Murray Wood: Who's scary... and who's scary good?
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The Saskatchewan Ministry of Health and the Water Security Agency are warning people to stay out of the water if they see clumps of blue-green algae at the lake.
The weeks of hot, dry weather that makes people want to go swimming at the lake also happens to make conditions perfect for blue-green algae. The thick clumps of green can sometimes have a blue tinge on the surface of the water.
“The conditions are favourable for the formation of blue-green algae blooms and we have seen some people posting online that they have witnessed some of those. With the forecast moving forward that’s something we wanted people to be aware of,” explained Patrick Boyle with the Water Security Agency.
While green algae is a normal part of the ecosystem in prairie lakes, this is a different kind of algae that produces toxins that can make you sick.
“It’s something that does happen most summers across the province, and essentially, this is a blanket advisory for all lakes in Saskatchewan.”
Boyle does not have a full list of lakes that could have blue-green algae right now because conditions fluctuate based on wind and weather. He did note that lakes along the Qu’Appelle Valley usually get blue-green algae at some point every summer due to the high levels of nutrients in the water.
Blue-green algae is also called cyanobacteria and it can produce toxins that create a high risk to pets and livestock that drink it. Even if people keep their heads out of the water while swimming, there is always a chance of swallowing some of it and that’s why the province warns people to avoid it going into the water if they see the blue-green algae.
“What it can do is direct contact or unintended consumption of it, you see red skin, sore throat, cramps, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, so there’s those sorts of things that can happen from that bacteria,” Boyle explained.
Some health websites also warn people to keep kids out of the water because they are more likely to accidentally swallow more.
AChristianson@rawlco.com
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