No Toxic Blue-green Algae Health Alerts In Effect for Holiday Week
For the second consecutive week, no lakes are on the alert list for toxic blue-green algae in the state of Nebraska.
State-issued health alerts for toxic blue-green algae were removed two weeks ago for Merritt Reservoir (Cherry County), Bluestem Lake (Lancaster County), and Rockford Lake (Gage County). Lakes that are on health alert must have two consecutive weeks of readings below 20 ppb before the alert is removed.
Swimming beaches are open to the public, and the lakes will be open to all activities. People can also safely use the public areas for picnics and other outdoor activities.
The state will continue to conduct weekly sampling at 47 recreational lakes through September. Monitoring will end for the year after the September 29 sample. Sampling results for toxic algae and bacteria will be updated every Friday and posted on NDEQ’s web site, http://deq.ne.gov/.
(For more information about potential health effects of toxic blue-green algae, what to look for, and steps to avoid exposure, please refer to the Toxic Algae Fact Sheet.)