Sierra Club remarks at Harmful Algal Bloom/Red Tide Task Force meeting
on December 10, 2019 in St. Petersburg
The Sierra Club urges you to publicly and officially,
as part of the formal recommendations this body makes to the Governor, eschew,
reject, renounce the use of the phrase “naturally occurring” to describe Red Tide, Red
Tides, or karenia brevis.
The phrase “naturally occurring” to describe Red Tide, Red
Tides, or karenia brevis is not scientific or science-based, is utter
nonsense, and the use of it is disingenuous.
We call it the red herring that it most certainly is. A red herring may have some kernel of
truth, but is used as a distraction to keep our eyes on less
important matters and off the actual bottom line.
Red Tide is constantly referred to as “naturally
occurring” supposedly because it has been reported since Spanish explorer
days. Is it customary to use this term
for rats or mosquitoes?
I think you will agree that rats and mosquitoes have
been around since Spanish explorer days too.
Rats are “naturally occurring” but no one would use that term to
describe them. Human civilizations have
known for hundreds of years that if you dump garbage in the street, you will get rats. Keep dumping garbage and you will get more
rats, and those rats will have more baby rats. So we don’t leave garbage in the
street! If you make garbage (like all of
us do at home), you pay for its management through a system organized by the
government. Does that eliminate rats
altogether? No. They are still around
and once in a while you will get an infestation somewhere. But, keeping garbage out of our streets
reduces the frequency, intensity, and duration of rat infestations.
Mosquitoes are “naturally occurring” but no one
would use that term to describe them either.
What is our first line of defense against mosquitoes? It is not control measures but rather we get
rid of the circumstances that promote their reproduction; we eliminate their
prime living conditions by keeping standing water out of our yards and ditches. Control measures (the spraying of
insecticide, the placement of mosquito-devouring fish, etc.) are secondary, not
only because control measures may bring negative unintended consequences, but
because they are more expensive.
There are many similar examples:
“Don’t bother washing your hands after you use the toilet or handle raw
meat – we can pump everyone full of antibiotics after people get sick” is not
what the signs in the restroom say. Of course
not, that would be hazardous to public health and much more expensive than managing
the culprit before it turns into an outbreak.
Using ”naturally occurring”
to describe Red Tide creates a false narrative that takes attention away from
the need to manage/address the factors that fuel karenia brevis blooms: the fertilizer/ sewage/manure pollution and the
climate change that increases the frequency, intensity, and duration of most if
not all harmful and nuisance algal blooms.
There must be method to the madness. “Naturally occurring” is seen by the public
as a PR move by polluters and those who protect them because pollution source
control is (and should be) paid for by the polluter. Just like homeowners pay for garbage pickup, large
and small polluters should pay to manage their pollution so that it does not
end up in our State and Federal waters.
Every time Mote or FWC uses “naturally occurring” it
is repeated by any number of politicians and just as many reporters and the
false narrative is perpetuated. It is a false
narrative that you, the Harmful Algal Bloom/Red Tide Task Force, can stop with a
strong recommendation to reject its use.
There is no need to point fingers at why the phrase has been used or by
whom in the past.
The Sierra Club trusts and expects you to take action
to renounce the use of this phrase in your official recommendations that are
made available to the public. In so
doing, you will abide by your charge to bring a science-based approach to your
subject matter.
Cris Costello
Organizing Manager
Sierra Club
2127 S. Tamiami Trail
Osprey, FL 34229
941-914-0421
........................................................................................................
