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A pilot project running in the south west of England is using satellite monitoring and operational predictive models to identify and forecast the movement of algal blooms. This technology could be used by shellfish harvesters to identify biotoxin levels – a process which until now has been lengthy and complex.
An algal bloom is the name given to large masses of phytoplankton, which are very small, free floating organisms that live in the sea. Although most phytoplankton are benign, a relatively small number can be toxic or produce toxins that can be accumulated and retained by bivalve molluscs. The latter types of blooms are termed Harmful Algal Blooms (HAB's). If bivalves are harvested that have an excessive accumulation of these biotoxins, they could pose a risk to human health.
At the moment, levels of biotoxins in bivalves can only be determined for water and mollusc flesh using very technical and complicated procedures which can take some days to give a result. By the time this data is gathered, the profile of the HAB would have changed. This means the harvesters must watch trends and base their decisions on whether or where to harvest next on old data.
Seafish has recently become aware of a pilot project in the south west of England's coastal waters. This is a collaborative project between the Plymouth Marine Laboratory, the Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory, the UK Met Office (which are all partners in the National Centre for Ocean Forecasting) and the UK Environment Agency.
Although this project is monitoring the quality of bathing water, this technology if successfully adapted, may provide information on geographical distribution of biotoxin-forming marine phytoplankton, which could be used by shellfish harvesters to manage the potential risk of biotoxins in the water.
This would not only increase profits, but would also improve safety standards in bivalve molluscs.
However, the identification of the blooms by phytoplankton species imaged by passive satellite technology requires a sophisticated scientific team approach and the collection of water samples for taxonomic identification.
Therefore, Seafish is encouraging industry and their partners to apply for Industry Project Funding
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