Toxic algae blooms popping up in Skaneateles Lake

Suspected toxic algae bloom in Skaneateles Lake

Algae blooms have started popping up on Skaneateles Lake, including this one, at Thayer Park, on Sept. 3, 2019. Aboard the Skaneateles Lake Association milfoil survey boat are association board members Bob Werner and Bill Dean. Frank Moses | Skaneateles Lake Association

Syracuse, N.Y. -- Nine reports of potentially toxic algae in Skaneateles Lake were made over the past week, but no toxins have reached the city of Syracuse water supply, officials say.

The blooms were relatively small and dissipated quickly, said Bob Werner, a shoreline resident and Skaneateles Lake Association board member.

“We’re getting these little pop-up blooms, and then they get dispersed,” Moses said.

At least four of the blooms have been confirmed as toxic, according to the state Department of Environmental Conservation. The other five are still listed as “suspicious” until test results come back.

Water tests show no algae toxins, known as microcystins, have gotten into the city’s intake pipes, according to the Onondaga County Health Department and city spokesman Greg Loh. Syracuse draws unfiltered water from the lake through a pair of pipes that extend into the lake from the village of Skaneateles.

“There was a short period last week where chlorine levels were increased as a precaution, but they have been returned to normal levels,” Loh said. He said microcystins have not been detected in any sample so far; the results of a sample taken today will be known later this week.

During a major algae bloom in September 2017, toxins were sucked into the city’s pipes, and the city added extra chlorine to treat them. None of the toxins reached tap water, the city said.

Lake residents and city officials are carefully monitoring this year’s blooms. While the blooms over the past week were the worst of the season, they haven’t caused any problems, said Frank Moses, executive director of the lake association.

“The silver lining is that the lake has staved off the algae blooms up until this point,” Moses said. “We and, I believe, Canadice Lake, were the only Finger Lakes that hadn’t had a bloom pop up before September 3.”

DEC reports show more than 100 blooms in 41 water bodies across the state in the past week.

September is usually the peak time for the blooms, which thrive on phosphorus and other nutrients washed into lakes during the spring and summer. For the blooms to explode, they need warm, calm weather.

Temperatures this week will be in the high 70s and low 80s, with some rain during the week. Next week, though, temperatures are likely to be above average, according to the Climate Prediction Center.

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