Cyanobacteria blooms and their toxic effects is a problem that affects a number of different groups of people, from the general public to farmers and ranchers to the federal, provincial, and municipal governments. Since the federal and provincial government regulate what kind of treatments can be applied to bodies of water within the province of Alberta and the country of Canada, we needed to become familiar with the regulations involved in water treatment applications, and the human practice team was successful in interviewing a ecotoxicology research scientist who works within the government of Canada, Dr. Jonathan Challis, and an aquatic scientist working with Alberta Parks, Dr. Ron Zurawell, though there is still much more to work on in regards to government policy regarding the theoretical future of our project.
The agricultural sector is also an important group that we looked into regarding our project, as many of the bodies of water affected by toxic cyanobacteria blooms are on farm land, and some of the susceptibility bodies of water have to develop these blooms can be caused by agricultural runoff. Farmers, especially cattle farmers, could benefit greatly from a cyanobacteria treatment that is safe and non-toxic. In order to connect with this demographic, the human practices team spoke with the CEO of Kolk Farms, Mr. Leighton Kolk, which was very helpful in considering the possible negative public opinion on genetic engineering techniques, and on how to mitigate those opinions.
The general public is also affected by cyanobacteria blooms, as these events can make it unsafe to swim or boat on affected lakes as the toxins given off by the blue-green algae is toxic, and can harm people and pets, and a means to make these activities safe again without causing other harmful effects would be greatly beneficial for many people around Alberta, Canada, and the world. .