Project

Coastal cyanobacterial toxic blooms in a warmer world: addressing the challenges from a socio-ecological perspective in Uruguay

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) occur when microscopic algae grow out of control producing toxins that threaten fish, birds and mammals. Climate warming combined with local nutrient enrichment from agricultural and urban systems facilitate the development of harmful algae blooms.

The objective of this project is to develop an integrated evaluation of the toxic blooms of cyanobacteria on the coastal systems of eastern Uruguay to develop the best anticipation, adaptation and transformation strategies as climate change progresses.

This project is conducted as a joint collaboration between Wageningen University (Milena Holmgren and Miquel Lürling), the Universidad de La República and the South American Instutute for Resilience and Sustainability Studies Institute (Cristina Zurbriggen, Néstor Mazzeo and Hugo Inda), and the National Directorate of Aquatic Resources of Uruguay (Leonardo Ortega).

Financial support: Agencia Nacional de Investigación e Innovación (ANII) National Agency for Research and Innovation (Uruguay)

Ana Lia Ciganda monitoring local beach conditions (Photo credit: Ana Lia Ciganda, February 2021)
Ana Lia Ciganda monitoring local beach conditions (Photo credit: Ana Lia Ciganda, February 2021)
Blooms of cyanobacteria (Source: Iván Franco, February 2019; La Diaria)
Blooms of cyanobacteria (Source: Iván Franco, February 2019; La Diaria)
Uruguayan beaches under clean conditions (Photo credit: Ana Lia Ciganda, February 2021)
Uruguayan beaches under clean conditions (Photo credit: Ana Lia Ciganda, February 2021)