Reflections on algae in the Lincoln Memorial Pool (and elsewhere)

ince early June, images of algae that appears to have colonized the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in the nation’s capital have flooded newsfeeds. But the infestation of the toxic aquatic organism reaches beyond the National Mall. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, NOAA, Thursday issued a forecast, warning that “moderate harmful” algae are expected in western Lake Erie this summer. And, Australia’s largest and longest harmful algal bloom is still wreaking havoc off the Southern Australian coast. It seems that algae are everywhere.

In fact, algal blooms—overgrowths of algae triggered by excess nutrients in the water—are indeed on the rise, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Algae gone rogue scarf up over four billion dollars in damages every year in the U.S. and make dozens of people—as well as ocean and lake species—sick through toxins released into the water, research shows. In 2013, the organism led to the demise of 277 manatees. A tracker maintained by Hydralife, a phytoplankton aquaculture company that keeps tabs on U.S. Harmful Algae Blooms in real time, has already tallied up a total of 119 with a peak of 48 events hitting in June.

And while President Trump is blaming the influx of these organisms on saboteurs, the science behind these plant-like life forms tells a different story.