Manatees are dying at an alarming rate. Last year, 1,100 manatees died; only three months into 2022, we’ve already lost more than 440 manatees.
Thanks to protections from the Endangered Species Act, manatees' numbers were heading in the right direction. But now they’re facing new threats. Why are manatees in such trouble? Wastewater pollution and runoff from Big Ag.
State and local officials have dismantled clean water protections and environmental regulations, allowing Big Ag to dump more waste (including fertilizer and manure) that feeds algae blooms and toxic red tides in our waterways!
These algae blooms are so thick they block the sunlight that critical manatee food sources like seagrass and other aquatic vegetation need to grow. Because their food sources can’t grow, manatees and other species are starving to death.
Red tides pose another threat to manatees. Manatees can’t breathe when they’re surrounded by red tide toxins, called brevetoxins, which can cause neurological and respiratory damage – and even cause death from a single breath!
Food & Water Watch and its affiliated organization, Food & Water Action, are advocacy groups with a common mission to protect our food, water and climate.
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