Iron bacteria or cause for concern?

[jayL]

All,

I noticed this slimy substance in a waterway recently, and was concerned. I contacted the DEP, but also did some research that has indicated that it might be iron bacteria.

The area is influenced by springs.

Thoughts?

Thanks.

 

[Brownout]

Can't find too much on iron bacteria when searching. Read something that there is bacteria that feeds on iron deposits in rocks, and a lot of blasted rock exposes the iron and it runs into streams. Is this a more urban locale?

It looks like brown algae. I think I've seen that before, usually where cool stream water hits a reservoir.

 

[afishinado]

Jay,

I've seen it there many times. I googled it and this is what I came up with:

"Orange stuff is produced by a group of bacteria that use iron as an energy source. This is the same group of bacteria that create oily sheens. The masses of bacteria excrete slimy or fuzzy-looking material as they grow and reproduce, and the slime becomes coated with rusty iron hydroxide. This is usually a natural phenomenon and is generally associated with acidic soils, however in large amounts (orange fluff that fills a stream bed) iron bacteria might indicate pollution.

In some areas, iron-rich groundwater may seep to the surface, and the iron drops out as it becomes exposed to air. In this case, the iron will appear as an orange crust or stain, and will not be fuzzy-looking."


Orange algae

I'm interested to hear what the DEP says about it.

 

[wetnet]

It commonly occurs in wetlands and is nothing to be concerned about. It does look ugly, which makes people worry. Had one of the top guys from our company send me a jar of water from the same type of thing you are seeing. I did test the iron levels to rule out an abnormal iron concentration and everything came back very typical of a normal wetland. Good you asked. Glad to hear people question things like that.

 

[Chaz]

I've seen it many times and never gave it much thought, it has never seemed to affect any streams I sawit on.