A lot of people are hoping the tropical system expected to sit over the Tampa Bay area Labor Day weekend will move the red tide we’ve seen off our coasts.
A University of South Florida professor said that likely won’t happen, and things will get worse before it gets better.
USF professor of oceanography Robert Weisberg has predicted red tide blooms for the past 25 years.
He tracks the currents of the ocean to find out where red tide will go. According to his models, the red tide we're seeing was cultivated in the spring and early summer. The models he's looking at show a significant amount of red tide offshore that could head our way.
"I think we're going to see a new red tide this year. So whatever has been initiated late spring early summer, we are now starting to see that on the beaches. That will be additive to what was already in place, so I think it's going to get worse before it gets better," Weisberg said.
Dr. Weisberg puts the latest red tide measurements it into a circulation model that shows where the water will go. While many hope a storm will get rid of red tide like Hurricane Katrina did in 2005. But according to Dr. Weisberg's forecast, because there is so much red tide offshore, that likely won't happen.
"It's distributed over a fairly large area. While a storm might disrupt where the currents are going to flow in a given day or two it's not going to make a major disruption."
This forecast is just a prediction. While it's been accurate more times than not, his model has forecasted 20 out of the last 25 red tide blooms, Dr. Weisberg said he's willing to be wrong.
“I may be wrong this year, but I don't think so. I think we're going to continue to have a fairly substantial red tide for some time now."
Weisberg said more money is needed to research why red tide ends and to take their predictions on what causes it to the next level.
There’s no time frame on how this red tide bloom will last.
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