CALHOUN — A Euglena bloom is moving down the Oostanaula River toward Rome, said David Harrison, director of the New Echota Rivers Alliance.
The bloom, often called an algae bloom, was first spotted on the Conasauga River by several local fishermen this weekend.
Calhoun resident Jerry Norris said he spotted the bloom Sunday and described it as “a thick, yellowish green gunk” floating on the river’s surface. “Fish were jumping like crazy to get out of it.”
By Wednesday afternoon, the bloom appeared as a shiny ooze on the Oostanaula River where it flows under Ga. 156 west of Calhoun, Harrison said.
Leigh Ross, director of Rome’s Water and Sewer Division, said the substance should not cause a problem for his water customers.
He said Rome can switch its water intake from the Oostanaula River at Ridge Ferry Park to the Etowah River near Main Elementary School.
Euglena is not an algae, a state wildlife official said.
“Euglena is not quite a plant and not quite an animal,” said Wayne Probst with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources in Calhoun. “It can eat food like an animal, but it also has chloroplasts and can produce food like a plant.”
“We had reports from a number of people about this bloom,” Probst said. “We sent someone to look at it, and there was no indication that it was causing problems for the fish.”
Harrison said the bloom, while ugly, does not seem to be causing any problems in the Oosatanaula River.
“There doesn’t seem to be any dead fish out here, but the biggest problems usually occur when these blooms die. That depletes the oxygen and could kill fish,” Harrison said.
“Blooms like this do appear on various bodies of water from time to time, but we have no idea what made this bloom appear on the Conasauga,” Probst said. “The conditions apparently were right at this time.”
