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Huge mass of white water stains the Mar Menor
Satellite images show a large area of water between Los Alcázares, Los Urrutias and Isla Perdiguera which has turned white
The sudden appearance of an “anomalous” mass of white water in the Mar Menor has scent scientists into a tailspin as they frantically try to determine what it’s made from and where it came from.“It is a large body of water with a rather anomalous whitish colouration,” technicians from the monitoring group IEO-CSIS (Spanish Institute of Oceanography) explained.
At the moment, the discoloured water occupies around 15 square kilometres between Los Alcázares, Los Urrutias and the island of Perdiguera, an area where the chlorophyll levels are roughly four times higher than in other parts of the Mar Menor. Based on the preliminary results of the scientists, there’s also a large concentration of organic matter in these waters, which is most likely “of planktonic origin, associated with a high abundance of picoplankton and cryptophyceans.”
The expert conclusions, for now, are that “the nutrients that induce planktonic proliferation could have a diffuse origin, rather than associated specific contributions, such as that produced through the Rambla del Albujón.”
According to researcher Juan Manuel Ruiz, phytoplankton proliferations in this area have become quite common in recent years, but have never presented with this particular whitish colour or spread so far.
However, the general director for the Mar Menor in the Mar Menor, Víctor Serrano, has criticised the group for publishing the images and generating “alarm for something that has been taking place for years,” adding that “the satellite images are there to verify it.” Regarding the odd colour, he states that similar stains have been detected since 2016 in that very area and has blamed the result on the fresh influx of water from the Rambla del Albujón, which is laden with nitrates.
Ruiz also criticised the Ministry for Ecological Transition for not managing to reduce the entry of nutrients into the lagoon and allowing reports of new problems to mislead the public.
Image: Instituto Español de Oceanografía
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