Politics Tuesday: Bad Tidings for Red Tide = Good Tidings for the Oceans

Posted by Jack Sterne, jack@oceanchampions.org

Well how about some good news for a change? Last week Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fl) pushed through the House an amendment to authorize $90 million over three years for research into the causes of red tide and other harmful algal blooms (HAB). Here's our press release.

Red tide is a huge problem in coastal areas, causing everything from fish kills to severe allergic reactions in some people. These impacts can have pretty negative economic repercussions, especially for tourist-dependent economies.

The most disturbing consequences though, are what harmful algal blooms (and the toxins they produce) are doing to animals. For instance domoic acid, one of the toxins produced by algal blooms, is making pelicans, sea lions and other coastal creatures go crazy.

Even a casual observer can tell that harmful algal blooms are getting worse each year. So what's the solution? We could avoid the beach all year and hope sea creatures don't go near the toxic blooms...

Or we can work with political leaders to find solutions. Personally, I like the beach and (some) politicians aren't half bad. That's why we couldn't be happier that our Congressional Champions are paying attention and working to find solutions.

When we meet with political leaders in Washington DC, we try to help them accomplish good things for the oceans. Making friends with powerful lawmakers and helping them works much better for us than shouting them down from a distance.

When the public is angry about an issue like red tide, we make sure our Champions in Congress know it's a problem voters care about. The last two months, thousands of our supporters contacted members of Congress about solving the red tide problem and... voila! Pro-ocean leaders like Florida Representatives Kathy Castor and Connie Mack come through and boost red tide research funding by $90 million.

Would leaders like Castor and Mack fight for ocean conservation without us? Maybe. But we know we're much more likely solve horrible problems like toxic algal blooms if members of Congress see us as allies rather than enemies.