The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National Coastal Condition Assessment (NCCA) is a nationwide survey of coastal and estuarine water quality. During the 2015 EPA NCCA, samples were collected at 732 sites for analysis of algal toxins and cyanotoxins at the Organic Geochemistry Research Laboratory (OGRL) at the U.S. Geological Survey Kansas Water Science Center (KSWSC) by liquid chromatography triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS). Samples from the Atlantic, Gulf, and Pacific coasts of the conterminous U.S. were analyzed for anatoxin-a, cylindrospermopsin, domoic acid, dinophysistoxin-1, dinophysistoxin-2, gymnodimine, 10 microcystin congeners, nodularin, okadaic acid, pectenotoxin-2, and 13-desmethyl spirolide c.

The EPA National Coastal Condition Assessment (NCCA) is a nation-wide survey of coastal and estuarine water quality. During the 2015 EPA NCCA, samples were collected for analysis of algal toxins and cyanotoxins at the Organic Geochemistry Research Laboratory (OGRL) at the U.S. Geological Survey Kansas Water Science Center (KSWSC) by liquid chromatography triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS). The 542 samples collected from the Great Lakes were analyzed for anatoxin-a, cylindrospermopsin, domoic acid, 10 microcystin congeners, nodularin, and okadaic acid. A subset of samples were also analyzed for dinophysistoxin-1, dinophysistoxin-2, gymnodimine, pectenotoxin-2, and 13-desmethyl spirolide c.

Cyanobacteria known to produce cyanotoxins have been reported worldwide. As monitoring efforts have improved, they have been detected in not only freshwater, but also in estuary and marine waters. To assess the occurrence of cyanotoxins and algal toxins in California estuaries, the NOAA MERHAB funded project collected samples monthly from 11 Californian estuary locations, with 5 locations sampled in 2016 as event response. This data release includes liquid chromatography triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) results for 21 cyanotoxins and algal toxins in estuary samples collected from California in 2016-2017.

In cooperation with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) measured cyanobacterial toxin concentrations (i.e., microcystin, anatoxin, cylindrospermopsin, and saxitoxin) and collected water-quality field data at 18 sites in North-central Tennessee from August 2022 to November 2024. Additionally, selected sites also were sampled once for environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis to confirm the presence of toxin producing DNA at the monitoring sites. The goal for the sample data was to better understand the occurrence and distribution of cyanobacterial toxins in various freshwater reservoir types in North-central Tennessee. Sample collection was primarily during the growing season, when harmful algal blooms (HABs) are known to be most active. This data release documents the sites, toxin concentrations, water-quality data, and eDNA data produced from the study.

The toxicity of sediments in Pensacola, Choctawhatchee, St. Andrew and Apalachicola Bays was determined as part of bioeffects assessments performed by NOAA's National Status and Trends Program. The objectives of the survey were to determine: (1) the spatial patterns in toxicity throughout each bay, (2) the spatial extent of toxicity throughout and among the bays, (3) the severity or degree of toxicity, and (4) the relationships between chemical contamination and toxicity. The survey was conducted over two years: Pensacola Bay and St. Andrew Bay were sampled in 1993; and Choctawhatchee Bay, Apalachicola Bay and Bayou Chico (a sub-basin of Pensacola Bay) were sampled during 1994. Surficial sediment samples were collected from 123 randomly-chosen locations throughout the five areas. Multiple toxicity tests were conducted on all samples, and chemical analyses were performed on 102 of the 123 samples. Toxicological tests were conducted to determine survival, reproductive success, morphological development, metabolic activity, and genotoxicity; all bays showed toxicity in at least some of the samples. Toxicity was most severe in Bayou Chico, an industrialized basin adjoining Pensacola Bay. Other developed bayous adjoining Pensacola Bay and the other bays also showed relatively severe toxicity. The main basins of the bays generally showed lower toxicity than the adjoining bayous. The different toxicity tests, however, indicated differences in severity, incidence, spatial patterns, and spatial extent in toxicity. The most sensitive test, a bioassay of metabolic activity of bioluminescent bacteria, indicated toxicity was pervasive throughout the entire study area. The least sensitive test, an acute bioassay performed with a benthic amphipod, indicated toxicity was restricted to a very small portion of the area. Causes of toxicity were not determined in the survey. However, mixtures of potentially toxic substances, including pesticides, petroleum constituents, trace metals, and ammonia, were associated statistically with the measures of toxicity. The concentrations of many substances were highest in Bayou Chico, where the most severe toxicity was observed. At these toxic sites, some of the substances had considerably elevated concentrations, often exceeding numerical guidelines or known toxicity thresholds. The relationships between toxicity and chemical concentrations differed among the bays and toxicity tests.

This dataset is comprised of cyanotoxin concentrations from whole water cyanotoxin samples collected at water quality stations in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, beginning in 2020. Cyanotoxin congeners were measured from whole water cyanotoxin samples within the cyanotoxin classes: microcystins, anatoxins, cylindrospermopsins, saxitoxins, anabaenopeptins, and nodularin. Concentrations were measured using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

Algal toxins are a growing concern worldwide. Rapid assessment test strips are a newer technology and their accuracy in detecting toxins in different lakes with different phytoplankton and toxins present is unknown. This data release is supported by our testing of toxin test strips. This research took place in Voyageurs National Park in northern Minnesota. The research will indicate whether these test strips are accurate for this system, and hopefully lay the foundation for a cost-effective harmful algal blooms (HABs) monitoring and communication tool for Voyageurs National Park and other parks. The utility of the test strips in this system may lead to broader applications, for instance in other inland systems like the nearby Lake of the Woods and Isle Royale National Park or other northern temperate lakes.

This data release contains dissolved cyanotoxin concentrations for microcystins (MC), cylindrospermopsins (CYL), anatoxins (ATX), and saxitoxins (STX) assessed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry or tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS and LC-MS/MS, respectively) in extracts from SPATT (n=95) and DGT samplers (n=10) deployed on three Finger Lakes (Owasco, Seneca, and Skaneateles) between June and November 2019. Relative percent contributions of microcystin congeners are also provided for samples analyzed by LC-MS and LC-MS/MS. Solid phase adsorption toxin tracking (SPATT) and diffusive gradients in thin-films (DGT) are types of passive environmental samplers containing porous synthetic resin beads that adsorb and concentrate cyanotoxins over time. SPATT and DGT samplers are relatively inexpensive to construct and have been widely demonstrated to adsorb a range of cyanotoxins in different environments. These samplers can be deployed in water bodies for time periods ranging from hours to weeks and, upon extraction and analysis, provide a semi-quantitative, relative dissolved cyanotoxin concentration that is calculated based on the deployment length.

This dataset is comprised of cyanotoxin concentrations in extracts from solid phase adsorption toxin tracking (SPATT) samplers deployed at fixed sampling stations in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, beginning in 2020. SPATT samplers are a form of passive sampler constructed of adsorbent resin beads that concentrate cyanotoxins over time. Cyanotoxin congeners were measured from SPATT extracts within the cyanotoxin classes: microcystins, anatoxins, cylindrospermopsins, saxitoxins, anabaenopeptins, and nodularin. Concentrations were measured using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), with some samples also measured with enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

The presence of harmful algal species, which produce toxins, pose a significant threat to public health and coastal aquaculture activities. For example, estimated losses due to biotoxin closures have cost the Irish shellfish industry $4 million in 2000. Biotoxins, which have the potential to cause the following human illnesses: diarrhetic, paralytic, amnesic and azaspiracid shellfish poisoning (known as DSP, PSP, ASP and AZP respectively) have been detected in shellfish in Ireland. The toxic phytoplankton species of concern in Irish waters are: Dinophysis spp. (DSP), Alexandrium spp. (PSP), and Pseudo-nitzschia spp (ASP). The only locations where blooms of A. tamarense and accumulation of toxins occur are Cork Harbour and Belfast Lough. The marine source of AZP has still to be confirmed. The Marine Environment and Health Services Division of the Irish Marine Institute is responsible for monitoring water samples collected from shellfish production areas for the presence of potentially harmful algal species. This information is used by the Marine Institute as an early warning of potential harmful algal events, as an indicator of what type of toxin analysis needs to be carried out and as scientific evidence to supplement the results of toxin analysis of shellfish. However, due to a variety of reasons, it has not been possible to demonstrate a direct correlation between numbers of potentially toxic phytoplankton in water samples and the presence of toxins in shellfish. Therefore, phytoplankton counts on their own are not used to decide the toxicity status of shellfish production areas. Symptoms of DSP appear after 30 mins to a few hrs of consumption and include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain. Ingestion of shellfish containing the PSP biotoxin acts quickly (within 30 mins of consumption) and can cause numbness, and tingling of the lips, tongue, face and extremities, difficulty in talking, breathing, swallowing and muscle spasms. In severe cases death can occur due to respiratory paralysis. The Biotoxin Unit of the Marine Institute regularly monitors shellfish for the presence of toxins using both mouse bioassays and analytical chemistry methods. Production areas are closed for shellfish harvesting if the mouse bioassays are positive, i.e., 2 out of the 3 mice die within 24 hours of being injected intraperitonally with a Di Ethyl Ether (Note: Di Ethyl Ether replaced Acetone as the chemical extractant in 2001) extraction of toxins from the homogenised shellfish hepatopancreas. In addition, the use of remote sensing data has been identified as one of the key components of the Marine Institute's proposed HAE forecasting system. To evaluate the application of this technology, SeaWiFS images that have been compiled as part of the EU funded BIOCOLOR project by the Remote Sensing Data Analysis Service (RSDAS) in Plymouth, U.K., have been re-analysed by NOAA/NOS and Marine Institute personnel. The re-analysed images were taken in 1998 during a large bloom of Karenia mikimotoi formerly known as Gyrodinium aureolum) that extended across the northern Celtic Sea and a region of the Irish shelf adjacent to the large bays of southwestern Ireland.