A eutrofização de ambientes aquáticos continentais é um processo lento e natural, mas que tem se intensificado sobremaneira devido a influência das atividades antrópicas. Uma das consequências da eutrofização artificial são florações de algas cada vez mais frequentes e intensas. Alguns grupos de algas, como as cianobactérias, podem produzir toxinas que representam um risco para o homem e para a biota aquática e, por isso, sua floração merece atenção especial. O Lago Guaíba é um importante corpo hídrico do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul e o principal manancial do município de Porto Alegre. A sua bacia hidrográfica ocupa cerca de 30% da área do estado e os principais rios - Jacuí, Caí, Sinos e Gravataí - drenam áreas de intenso uso agrícola e industrial. No Lago Guaíba, as florações têm sido frequentes, principalmente na última década e representam um sério desafio ambiental. Neste contexto, o objetivo da presente pesquisa foi avaliar o potencial de identificação dos episódios de floração de algas no Lago Guaíba a partir da integração de dados radiométricos in situ adquiridos simultaneamente a dados limnológicos (clorofila-a, total de sólidos em suspensão, transparência da água, entre outros) e imagens de satélite. Para a obtenção dos espectros de reflectância foi utilizado o espectrorradiômetro portátil FieldSpec® HandHeld, com coleta em 16 pontos amostrais definidos a priori. Os trabalhos de campo ocorreram em março de 2012, maio de 2013 e abril de 2014. Os espectros foram correlacionados com medidas de variáveis limnológicas obtidas simultaneamente. Para a análise espaço-temporal das florações foram selecionadas 10 imagens produzidas pelos satélites Landsat 5 e 7 (sensores TM e ETM+) disponibilizadas pelo Serviço Geológico dos Estados Unidos (USGS), corrigidas para os efeitos da atmosfera e convertidas em reflectância de superfície. Estas imagens foram obtidas nos meses de verão e outono, entre os anos de 2005 e 2012, e coincidiram com as datas das florações identificadas pelo Departamento Municipal de Água e Esgotos (DMAE) do município de Porto Alegre. Três rotinas de processamento foram aplicadas às imagens: 1) o Índice de Vegetação por Diferença Normalizada (NDVI); 2) o Modelo Linear de Mistura Espectral (MLME) e 3) a Análise por Componentes Principais (ACP). Durante a coleta dos espectros em campo não houve florações, mas, ainda assim, estes permitiram identificar padrões de reflectância do lago em diferentes áreas e situações climáticas, bem como a influência da clorofila-a e dos sólidos em suspensão na resposta espectral da água. Os principais resultados do processamento das imagens de satélite foram: a) o NDVI é adequado para o mapeamento da abrangência e intensidade das florações e que resultados superiores a -0,2 indicam áreas de floração; b) o MLME apresentou limitações para o mapeamento das florações relacionadas à dificuldade de obtenção de bons espectros de referência diretamente sobre as imagens, mas permitiu avaliar as variações espaciais das características da água; c) a técnica da ACP ampliou as correlações dos dados das imagens com a Chl-a e as cianobactérias em comparação ao NDVI, e a classificação nãosupervisionada das principais componentes permitiu identificar as áreas (clusters) de floração, assim como áreas onde outros componentes atuavam. Os fatores que contribuíram para o estabelecimento de florações no lago foram: menor velocidade do fluxo da água, menor profundidade da coluna d´água, menor velocidade do vento e menores índices de precipitação pluviométrica, associados à maior disponibilidade de luminosidade e oferta de nutrientes. Concluí-se que as técnicas empregadas foram adequadas para o mapeamento de florações e que análises que utilizam dados de diferentes naturezas podem incrementar as metodologias existentes e abrir novas possibilidades de identificação e monitoramento de algas. / The eutrophication of freshwater ecosystems is a slow and natural process, but that has intensified greatly because of the influence of human activity. One of the consequences of artificial eutrophication are increasingly frequent and intense algae blooms. Some genera groups of algae, and cyanobacteria can produce toxins that pose a risk to humans and aquatic biota and therefore blooms deserve special attention. The Guaiba Lake is an important water body in the State of Rio Grande do Sul and the main source of Porto Alegre city. Its basin covers about 30% of the state area and major rivers - Jacuí, Caí, Sinos and Gravataí - drain areas of intense agricultural and industrial use. In the Guaiba Lake, blooms have been frequent, especially in the last decade and represent a serious environmental challenge. In this context, the objective of this study was to evaluate the potential for identification of episodes of algal bloom in the Guaiba Lake from the integration of radiometric data in situ simultaneously acquired with limnology data (chlorophyll-a, suspended solids total, water transparency, etc.) and satellite images. To obtain the reflectance spectra a portable spectroradiometer FieldSpec® HandHeld was used, with a collection of 16 sampling points defined a priori. The fieldwork took place in March 2012, May 2013 and April 2014. The spectra were correlated with limnological variables obtained simultaneously. For the spatio-temporal analysis of the blooms 10 images produced by Landsat satellites 5 and 7 (TM and ETM+ sensors) were selected and provided by United States Geological Survey (USGS), adjusted for the effects of the atmosphere and converted to surface reflectance. These images were produced in the months of summer and fall, between the years 2005 and 2012, and coincided with the dates of the blooms identified by the Municipal Department of Water and Sewerage (DMAE) in the city of Porto Alegre. Three processing routines were applied to images: 1) Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI); 2) Linear Spectral Mixture Model (LSMM) and 3) the Analysis by Principal Component (ACP). During the collection of spectra in the field no bloom was identified, but even so it was possible to identificaty reflectance standards in different areas and climatic conditions in the Lake as well as the influence of chlorophyll-a and suspended solids in the spectral response of the water. The main results of the satellite images processing were: a) the NDVI is suitable for mapping the scope and intensity of blooms and results greater than -0.2 indicate flowering areas; b) the LSMM presented limitations for mapping the blooms related to the difficulty of obtaining good reference spectra directly on the images but allowed the evaluation of spatial variations of water features; c) the technique of ACP increased correlations of image data with Chl-a and cyanobacteria compared to NDVI, and non-supervised classification of the principal component identified in the flowering cluster areas as well as areas where other components were at play. Factors that contributed to the establishment of blooms in the lake were slower rate of water flow, the less depth of the water column, lower wind speed and lower levels of rainfall, combined with the greater availability of light and nutrient supply. It was concluded that the techniques used were suitable for mapping blooms and the analysis using data from different natures can improve existing methodologies and open new possibilities for identification and monitoring of algae.

Algae are important to marine and fresh-water ecosystems. However, some species of algae are harmful or even toxic. They can consume oxygen or block sunlight that is essential for other organisms to live. Indeed, some algae blooms can produce toxins that damage the health of the environment, plants, animals, and humans. Harmful algal blooms (HABs) which are often more green, brown, or dark-colored than red have spread along the coastlines and in the surface waters of the United States. Therefore, scientists are making great efforts to study HABs in order to maintain human and ecosystem health. Karenia brevis, the major harmful algal bloom dinoflagellate of the Gulf of Mexico, plays a destructive role in the region. Karenia brevis, responsible for Florida red tide, is the principle HAB dinoflagellate in the Gulf of Mexico. K. brevis blooms can produce brevetoxin: ladder-shaped polyether (LSP) compounds, which can lead to adverse human health effects, like reduced respiratory function through inhalation exposure, or neurotoxic shellfish poisoning through consumption of contaminated shellfish. The poisoning has been attributed to their affinity for voltage-sensitive sodium ion channels causing channel opening and depolarization of excitable cell membranes. Conservative estimate suggests that the economic impact from all harmful algal bloom events in the United States is at least $82 million/year. The public health costs occupy $37 million alone. The study presented herein utilized fluorescent and photolabile brevetoxin probes to demonstrate that brevetoxin localizes in the chloroplast of K. brevis where it binds to light harvest complex II (LHC II) and thioredoxin (Trx). It had been discovered that the TrxR/Trx system was inhibited by brevetoxin-2 (PbTx-2) with an IC50 of 25 µM. The mechanism of the inhibition was discussed in this work. The research also revealed that the K. brevis high-toxic and low-toxic strains have a significant difference in their ability, not only to produce brevetoxin, but also to perform NPQ and in the production of ROS. I compared and contrasted various metabolic and biochemical parameters in two strains of K. brevis which had a ten-fold difference in toxin content. The work could shed light on the physiological role that brevetoxin fills for K. brevis and may contribute to understanding the effect of ladder-shaped polyether compounds on both marine animals and exposed humans and shall inform improved treatments for brevetoxicosis.

The objective of this research is to evaluate a coastal prediction system under various real world scenarios to test the efficacy of the system as a management tool in Tampa Bay. The prediction system, comprised of a three-dimensional numerical circulation model and a Lagrangian based particle tracking model, simulates oceanographic scenarios in the bay for past (hindcast), present (nowcast) and future (forecast) time frames. Instantaneous velocity output from the numerical circulation model drives the movement of particles, each representing a fraction of the total material, within the model grid cells. This work introduces a probability calculation that allows for rapid analysis of bay-wide particle transport. At every internal time step a ratio between the number of particles in each individual model grid cell to the total number of particles in the entire model domain is calculated. These ratios, herein called transport quotients, are used to construct probability maps showing locations in Tampa Bay most likely to be impacted by the contaminant. The coastal prediction system is first evaluated using dimensionless particles during an anhydrous ammonia spill. In subsequent studies biological and chemical characteristics are incorporated into the transport quotient calculations when constructing probability maps. A salinity tolerance is placed on particles representing Karenia brevis during hindcast simulations of a harmful algal bloom in the bay. Photobleaching rates are incorporated into probability maps constructed from hindcast simulations of seasonal colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) transport. The coastal prediction system is made more robust with the inclusion of biological parameters overlaid on top of the circulation dynamics. The system successfully describes the basic physical mechanisms underlying the transport of contaminants in the bay under various real world scenarios. The calculation of transport quotients during the simulations in order to develop probability maps is a novel concept when simulating particle transport but one which can be used in real-time to support the management decisions of environmental agencies in the bay area.

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This study focused on Atmospheric Deposition (AD) loading on Utah Lake. Utah Lake is susceptible to Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) because of its large surface area to volume ratio, proximity to Great Basin dust sources, and various wind patterns from close mountain ranges that blow AD towards the lake. In this study, we continued the collection and analysis of AD samples that started in 2017 and 2018, while reporting additional 2019 and 2020 data. We constructed a sampler on Utah Lake itself, which allowed us to better estimate how AD loads were distributed over the lake. An interpolation assumption was made in the previous studies that the amount of AD decreases exponentially as it passes onto the lake from the shore. Results from 5 months of Bird Island AD sampling on Utah Lake indicate that this assumption was incorrect. We performed statistical comparison tests on 2 variables: (1) the difference in AD between 2 table heights at the same site and (2) the difference in AD between a filtered sample and an unfiltered sample. We were able to statistically conclude that there was no difference in AD between 1-meter and 2-meter tall sample tables and that filtered AD samples had as much as 3 times lower concentration than unfiltered AD samples. In 2017, the total AD loading was estimated to be, on the high end, approximately 350 tons of total phosphorous (TP) and 460 tons of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) (Olsen JM, 2018). After making some changes to the interpolation methods, Joshua Reidhead in 2018 estimated AD loads of 153 tons of TP and 505 tons of DIN (Reidhead, 2019). With no changes to the 2018 sampling methods, but using an updated interpolation method, we determined the AD results for Utah Lake in 2019 to be 262 tons of TP and 1052 tons of DIN. After adjustments to the sampling tables, the bucket filters, and incorporating the Bird Island sampler results, we calculated the 2020 AD loading totals to be 133 tons of TP and 482 tons of DIN on the lake.

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