The CRD has officially lifted a toxic blue-green algae advisory for Beaver Lake that had been in place for nearly one month.
The beach advisory went into effect on July 22 and warned people against swimming in the lake and advised them to keep animals leashed to prevent them from drinking or swimming.
It was lifted for Beaver Lake on the morning of Wednesday, August 19, but the District warns that blue-green algae blooms are still present at Thetis Lake and Prior Lake.
“Water samples collected indicated a “below detection limit” result for cyanotoxins,” reads the CRD statement, explaining why the advisory was lifted for Beaver Lake.
“The extended absence of blue-green scum combined with test results are good indicators that the bloom is over.”
However beachgoers are still advised to be on the lookout for a distinctive blue-green sheen that appears on the water when algae blooms are present. However not all blooms are easy to see and toxins may still be present even without a visible bloom.
Ingesting water with algae-produced cyanotoxins can lead to headaches and abdominal pain in humans and lethal liver damage in dogs.
Beaver Lake has seen multiple toxic algae blooms over the past year, including incidents in August and December of 2019.
For the latest updates on the status of the algae bloom visit www.crd.bc.ca/alerts or follow the CRD on Twitter @crd_bc.
