Water-Related News

Mat algae covers bottom of Matlacha Pass

LEE COUNTY – Another threat is lurking under the surface of the water, and it’s called mat algae. It can destroy the ecosystem by sucking all the oxygen out of the water.

Right now thick, green, mat algae is covering the bottom of Matlacha Pass.

“The root cause is nutrients,” said Richard Bartleson, Research Scientist at SCCF Marine Lab. “We have an overloading of nutrients to our system. Nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus.”

Bartleson has been researching this algae and its effect on the local environment. It looks like a fuzzy green carpet, but Bartleson explained the algae’s biomass has become much too large.