(This diary is a retread of a great post by Stephen Lacey at Climate Progress. I recap it here because the story is too good to miss. But do go read the whole thing.)
Well this is interesting. Earlier this week OK Senator Jim Inhofe, notorious for rejecting the reality of global warming, had to miss the Heartland Institute's "International Climate Change Conference," hotbed of denial, because he was "under the weather."
This while Oklahoma is undergoing an intense hot and dry spell.
Now it turns out that climate change might be a reason for Inhofe's illness. Yes, Mr. "Global warming is the greatest hoax ever perpetrated on the American people" appears to have been poisoned by a never-before-seen-in-OK algal bloom.
Inhofe is convinced that swimming in a lake near his OK home with an algae bloom is what got him:
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe said Friday he is convinced he became ill after swimming in the algae in Grand Lake earlier this week.
"There is no question,'' the Oklahoma Republican said, linking what he thought was a routine dive into the lake last Monday morning to a severe upper respiratory illness.
"That night, Monday night, I was just deathly sick."
What's remarkable is this:
Inhofe and his wife, Kay, have had a home on the lake for decades, and he has never seen that kind of algae in the water previously.
In marked contrast to the senator himself, Inhofe's granddaughter was too smart to swim in the icky water:
"I didn't think anything about it,'' he said, recalling that he had encouraged his 13-year-old granddaughter to join him in the water but she declined.
"She didn't want to get in that green stuff.''
Hmm ... what could lead to an anomalous and toxic algae bloom?
You know that green scum creeping across the surface of your local public water reservoir? Or maybe it’s choking out a favorite fishing spot or livestock watering hole. It’s probably cyanobacteria – blue-green algae – and, according to a paper in the April 4 issue of the journal Science, it relishes the weather extremes that accompany global warming.
And just think - Mr. Inhofe (R - natch) is a key reason why the US government can't do anything about the greatest threat we face.
Don't f*** with mother nature.
UPDATE (thanks to BalanceSeeker):
Algae Bloom Like This One Has Never Happened In Oklahoma
The Grand River Dam Board says:
A GRDA official told the board an algae bloom like this one has never been experienced in the state of Oklahoma and it could pose a significant health and safety issue for the public.
and from the same article:
Tests show in some parts of Grand Lake - it's nearly 18 times more toxic than the warning level the World Health Organization uses.
How toxic is that? The algae could kill a dog in less than an hour.
Blue green algae are microscopic organisms that are naturally present in lakes and streams, usually in low numbers. However, the algae can become abundant in shallow, warm water that receives heavy sunlight.