Green algae have proliferated again this summer in Brittany

Illustration of green algae washed up on the shore.

Here on September 13, 2020 in Lorient, in Morbihan.

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The situation is unfortunately not exceptional.

As has often been the case in recent years, Brittany again experienced an episode of green tide this summer.

The strandings were even higher than average according to data from the center for the study and recovery of algae (Ceva).

#Bretagne #Fouesnant arrivals of green algae on the beach of Cap-Coz, being collected ...

Still the same sad spectacle, even if this arrival, following the high tide, is not very important ... pic.twitter.com/vGKTBGC1bk

- courttarin (@courttarin) August 27, 2020

According to aerial photos taken in July and August, the coverage of sandy bays by ulvae is up "30 to 40% compared to the 2002-2019 average", indicates Sylvain Ballu, monitoring project manager at Ceva.

The weather in June favored the growth of algae

Spring had started well, however, with almost no stranding of green algae, due to a stormy winter conducive to the dispersal of ulvae.

“We had never seen such a low level,” emphasizes Sylvain Ballu.

But with the thunderstorms in June, the flow of the rivers increased sharply, carrying large quantities of nutrients, favorable to the growth of algae.

The good weather that followed contributed to their proliferation.

In 2019, stranded green algae areas peaked in June, exceeding the 2002-2018 average by more than 30%.

As for the collections, 40,800 tonnes of algae were collected in 2019 in the eight most important bays.

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Miscellaneous

Firefighters rescue a man trapped in green algae in Lorient

• Environment

• Pollution

• Green algae

• Algae

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