“V. Barnificus It’s only active in temperatures above 13 degrees Celsius, after which it spreads until temperatures reach 30 degrees Celsius, or 86 degrees Fahrenheit,” says Karen Nee, an associate professor and water quality expert at American University. And open water swimmers accustomed to sea conditions. “I was looking at the sea surface temperature map and it seems that everywhere south of Cape Cod is going to be over 20 degrees Celsius. [Vibrio] It’s starting to get really contagious. That’s most of the water on the east coast. ”
There’s a lot going on besides climate change. Jeffrey Scott, director of environmental sciences at the University of South Carolina’s Arnold School of Public Health and leader of the Ocean and Climate Change Research Consortium, says the change in water quality is significant. vibrioThe ability to cause serious illness. These changes are caused by people migrating to the coast, increasing nutrients entering the ocean via wastewater.
vibrio Whereas previously there was danger in late summer, it now occurs earlier or later in the year. “Mainly from late July until he was at the beginning of October, the problem started to occur from April until he was in November,” said some former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration officials. said Scott, who oversaw the coastal research institute. “And in some cases they have been seen wintering around the Outer Banks of North Carolina.”
to the problem of V. Barnificus You could also add that it could be more toxic, in more places, longer and more people exposed. First, because hot weather naturally brings more people to the beach, and second, because some of those people may not realize how vulnerable they are. “[Vulnificus] Primarily, people with liver disease appear to be affected much more than those without,” says Scott Roberts, an infectious disease physician and assistant professor of medicine at Yale University. “And in general, they have a weakened immune system. It could be age, chemotherapy, or some underlying disease.”
Many people will not know they are in danger. All states with a shellfish industry are participating. National Shellfish Hygiene Program Operated by the Food and Drug Administration, it sets standards for all aspects of shellfish production, including screening for shellfish contamination. vibrio. It’s for self-interest. Any hint of the creature’s existence could bring the state’s shellfish economy to a halt. (In fact, since the recent fatality, the top of the Connecticut Department of Agriculture homepage has read: highlighted banner “Connecticut shellfish I never have Associated with Vibrio vulnificus infection. ”)
But there is no national program that can warn swimmers and surfers. vibrioPresence of in the sea.There is no inspection system for coastal areas Escherichia colithere is no flag-like system to signal strong waves or rising tides; These dangers are local knowledge, shared among those who have lived side by side with them.
“People here may have friends who have a slightly red and swollen finger from being cut with a shell or injured while fishing. I had a friend who waited until the next morning and he lost his hand,” said Brett Frorich, a microbiologist and assistant professor at George Mason University in Virginia. “Other people in other places don’t know that. They’re definitely going to say, ‘I hope it’s better in the morning,’ and in the morning their hands are black.”
This raises the question of how to make the public in new endemic areas aware of the new risks. No one, especially publicly funded university researchers, want to be seen as hurting coastal tourism. “We’re not trying to scare people away from the beach,” says Frolich. “You don’t have to avoid [them]. You just have to be aware. ”
