Collaborative Strategy for Managing Toxic Algal Outbreaks through the One Health Initiative
In a recent article published by EPA researcher Elizabeth Hilborn and Val Beasley of the University of Pennsylvania, the importance of the One Health approach in addressing the risks associated with harmful algal blooms (HABs) was highlighted.
Harmful algal blooms, primarily caused by cyanobacteria, pose a significant threat to human, animal, and environmental health. These overgrowths of algae in water bodies produce toxins such as microcystins and anatoxin-a, which can be harmful to humans, pets, livestock, and aquatic life. The increase in HABs is often linked to rising water temperatures and nutrient runoff, posing a threat to drinking water and recreation sites.
To combat these threats, the One Health approach encourages collaboration among different organizations, professions, and areas of expertise. By integrating animal health and environmental monitoring, early detection, comprehensive risk assessment, and coordinated response to toxin releases that affect humans, animals, and ecosystems can be achieved.
Animals, particularly livestock and pets, often serve as sentinel indicators, as they can be poisoned before human exposure occurs. This early warning system provides critical lead time to prevent human illness. Environmental monitoring uses advanced techniques such as molecular diagnostics, remote sensing, and predictive modeling to detect and track bloom dynamics and toxicity, which are crucial to managing risks across health sectors.
By linking animal health observations with sophisticated environmental monitoring, the One Health framework enables proactive and holistic management of these complex freshwater threats. However, challenges remain. Lack of investigation into reports of wildlife or animal intoxication events is a challenge in implementing the One Health approach.
Moreover, the potential lack of communication between professionals in different fields of environmental health, environmental management, and human and veterinary medicine is a barrier to the One Health approach. Hilborn and Beasley identify underreporting of human health impacts as a structural barrier.
To overcome these obstacles, the researchers suggest that professionals in relevant disciplines establish connections. Public health practitioners, clinicians in human and animal health, water managers, drinking water utility operators, and wildlife specialists are suggested as professionals to connect with in the case of harmful algal blooms.
The One Health approach requires a culture of collaboration between professionals in different fields of expertise. By treating public health events and animal health events separately, the ability to make connections that can lead to effective preventive interventions is lost. The goal of the One Health approach is to achieve the best health for all, including people, animals, and the environment.
In conclusion, the One Health framework enhances detection, risk evaluation, and mitigation of the human health hazards posed by cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms by linking animal health observations with sophisticated environmental monitoring, enabling proactive and holistic management of these complex freshwater threats.
- Addressing the rising threat of harmful algal blooms (HABs) often linked to climate change, requires an integrated approach that considers both health-and-wellness and environmental-science perspectives.
- The One Health approach, as highlighted by EPA researcher Elizabeth Hilborn and Val Beasley of the University of Pennsylvania, encourages collaboration among professionals in fields such as human and animal health, water management, drinking water utility operation, and wildlife monitoring, to ensure effective prevention strategies and drinking water safety.
- The environmental impact of HABs adds a critical layer of concern to the health risks they present, as climate change exacerbates the conditions conducive to these blooms, potentially disrupting ecosystems and contributing to deterioration in water quality.
