New South Wales Food Authority’s Marine Biotoxin Management Plan (MBMP, 2015)
The New South Wales Food Authority (NSWFA) regulates the shellfish industry in NSW in accordance with national and state legislation, which includes the NSW Shellfish Program (NSWSP) and the NSW Biotoxin Management Plan 2015 (NSWBMP, https://foodauthority.nsw.gov.au/_Documents/industry/marine_biotoxin_management_plan.pdf). The NSWBMP aims to ensure the protection of shellfish consumers from the hazards of marine biotoxin poisoning by regular monitoring of phytoplankton and shellfish toxins. An early warning of the potential for contamination of shellfish leads to real-time closures of harvest areas and provides an effective and coordinated response to harmful events. The NSWBMP uses Phytoplankton Action Limits (PALs) to assess the risk of shellfish poisoning events due to the presence of potentially toxic algal species. These action levels are used to trigger additional shellfish flesh testing and/or harvest zone closures (refer to as Appendix 6 in the MBMP 2015 plan). All harmful species listed in the NSWBMP are included in this review (note some have synonyms).
National Health and Medical Research Council Guidelines for Managing Risks in Recreational Waters (2008)
The NHMRC Guidelines aim to protect the health of humans from threats posed by the recreational use of coastal, estuarine and freshwaters. Harmful algae (whether natural or induced by eutrophication) are included in these threats (refer to Table 7.1 in the NHMRC 2008 guidelines). For coastal and estuarine waters cyanobacteria (blue green algae) and algae are listed as potential threats. Each species listed in the guidelines is addressed in this review, with the exception of the following species which have recently been reassessed (since 2008) and shown to be non-toxic eg. Pfiesteria shumwayae and Pfiesteria piscidica. Two species of blue-green algae Oscillatoria nigroviridis and Schizothrix calciocda, both of which can cause swimmers itch, are included in the NHMRC guidelines, but as yet have proven to be rare/not reported in NSW coastal waters. The potential for human health risk should be regarded as for other cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) species in this review.
For more information refer to the attached reference list.
Algalert webpage references
References used to create this website are attached below.