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Mote Marine Laboratory sees a 70% kill rate during mitigation field testing

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Published  February 20, 2025 6:23pm EST
Venice
FOX 13 News

Mote Marine Lab deploys new tools against red tide

FOX 13's Kimberly Kuizon reports on Mote Marine Laboratory testing the efficiency of two new products developed to fight against red tide bloom in Venice and how the results inspired confidence from scientists.

The Brief

    • Two products developed by the Florida Red Tide Mitigation and Technology Development Initiative called Clear and Xtreme were launched by Mote Marine Laboratory.
    • The products produced a 70% kill rate of the red tide in two Venice canals, inspiring optimism from scientists.
    • Scientists say they need to take this success and test the kill rates of more red tides in canals and waterways in Venice and the state.

VENICE, Fla. - Dead fish floated along two canals in Venice as toxins from red tide kept residents inside.

"One of the most impactful things was standing on the seawalls with the residents right next to where we were deploying," said Kevin Claridge, Mote Marine Laboratory’s vice president for Sponsored Research and Coastal Policy Programs. 

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Mote Marine Laboratory testing the kill rate of red tide on Thursday.

Mote Marine Laboratory testing the kill rate of red tide on Thursday.

The backstory:

After about five years of research, non-stop testing and finally receiving regulatory approval, Mote Marine Laboratory deployed two products from the Florida Red Tide Mitigation and Technology Development Initiative.

"Many of them were saying it was unbearable to be out and just sit on their patio and enjoy the nice day they were having because of the red tide," said Claridge.

Mote Marine Laboratory team member testing how efficiently Clear and Xtreme killed red tide.

The products, called Clear and Xtreme, were developed by Mote Scientists Dr. Dana Wetzel, Dr. Richard Pierce and the Heartland Energy Group before being used in the canals. 

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"The two products we were working with are plant-based natural compounds. We devised a special deployment mechanism in partnership with a company that does oil spill and hazard waste cleanup," said Claridge.

Dig deeper:

Testing started immediately, and the results were exciting.

"A 70% kill rate of the Karenia brevis. That’s a win for us. I think it’s a pretty good suppression of Karenia. You won’t completely knock it out of the water column, and we don’t want to eliminate it from the natural environment, but you want to knock it back where it’s causing the environment's ecological impacts," said Claridge. 

Testing being done in Venice waterways on Thursday.

Mote Marine Laboratory’s President and CEO Dr. Michael Crosby said he didn’t doubt what would happen.

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"This stuff works and does no greater harm to the environment than the red tide is doing," said Crosby. 

What's next:

Mote Marine Laboratory has other products to deploy pending review and approval from the EPA. They’re hoping to scale up deployment to an active bloom.

"This won’t be a success if we can only do a canal or two. We have to be able to really view this a little more as a military operation and being able to attack with deployment of these compounds and methods wherever that red tide is," said Crosby.

The Source: FOX 13's Kimberly Kuizon collected the information in this story.

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