Rockpool reopens
Date published: 21 September 2016
The popular Strand Rockpool will reopen this evening after being cleared of algal bloom.
The pool was closed and drained yesterday morning following a bloom of the marine cyanobacteria, trichodesmium.
Council crews today cleaned the pool and are refilling it this afternoon.
Water quality testing has returned no trace of the algae.
Water for the Rockpool is drawn from the bay, which usually experiences a bloom of trichodesmium at this time of year.
The algal bloom is also known as “sea sawdust” and research by the Australian Institute of Marine Science shows that it is an important contributor of the essential nutrient, nitrogen, to the marine ecosystem. (It was first observed by Captain James Cook more than 200 years ago.)
