By Jason Emerson
The Village of Cazenovia has closed Lakeland Park Beach after detecting a suspicious Harmful Algae Bloom, the village announced Thursday morning, Aug. 16. The village sent pictures of the suspected HAB to the Madison County Department of Health and conferred with the county agency before taking its action, according to village Public Works Administrator Bill Carr.
Once the bloom is gone for 24 hours, the village will sample the water and advise the public when the beach will reopen, Carr said.
The Lakeland Park algal bloom comes only one day after Willow Bank Yacht Club closed its beach after detecting an HAB in its swim area.
Harmful algal blooms occur when colonies of algae grow out of control while producing toxic or harmful effects on people, fish, mammals and birds. The human illnesses caused by HABs, though rare, can be debilitating or even fatal. While no HABs were reported on Cazenovia Lake in 2017, the previous year there were multiple occurrences.
The town of Cazenovia has compiled a database of email addresses of anyone that would like to be sent an email should there be a Harmful Algae Bloom (HAB) event on Cazenovia Lake. The database is part of the town’s efforts to create protocols for HAB activity.
Anyone who would like to be included in the town’s database should send an email to Tina McMurtrie at tmcmurtrie@townofcazenovia.org.
If anyone notices water in the public access areas that has a green paint-like appearance, they are asked to notify the town office at 315-655-9213. Public access areas consist of Lakeland Park, Lakeside Park, Gypsy Bay Park and McNitt State Park.
