Cyanobacterial Bloom
Why are so many ponds impacts?
Right now in Massachusetts, several ponds are closed to swimming. This is due to the Cyanobacteria bloom. This prevented people from swimming at an event that I was at today.
I thought it would be good to learn more about Cyanobacteria bloom.
Six Things I Learned
- Algae and cyanobacteria can rapidly grow out of control, or 'bloom,' when water is warm, slow-moving, and full of nutrients.
- People and animals can get sick by having contact with water that has Cyanobacterial bloom. You can also get sick by eating fish caught in infested waters.
- Symptoms of exposure can include stomach pain, vomiting, or diarrhea, headache, and skin, eye, nose, or throat irritation.
- Animals are usually the first to get impacted by Cyanobacterial Bloom. If a dog gets sick shortly after going into a pond it could be cyanobacterial bloom. Contact a vet immediately as they can die swallowing toxins.
- Chlorophyll (phytoplankton, and cyanobacteria). When Chl levels reach 40 -g/L it can become a bloom.
- Once detected the Cyanobacterial bloom can last several weeks. This depends on the amount of sunlight and water temperature.