Canberra, Aug 13 (IANS) The Australian government announced on Wednesday it will fast-track an assessment to determine if any flora and fauna affected by a toxic algal bloom off the country’s south coast should be added to the threatened species list.
Murray Watt, Australia’s Minister for the Environment and Water, said during a visit to South Australia (SA) on Wednesday that he will expedite an expert assessment of the impact of the toxic algal on marine life.
Since it was first detected off the coast of SA in March, the outbreak of the toxic algae Karenia mikimotoi has caused the deaths of thousands of marine creatures, including sharks, octopuses and penguins, across 500 kilometres of coastline.
Watt said in a statement on Wednesday that the outbreak has had a “devastating impact” on more than 400 species.
He said that he has written to the chair of the Threatened Species Scientific Committee (TSSC), which advises the government on updating the threatened species list, to urgently investigate whether any species need to be added to the list as a result of the algal outbreak.
Once a species is officially listed as threatened, it can have a legally-binding recovery plan developed and adopted until it is removed from the list, Xinhua news agency reported.
“We can leave no stone unturned to understand the impact of this on local marine life, so we can begin investing in the appropriate strategies to bring these important animals back to healthy numbers,” Watt said.
Authorities from the SA National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) on Wednesday morning removed a dead dolphin that had washed up on Henley Beach in the western suburbs of the state capital of Adelaide.
The NPWS said that a necropsy would be undertaken to investigate the cause of death but that marine mammals are not believed to be at “immediate risk” from the algal bloom.
According to the SA Department of Environment and Water, possible contributing factors to the bloom include a marine heatwave and extra nutrients being washed into the sea by flooding. The department says that no human intervention can be made to dilute or dissipate the algae.
The federal and SA state governments in July committed 28 million Australian dollars (18.3 million US dollars) in joint funding for the response to the bloom, including science and research and clean up efforts.
Watt on Monday apologised to South Australians who had criticised both governments for being too slow to respond to the crisis. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is expected to inspect the algal bloom later in August.
–IANS
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