News

Sound Rivers’ water-quality staff was in the lab last week, getting some hands-on cyanobacteria identification training at North Carolina State University.

Dr. JoAnn Burkholder, director of NCSU’s Center for Applied Aquatic Ecology, and Elle Allen, Research Operations Manager, hosted a private training for Neuse Riverkeeper Samantha Krop, Pamlico-Tar Riverkeeper Katey Zimmerman and Water Quality Specialist Taylor Register, consisting of educational presentations, microscopy work and “tons of stories relating to harmful algal blooms,” Taylor said.

“By the end of the day, we had a pretty solid grasp on identifying cyanobacteria under the microscope,” she said.

The training represents one avenue for Sound Rivers to be proactive regarding harmful algal blooms.

“This training helped to familiarize us with some common cyanobacteria species that we might encounter in our watersheds, which is really important since we are seeing more and more algal blooms each year,” Taylor said. “Moving forward, we’ll also be able to collect algal samples to send to Dr. Burkholder and her lab, so they can analyze them and determine if cyanobacteria is present, as well as the toxin concentrations.” 

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