The Portuguese Institute of the Sea and the Atmosphere (IPMA) challenges, in a new citizen science program, people to monitor phytoplankton (bacteria and microscopic algae) along the entire coast through foam communication or coloration of the water.
According to the IPMA, the FitoAvista program, released this Monday on the institute’s website, can function as a “an early warning tool” of phenomena that “are generally associated with abundant concentrations of microalgae and can affect water quality, aquatic life, human and animal health, and economic activities such as aquaculture and tourism.”
The communication of the sea foam or water coloration can be done through the email address [email protected].
IPMA undertakes to make content available on the Internet and social networks and to carry out awareness-raising and training actions on phytoplankton, in collaboration, specifically, with environmental associations, surf schools and maritime police.
FitoAvista arose after IPMA launched the GelAvista citizen science program in 2016, which aims to monitor gelatinous organisms, such as the Portuguese Man of War, the most dangerous of these species.
Source: Observadora
