26-05-2025
Communities impacted by SA's algae bloom take stock of destruction
South Australia's unprecedented algal bloom has brought death and destruction to the state's marine environment and impacted its tourism and fishing industries.
The crisis has forged new connections among coastal communities that are waiting to see if the long-awaited arrival of stormy weather and cold temperatures will break up the algal bloom that was first reported in March.
A group of surfers, divers, residents and Indigenous elders walked along some of the south coast's wild surf beaches at Victor Harbor on Saturday.
They talked about what they had seen over the past few months.
Ramindjeri and Naruunga elders Cedric Varcoe and Angelena Harradine Buckskin created and helped to organise the event with local environmental group The Wild South.
They welcomed the groups of walkers as they made their way from Victor Harbor to Goolwa.
Mr Varcoe said it was important for people to yarn about the effects of the lingering algae and rising water temperatures.
"The main concern is the amount of our sea creatures washing up; we call them our Ngaitye because they're part of our Dreaming, part of our culture as Ramindjeri people," he said.
Mr Varcoe and Aunty Angelena said the message behind the event was about healing the waters.
They were pleased it had brought together people from all walks of life.
Ron and Stefi Phillips, who took part in the walk, were relatively new to the community of Victor Harbor.
But Mr Phillips has dived off the coast of South Australia for many years.
He said he dived a local reef just days before the first impacts of the bloom were seen in March, watching and observing some of the fish and other marine life present.
"A week later I could see some of them lying on the beach, which is a bit sad," he said.
"We were coughing and one particular day … we were walking along and there were quite a few dead creatures and the next day I still had a burning throat," Mrs Phillips said.
The couple attended a community forum in Middleton in April to find out more about the karenia mikimotoi algal bloom.
Since then they have become part of the movement of citizen scientists who upload pictures of what they find on the local beaches to the iNaturalist citizen scientist database.
Some walkers carried a message stick as they journeyed.
It will be decorated and then taken to Naruunga Country for another Walk for Water event, to be held at Marion Bay on June 7.
Surfer Scott Murdoch was entrusted with the message stick for the first part of the walk.
He said he spent a lot of time on the south coast and loved the landscape.
Mr Murdoch said he felt sick after being exposed to the bloom and watched with dismay its impact on wildlife.
"I just wanted to show that it's important to protect these places," he said.
Adelaide violin teacher Freya Davies-Ardill, who grew up in Goolwa, was one of volunteers who helped make the event happen.
She was busy organising food and entertainment at the halfway mark and joined the walk for the final leg from Ratalang at Port Elliot to Goolwa.
Ms Davies-Ardill said she hoped the events would send a message to the South Australian government about the importance of directing funds into research and on-the-ground efforts to document the extent of the damage to the coastal and marine environment.
