Breaking down test results of algae in Lee County

At Rosen Park in Cape Coral you can visually see an increase in the toxic algae, but when experts analyzed the latest DEP numbers, an overall downward trend in the amount of toxic algae was seen.

Florida Gulf Coast University’s Dr. Serge Thomas broke down the results saying, “the numbers that you showed me were mainly concentration of toxins of cyanobacteria, a little tiny algae which can eventually make those big scums on the surface.”

The numbers are placed into 3 basic categories:
0-10 is low
10-20 is medium
And 20 to 2,000 is high.

Thomas said, “The microsystine is a toxin meaning it will impact actually your liver. The concentration we found as of last week were between 4 and 18 microgram per liter.”

Even if the numbers by you are medium, you are still advised to stay clear of the water.

“And they have toxins which eventually can impact your liver eventually can even be a neurotoxin meaning it can actually impact your communicative or your nervous system,” he added.

And even though these test results show an overall decrease in the toxin Thomas  said “Samples can be taken in a lot of different ways.”

David Menist is taking matters into his own hands, “I myself took 13 different samples today from different parts of the canal, different parts of the river.”