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8/14/2024
WT Staff
 August 14, 2024 1217 pm PDT
HAPPENING NOW
Bluegreen algae cooks up alarming high concentrations in Lake Erie and Louisiana's Lac des Allemands
From the satellite monitoring program of the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science
Lake Erie looks to set a new record for high concentration HAB, the latest image from NCCOS captured August 13 at a low surface wind speed 4.3 mph finds hot spots up to 6 million cells per 100 ml, almost off the NCCOS chart.
A clear view of the western Lake Erie HAB reveals an enormous, dense hot spot in open water, approximately thirty-five square nautical miles that has inflamed to multiple millions of cells per 100 ml sample. The highest levels inside this raging mass appear five to six millon cells, a possible concentration record. WTOH has reached out to the NCCOS for a statement, more to follow.
According to Richard Stumph, Program Manager for the NCCOS HAB monitoring, extreme high concentrations build up where HAB mats are piled up by the wind and trapped along a sheltered shoreline, forming a scum. August 2023 Maumee Bay State Park microcystins reached a level 85 times the EPA guidelines for recreational water safety.
The Maumee Bay State Park hot spot has also dramatically expanded, three to four million cells in a large area of the water both on and off shore. As we write this report, Department of Health has not posted a new beach advisory here. Ohio Department of Natural Resources conducts the recreational water testing for the Maumee Bay State Park, inquiries have been made, more to follow. Get a look at the Lake Erie HAB here.
Louisiana: The latest upload from the NCCOS was captured August 13 at moderate wind speed 5.5 mph. Lac des Allemands grips our attention again today with a lakewide concentration of 1 to 2 million cells, the hot spots now claiming half the area of the water body from the west bay through midlake and down through the southeast. Check out the latest satellite image from NCCOS here.
New York
One hundred and eighty-two active HABs are confirmed in New York midweek, down from a peak 235 reports last weekend. New reports have come on for Chautauqua Lake, Oneida Lake, Harlem Meer is back on the impacted list for a second wave along with Waneta Lake, coming out of the 2024 archives.
Bluegreen algae impacted water bodies are listed here.
The latest image in from NCCOS was snapped August 12, completely cloud obscured. A previous image captured Aug 11 showed a sliver of the Baie Missisquoi HAB with high concentration in the league of 800 to 900 thousand cells per 100 ml. See our latest report here.
California: The new bluegreen bloom report expected Friday afternoon head of the weekend, not yet available as of this update Tuesday. WTCAL connected with Director of EPA for Big Valley Pomo Tribe for an update on Clear Lake, more to follow.
The latest HAB Recent Bloom report is dated August 2, seven water bodies are posted with DANGER level advisories, including Lago Los Osos, Lake Chabot, Lake Anza, Discovery Bay, Contra Loma Reservoir, Big Break Regional Shoreline and Copsey Creek. Three water bodies have been posted with HAB Warning level advisories, including Discovery Bay, Tahoe Keys and San Luis Reservoir's Dinosaur Point Boat Launch. Caution advisories have been activated for another 31 sites. See the California HAB tracker report with advisories by watershed region, HAB DANGER and WARNING advisories are pinned to the map with bluegreen tags, the full list is here.
Georgia:
Georgia's Jekyll Island and St. Simons Island beaches were still testing clear of bacterial contamination on Monday this week, the update is unavailable as of this report. Flooding in the south could contribute to higher bacterial levels around the beaches, exercise caution and watch for advisory signage.
Two permanent advisories for Jekyll Island tested clear for bacteria in the last quarterly water sample taken July 1, 2024. Since the flooding event caused by Tropical Storm Debby, no new test results are available for these beaches under permanent advisory. Assume bacterial contamination may be a factor, watch for local signage.
Georgia's Coastal Health District advises pet-owners on the harms of bluegreen algae. If your pet has been in contact with water containing bluegreen algae, "Wash your pet immediately with tap water, and don’t let your pet lick its fur until it has been washed. Harmful algal blooms are especially dangerous for our pets. Animals can die within hours after exposure to a harmful algal bloom. Some symptoms in pets include: too much saliva, weakness, staggered walking, difficulty breathing, convulsions, or even death."
If you think your pet may be sick because of a harmful algal bloom, consult your veterinarian right away.
No new information has been found on the presence of HABs in Georgia since our last update. Georgia Environmental Protection Division does accept reports from the public of suspicious algal blooms. As we receive updates from EPD, the results will be found here.
Fifty-three sites in the USGS streamflow network are currently monitoring flood events in the USA, leftovers from Tropical Storm Debby last week. Seven of these flood events are occurring now in south Georgia.
Groundwater wells in the flooded areas have been impacted and will require remediation to ensure potability. Wells supplying public utilities are managed as per the Safe Drinking Water Act, boil water advisories are in place until the flood subsides and tests confirm potability of the water supply. For those on private wells, the flood water must fully recede from around the well head before the surrounding surface area, casings and the water itself can be disinfected. Advice for sanitizing private wells from Georgia Coastal Health here.
See the North American drainage basin map here, scroll all the way down to see how surface water moves across the continent into the Pacific, Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico and Arctic Oceans. WT Media Group tells the story of water in three countries, Canada, USA and Mexico. See the drinking water advisories, hazardous spills, floods, drought and harmful algal blooms plotted on the maps, as the water flows. Check out the CrimeBox for historic prosecutions under the Clean Water Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act box for details on public drinking water facilities, interviews with the scientists and tech developers on the leading edge of clean water technology here.
As many drinking water facilities are supplied from surface water reservoirs, the streamflow situation is pertinent to both drinking water supply and quality. High flows can stir up sediment and cause turbidity in the reservoirs, requiring additional treatments to render the water potable. Low flow volume is linked to warmer temperatures in the reservoir and can be an issue for water quality where HABs are present. WT tracks streamflow trends with an eye to the impacts on drinking water supply and quality in each of the state's watersheds. Check the watershed layer on the map to see the direction of flow and streamflows that may be impacting drinking water today.
Harmful Algal Blooms: WT follows the movement and growth of harmful algal blooms (HABs) as provided by the satellite monitoring program of the NCCOS for New York's Lake Champlain, Ohio's Lake Erie and Louisiana's Lake Pontchartrain and surrounding area. Interpretation of satellite images is best in clear conditions at wind speed less than 4 mph, where the appearance and extent of HABs is reliably matched to a color scale for concentration. HABs are known to produce algal toxins of concern for raw drinking water sources and recreational water bodies. Plan beach access to avoid HABs and consider carrying a rapid test kit to detect the toxin microcystins.
US EPA Health Advisories for public drinking water specify the maximum threshhold for two common algal toxins, microcystins and cylindrospermopsins, liver toxins produced by cyanobacteria. Note these levels are health advisories, not legally enforceable regulatory limits. Two levels are identified, separating the population by age. The first level applies to pre-school aged children, the second level applies for those age 6 and up. The EPA health advisory gives the maximum level of toxin that would not produce negative health impacts over a ten day period. For microcystins, .3 ug/L under 6 yrs old; 1.6 ug/L for 6 and older. For cylindrospermopsins, the toxin associated with the HAB Aphanizomenon the level for preschoolers is .7 ug/L, for those 6 and up, 3 ug/L.
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