What do yall know about it?

1. Does anyone understand the biological process? Would it affect the Trinity River watershed?

2. Looks to me like nutrient overload in water without microorganisms capalble of consuming those nutrients. West Texas type lakes are certianly at risk. Is golden algae capable of taking down a prolific lake like Caddo, Lake Lewisville, or Lake Fork?

3. Are organic buffers effective? There has got to be a way to stave there opertunistic niche.

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Mark1 posted a link to the 6OG's web page in another post about this. I am pasting one of the comments:

Golden algae outbreaks are relatively new in the United States. The first report came in the 1980s at Red Bluff Reservoir and its Pecos River watershed in far West Texas and New Mexico. In 2001, major fish kills caused by this photoplankton occurred at lakes Possum Kingdom, Granbury and Whitney, and in a hatchery near Wichita Falls where it wiped out the state's entire supply of striped bass used for stockings.

Last year, golden algae hit in New Mexico, Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, Wyoming, North Carolina and South Carolina.

Outbreaks have occurred in other countries for decades, though major damage done by the algae there has been limited to the fish-pond culture industry.

Finding a cure, or a way to kill the algae and prevent it from reoccurring, has not been difficult in overseas fish ponds. Israel, where the earliest recorded outbreak of the algae was reported in the 1950s, uses an aggressive treatment of ammonia. Other chemicals, including one commonly used in the United States and elsewhere at drinking-water treatment plants, also works to kill golden algae.

Draining a pond has been tried, but doesn't work because the algae can lay dormant in the mud for a long time and bloom when the pond is refilled.

Chemicals not only kill golden algae but everything else in the pond. Using chemicals to treat golden algae in a large body of water, such as lakes Granbury or Possum Kingdom, would be neither cost-effective nor practical because it would have an adverse impact on other organisms in those lakes' ecosystems. The cure then would be worse than the problem.

Although researchers have not discovered what triggers a golden algae bloom, they have discovered some interesting things about the organism. It seems to favor, but is not confined to, water from river systems with naturally high salinity levels. Scientists say other contributors to the algae could include brine contamination from oil and gas production, some irrigation practices and periods of little to no rainfall.

The rains that fell in parts of Texas in recent days could be good or bad, depending upon how much runoff occurs. Too little runoff would add nutrients to the lakes, and thus help the algae thrive. Heavy rains, on the other hand, could kill the algae; researchers have discovered golden algae cann't thrive when it is forced to stay in flows of fresh water for several days. The cell begins to swell, loses its capability to function then dies.

Heavy rains just weeks after a golden algae outbreak at Granbury in 2001 helped stop the bloom.

Although it is a long shot, researchers also have discovered some cells of golden algae they say were killed by bacteria. Unfortunately, they have not been able to identify the bacteria.

With no answers, it appears that whether the fish kills continue or subside remains in the hands of Mother Nature.

Also a Jeff Walton posted some links on the 6OG's page as well. I am posting his links here:
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/news/news/010910c.htm
http://www.dnr.state.co.us/news/press.asp?pressid=1922
http://www.stillwatersbassclub.org/news_releases/2001_update_golden_algae.htm
http://www.fishgame.com/cgi-bin/news.cgi?article=44
http://www.savvycenter.com/explorer/news/possking.htm
http://www.otmtour.com/OTM/2003/Apr03/Apr03OTM-cover.asp

Awesome Jeff. Thank you