/Matt Wright
Matt Wright
Algae bloom on Lake Atitlán
Inspired by: Robert Adams, Bulldozed Slash
archival inkjet print
18″ x 24″
2015-2023
Lake Atitlán is considered one of the most beautiful lakes in the World. It is a major tourist destination for travelers, source of freshwater for residents and economic opportunity for many living in the region. This image captures a fisherman paddling through an algae bloom, while a nearby family bathes and washes their laundry along the shoreline. Algae blooms and toxic Cyanobacteria concentrations are very common occurrences in the last few decades but were experienced by the Mayans during the pre-Columbian era due to deforestation and soil erosion. Today contamination of Lake Atitlán continues as a result of the accumulation of nitrogen and phosphorus from fertilizers used in agriculture and E.coli from untreated sewage released directly into the lake. Residents, fisherman and boatmen working on and living around the lake experience skin diseases and more serious illnesses such as liver, kidney and neurological diseases.
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