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The Fourth of July weekend will bring many Floridians and out of towners to the state’s beaches, but they’re battling some nasty algae at some beaches in South Florida. As Matt Galka tells us, some are worried that the problem will spend under a new state proposal.

Slimy invasive algae has hit some south Florida waterways and forced some beach closings for the 4th of July weekend. The situation prompted the Governor to declare a state of Emergency for Martin and St. Lucie counties.

Alisa Coe with Earthjustice says the slime could be a threat to the public.

“It can be green or blue. It smells, it can cause respiratory problems, it can contain toxins that are harmful for animals and people,” she said.

Earthjustice is worried that the state could be setting itself up for problems at more beaches with a proposed rule change.  The Department of Agriculture may no longer require fertilizer sale reporting.

“We know that sewage, fertilizer, and manure pollution trigger algae outbreaks like what we are seeing down in south Florida,” Coe said.

We reached out to the Department of Agriculture. A spokeswoman said that while they require self-reporting of fertilizer sales…they don’t track fertilizer use.

Coe says Floridians deserve better.

“When they’re taking their families out or going outside their homes or even their businesses, they’re confronted with mats of green slime that’s caused by fertilizer pollution,” she said.

Environmentalists say that even though fertilizer usage isn’t tracked, cities and counties still rely on sales data to ballpark the amount of pollutants that may be heading towards waterways.

Lawmakers in Lee County have asked the Governor to extend the state of emergency to that county as well so they will have access to some of the emergency resources used to fight the algae blooms.