined CBS12 News at the Rio marina on Tuesday to discuss the recent report of possible blue-green algae in the St. Lucie River. He's one of 70 people who tested positive last year for a toxin that is found in blue-green algae.

"I won't fish on the St. Lucie River if it has a cyanobacteria bloom because of fear for my health," he said.

Conner has seen the ebbs and flow of seven major blue-green algae events on the Treasure Coast. This year has relatively been a less active year with fewer algal blooms on Lake Okeechobee and discharges.

"The water in the St. Lucie River is too salty for algal blooms to flourish," he said.

Cyanobacteria is a freshwater organism that would have a short-lived stay in saltwater.

But photos of fluorescent green algae in the marina that shoulders the St. Lucie River is surprising, said FAU Harbor Branch Research Associate Malcolm McFarland.

"I would say there’s a reason to be concerned because it is out there," he said. "There can be other runoff that may create local pockets of freshwater runoff into the St. Lucie River, which may make it possible to find cyanobacteria this time of year.”

This time last year, there was algae bloom on the river, backed up into the basin where Outboards Only is located. Norman described last year's blue-green algae as thick and foul-odored. The toxic mess in 2018 put the marina out of work for a while, interrupting business big time, so Norman and his staff are hoping this week's sighting is harmless.