Many lakes near Edmonton are under a blue-green algae advisory

If you plan on jumping into a lake to beat the scorching heat this weekend, you’ll want to double-check for blue-green algae advisories, as Alberta Health Services (AHS) has issued several for lakes close to Edmonton.

According to AHS, Cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) has been identified in the waters of these lakes:

Residents living near the shores of these lakes, as well as visitors to these lakes, are asked to take the following precautions:

Avoiding all contact with cyanobacterial blooms. If contact occurs, wash with tap water as soon as possible.
Do not swim or wade or allow your pets to swim or wade in areas with visible cyanobacteria.
Do not feed your pets whole fish or fish trimmings from these lakes.
Consider limiting human consumption of whole fish and fish trimmings from this lake, as it is known that fish may store toxins in their liver. (People can safely consume fish fillets from this lake.)
Do not use water contaminated with cyanobacteria to water edible plants. This is particularly important for plants with edible parts exposed to the ground surface (such as cabbage, lettuce, tomatoes, and other salad vegetables).
AHS reminds visitors and residents, as always, to never drink or cook with untreated water directly from any recreational body of water, including the mentioned lakes, at any time.

Appearing like scum, grass clippings, fuzz, or globs on the water’s surface, cyanobacteria can be blue-green, greenish-brown, brown, and/or pinkish-red and often smell musty or grassy.

Blue-green algae advisories issued for three lakes north of Edmonton

mivod/Shutterstock

Cyanobacteria is naturally occurring and often becomes visible when weather conditions are calm.

People who come in contact with visible cyanobacteria or ingest water containing cyanobacteria may experience skin irritation, rash, sore throat, sore red eyes, swollen lips, fever, nausea and vomiting, and/or diarrhea.

Symptoms usually appear within one to three hours and resolve in one to two days. The symptoms in children are often more pronounced; however, all humans are at risk.

Exposure to the bacteria may be fatal to pets.

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Boiling the water will not remove toxins produced by cyanobacteria. Alternative drinking water sources should also be provided for pets and livestock while advisories are active.

Weather and wind conditions can cause algae blooms to move from one location in the lake to another, so the advisories will remain in effect until further notice, according to AHS.

The areas of these lakes where the blue-green algae bloom isn’t visible can still be used for recreational purposes, even while the health advisory is in place.