Below is a screen-grab from Google Trends, showing all of the countries in which the search term 'phoslock' was used within the past 30 days.
Curiously, apart from New Zealand, the five countries above are consistently the only ones in which people seem to be searching for the term 'phoslock' on Google. (New Zealand appeared on the list for a while earlier in the year, but I suspect it was probably just down to traders in that country taking an interest in the stock following on from the surge in the share price a few months back.)
Now we know Phoslock treatments have occurred in a number of other countries, so the question is, why aren't these countries showing up in the Google Trends search results?.
I think it is basically a problem of nomenclature, with other ad-hoc names being adopted for the product in other regions. A good example of this was in that recent article from the Netherlands about the algae problems in the Binnenshelde. In that report, the phoslock product was referred to as 'Chinese Klei'.
Over recent days, I stumbled across another article on the aforementioned Dutch water body and the efforts to solve the algae problem there, dating from about four weeks back.
This report states that tests were currently underway on 'a clay that binds phosphate', with results expected at the end of summer (which, given that the European summer is nearing its end, would surely have to be very soon).
The article includes this interesting photo of the tests being carried out in the Binnenshelde:
The caption under the photo translates to The enclosures in the Binnenschelde, where the test is currently underway with the phosphate-binding clay.
What struck me about the above photo was how far away the trees and buildings on the opposite shore are. In a previous post I mentioned that the Binnenschelde was about twice the size of Lac Bromont, but upon closer inspection, it appears that the Binnenshelde is more like four times the size, at least in terms of surface area. So while not a huge project, the Binnenschelde isn't some duck-pond, and it would still be of some significance if Phoslock were to win this one.
This type of project is atypical for Europe, and the vast majority of potential European projects are fairly small. One example of such a project is detailed in a recent article about a German lake called the Otterstedter See, where the local council will be meeting later this week to implement a Bentophos (Phoslock) treatment plan for the lake (I've included the relevant translated extract below):
...On Thursday, August 29, therefore, the members of the Otterstedt local council and the Committee for Environmental Protection and Landscaping decide in a joint meeting that starts at 8 o'clock in the "Haus am See", on recommendation of the administration, the one-off contribution of Bentophos whose raw material consists of the natural clay bentonite and is considered an effective means of algae prevention. According to the administration, the Otterstedter See will be free from blue green algae for the next few years. In parallel, the measures required by the district of Verden to investigate and seek solutions should be pushed. For the contribution of Bentophos, meanwhile, there is an offer in the amount of 33,320 euros. Budget funds of only 9000 euros are available, however, and as such the remaining funds would have to be incorporated into a supplementary budget yet to be established.
The 'Haus am See' mentioned above is a restaurant located on the shore of the Otterstedt See. Another earlier report on the same topic noted that the owner of this establishment was nearly run out of business by the problematic blue green algae over this summer, as the business relies on patronage from the influx of summertime visitors to the lake, however numbers were down this year as a result of the algae.
It seems that the Bentophos application mentioned above is worth 33,000 Euros, or about $55,000 AUD at the current exchange rate, if my interpretation of the above report is correct.
Going back to Mickem's original question regarding Belgium, I haven't been able to find anything specific relating to this country, however, as with Germany, it appears that there have been serious problems with cyanobacteria in that country over the summer months, as was detailed in this Belgian report over the weekend:
...Just as the temperatures rise, the list of canals and lakes where a swimming and recreation ban applies is growing. Reason: blue green algae, a bacterium that is toxic to humans and animals. Due to global warming, the phenomenon is becoming increasingly common. And there is no solution. "You cannot stop or combat blue-green algae," says biologist Elie Verleyen (UGent).
“The mayor of Geraardsbergen issues a recreational ban on the De Gavers park lake. There is a suspicious layer floating on the pond, probably blue-green algae. For the second year in a row, the Neerpelt Water Sports Club is forced to cancel the competition because the canal is plagued by blue-green algae. "A similar message appeared in De Gentenaar:" Just as the weekend promises wonderfully warm weather, the mayor has issued a 14-day swimming ban for the Blaarmeersen. Just like at the end of August last year, blue-green algae have been spotted in the water.
"The problem only seems to be getting bigger. "You cannot prevent blue green algae and you cannot combat it," says biologist Elie Verleyen (UGent). “At lower temperatures or in the case of rain, which cools the water, the algal blooms ceases spontaneously. Global warming is therefore bad news for natural swimming ponds, for example, because the bacteria is becoming more and more common. "
Blue green algae are not actually algae, but bacteria. They are toxic to humans and animals. All contact with contaminated water is bad for your health. The different toxins affect either the liver, the nervous system, the eyes, the skin or the intestines. It depends on flowering to bloom which toxins occur and in which concentrations. Cases are known of cows and dogs that died after drinking contaminated water.
The algae can be recognized by the blue-green or sometimes red-brown color that they give to the water if they are present in high concentrations and form a so-called bloom. The color depends on the type of blue-green algae.
The phenomenon is not entirely new. A considerable surge of blue-green algae was also noted in the eighties and nineties. That had another cause at the time than just global warming. "At that time, detergent and detergent still contained a lot of phosphates and they were ideal food for the bacteria," says Verleyen.
There was a mention in the Half-Yearly Report of a major project in Belgium, and this isn't surprising in light of the serious algae problems described in the report above.
PET Price at posting:
$1.34 Sentiment: None Disclosure: Held
(20min delay)