Red Tide update

Courtesy of FWC: No samples have been collected so far this week in northwest Florida or on the east coast of Florida.

In southwest Florida, Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, was not detected in water samples collected this week alongshore of Collier County or offshore of the Florida Keys (Monroe County).  One sample (out of 4 total samples) collected alongshore of Sarasota County contained background concentrations of K. brevis.

 

Sampling will continue this week, and complete results will be available in the next scheduled status report on Friday, April 1.

Latest Red Tide update

East Coast

Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, was not detected in water samples collected this week in the Indian River Lagoon (Brevard County) or offshore of Broward County.
 

Northwest Coast

Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, was not detected in water samples collected this week offshore of Wakulla County.
 

Southwest Coast

Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, was not detected in water samples collected this week alongshore of Pinellas, Manatee, Sarasota, Charlotte, Collier and Monroe counties or offshore of Lee County and the Florida Keys (Monroe County). One sample collected alongshore of Lee County (out of 7 total samples) contained background concentrations of K. brevis

early adopter of iPad personal input

Being an early adopter and grabbing the 3G version of the iPad when it first came out I can nothing but Rave about it particularly in the business environment let alone personal. It has paid for itself many, many times over. The "Wow factor" might be slightly diminished with clientele but not that much. It's to the point the laptop stays plugged into the monitor and get used less-and-less... the apps just keep getting better and better for the most part.

Per eMarketer Daily....Tablets and their not-too-distant relatives, ereaders, have become prized platforms for consuming digital media. 2010 sales of both types of device were strong, according toInternational Data Corporation (IDC). Worldwide, 10.1 million tablets were shipped in Q4, up from 4.5 million in Q3. Ereader shipments rose from 3 million in 2009 to 12.8 million in 2010. eMarketer estimates worldwide tablet sales will reach 24 million this year, about 80% of which will be iPads.

Research from Boston Consulting Group (BCG) confirms that tablet and ereader purchase intentions are high, especially among those who are already familiar with the devices. Half of internet users in the US who knew about tablets and ereaders planned to buy one in the next year, and 70% were considering a purchase in the next three years. Worldwide interest was nearly as high

Red Tide, but now Karenia is gone... go figure

3.22.11 In southwest Florida, Karenia brevis was not detected in water samples collected this week alongshore of Sarasota, Collier and Lee counties.

Red Tide status, background concentrations again in Sarasota County

Courtesy of my.FWC.com (great new site by-the-way!!!)

East Coast

Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, was not detected in water samples collected this week offshore of Palm Beach County.
 

Northwest Coast

Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, was not detected in water samples collected this week alongshore of Okaloosa County or offshore of Taylor, Dixie and Levy counties.  Two of the five samples collected in St. Andrews Bay (Bay County) and two of the five samples collected in St. Joseph Bay (Gulf County) contained background concentrations of K. brevis.
 

Southwest Coast

Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, was not detected in water samples collected this week alongshore of Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee, Lee, Collier and Monroe counties or offshore of Pinellas County and the Florida Keys (Monroe County).  One sample (out of 24 total samples) collected inshore and alongshore of Sarasota County and three samples collected offshore of Sarasota County (out of 21 total samples) contained background concentrations of K. brevis. Two of the five samples collected inshore of Charlotte County also contained background concentrations of K. brevis.

LEED is the Language of Green

Events this week at all 3 branches. Visit Facebook and LinkedIn for more information on the US Green Building Council, Florida Gulf Coast Chapter

Red Tide report... "all clear"

yep Sarasota County too it seems!
No samples have been collected so far this week in northwest Florida or on the east coast of Florida.

In southwest Florida, Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, was not detected in water samples collected this week alongshore of Sarasota and Collier counties or offshore of Sarasota County

an insightful look to Florida's Water woes

I just received this pdf of Florida's Water Ethics which is insightful to say the least. It's from the Collins Center and makes a good read of why our (and any others for that matter) Water Resources are so precious....

Price Chopper, Dole Salad Club's Mobile Effort Tests QR Codes

Price Chopper, Dole Salad Club's Mobile Effort Tests QR Codes

Algae carbon absorbing fuel per chance?

As we seem to be very good at helping forms of algae that wreak havoc, opportunities seem to be abounding in the use of some forms for beneficial use and absorbing carbon would be certainly one of them the latest EERE progress report states that...

The U.S Department of Energy (DOE)'s Biomass Program is hosting a series of webinars associated with its biennial Peer Review of Analysis, Sustainability, Feedstocks, and Algae Platforms. These Peer Review meetings are open to the public and will provide interested stakeholders the opportunity to learn more about federally funded research, development, and deployment activities that are focused on bioenergy technologies. Agendas are available at the Biomass Program Peer Review Portal.

Local Businesses Embrace Social Media

One of the biggest problems we're seeing is businesses don't know how to effectively use Social Media to their benefit, nor select the most appropriate channels either. Strategy is key with an effective means to apply and evaluate. B2B or B2C?


Per a recent trade publication: 
Facebook is the most popular marketing tool for businesses working to promote themselves locally, new research finds that 70% of local businesses use Facebook to reach customers, up from 50% last year. Twitter saw a more modest uptick, with 40% of respondents using it, compared to 32% last year. But while Facebook is the most popular, only 37% of the 8,500 small-business owners surveyed consider it their most effective tool. Google search marketing takes that distinction, with 40% putting it at the top in terms of efficiency. 
And...the cost-effectiveness of social media has made it an attractive option, as there has been a drop-off in more traditional marketing, such as the Yellow Pages or direct mail.
However I can attest that a direct mail piece targeted to "AVIDS" was not only highly effective and way beyond normal opening rates that it was responsible a high increase in phone call traffic which tied into analytics showed how effective the campaign could be... its still in the top promotions for this local Air Conditioning Distributor client. And Yes we have the data and testimonial (not pie-in-the-sky!). Its now in year two with its proven ROI

Sarasota County still has background concentrations of Karenia

Any more correlation would you think that considering we had recent beach closures in several locations that we still have some background Karenia (precursor to Red Tide) STILL hanging around and in water that is still relatively cool by Florida standards.

Per MYFWC.com: In southwest Florida, Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, was not detected in water samples collected this week inshore of Manatee County.  Two samples (out of 20 total samples) collected alongshore of Sarasota County contained background concentrations of K. brevis.

 Sampling will continue this week, and complete results will be available in the next scheduled status report on Friday, March 11

To top it off per the Sierra Club we need to ask that  Senator Nelson to help protect our Water Resources. We need to ask? Isn't a given? Haven't we learnt anything from our past experiences, Water quality is paramount but there is always the economic damage that is inflicted on an heavily Tourism reliant state let alone the Environment where we all like to swim, fish and play. 

The "Feel Good Factor"... Random Acts of Kindness (R.A.K)

Corporate Community Investment Strategies continue their momentum which is soooo good to see. The latest Trendwatching Brief gives a pretty good overview of why corporate can become the "Good Community Citizen" and in the process give their brand lift. Authenticity and Transparency are most certainly key and in particular one client we are present working with, we are applying social media and analytics to help prove the benefits. There are many other intangible benefits let alone employee satisfaction of working with a company that already 'walks-the-walk".

Interestingly though this client has applied their "Corporate Good" over the years and has built an extended history unwittingly beneficial for the new era of corporate business

Plastics News - Recycler MBA Polymers poised for growth

Plastics News - Recycler MBA Polymers poised for growth

Red Tide report. One background concentration of Karenia brevis.

I wonder if the background concentration has any correlation in the geo's of Turtle Beach or Venice? 
The FWC report. In southwest Florida, Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, was not detected in water samples collected this week alongshore of Lee and Collier counties.  One sample (out of 21 total samples) collected alongshore of Sarasota County contained background concentrations of K. brevis.