Photo taken 5/28/21
---------------------------------------------
Toxins
flourish every summer and for part of the fall in Prospect
Park Lake. As the summer progresses, the toxins in the lake eventually
become widespread. But this year, they've already been categorized as "widespread or lakewide."
New
York City's Parks
Department observed the lake's condition on May 25th and reported it to
New York State's Department of Environmental Conservation
(DEC). The DEC's map shows the location of the toxins throughout all of New York State.
The toxins are "Harmful Algal Blooms" (HABs), and the specific ones in
Prospect Park Lake are blue-green algae blooms or BGA (cyanobacteria).
They can make water look like pea soup. The water can also be blue, blue-green,
green, yellow, white, brown, purple, or red. It can resemble spilled paint.
Green streaks, dots, or globs might be on the surface of the water. Or,
mats of blue or green pond scum might be floating on the water surface and accumulating along the shoreline.
When the blooms are large enough to be categorized as widespread, as they already are, they can affect either the entire lake, a
large portion of the lake, or most to all of the shoreline.
New
York City's water supply feeds Prospect Park's Lake, waterfalls, and
its other water features. Phosphates in the water make it safe for us
to drink it, but they lead to excessive algae growth.
Every summer, Prospect Park Lake and other bodies of
water in New York State are monitored for blooms on a weekly basis. Some bodies of water with HABs might not have been
reported to the DEC, so humans and animals should avoid contact with all
floating mats, scum, and discolored water.
Adults, children, dogs, and other animals should not go into the lake or
near the shoreline. Anyone who has been in contact with a HAB should
rinse thoroughly with soap and water--or just with clean water, if
that's all that's available at the moment.
Anyone who might have been exposed to a bloom and is experiencing any
symptoms should get medical help immediately and should also contact the New
York City Department of Health (DOH).
Possible effects of the toxins on living creatures are nausea, vomiting,
diarrhea, skin or throat irritation, allergic reactions, and breathing
difficulties. The toxins can also affect the liver and nervous systems
if a lot of water is swallowed. Read more about this on the DEC website.
The DEC offers this advice and more:
-
Swimmers should be concerned about HABs (Harmful Algal Blooms) in any lake in which they are considering swimming.
-
Never drink untreated surface water, whether or not algae blooms are present.
-
The New York Freshwater Fishing Guide advises anglers to avoid eating
fish caught from areas that have the thick paint-like or pea soup-like
coloration characteristic of cyanobacteria blooms.
-
HABs cells can stick to animal fur and become concentrated when the animal cleans itself.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says
- If your animal gets in water
with a bloom, immediately wash it off with clean water. Do not let the
animal lick cyanobacteria off of its fur.
- Call a veterinarian if your
animal shows any of these symptoms of cyanobacteria poisoning: loss of
energy, loss of appetite, vomiting, stumbling and falling, foaming at the
mouth, diarrhea, convulsions, excessive drooling, tremors and seizures,
or any unexplained sickness that occurs within a day or so after being
in contact with water.
