Blue-Green Algae Season Overview
Blue-Green Algae on Lake Champlain.
LCC completed its ninth season of blue-green algae monitoring on Lake Champlain. In 2011, volunteers collected 172 samples and there were 29 low alerts and two high alerts issued during the ten weeks of citizen monitoring. Low alerts occur when high densities of potentially toxic algae are found but toxins are not. High alerts occur when more than six micrograms of toxin per liter of water are detected. Missisquoi Bay had 13 low alerts and both high alerts at the four volunteer monitoring sites. St. Albans Bay had four low alerts. There were five low alerts in the North part of the lake. There were three low alerts in the Burlington area and single low alerts at Pt. Au Roche State Park in New York and Ferrisburgh Town Beach in Vermont. By comparison, between 2005 and 2011 the average number of alerts per season has been 25.1 with a high of 51 in 2006 and a low of 6 in 2007. In only two of the six years, 2007 and 2010, no High Alerts were recorded.
Heartfelt thanks to all the volunteers and partners that help make this program a success. This year's volunteers included: Sally and Jim Brabham, Catherine Brooks, Amy Calkins, Al Carpenter, Deb Diemand, Gerry Duprey, Lawrence Gillet, Dave Greenough, Stephanie Kurchberg, Bill Magnus, Bob Martell, Jon McBride, Gary Molinski, Bob Murphy and his crew at the Willsboro Department of Public Works, Gerry O'Conner, Martha Perry, Kaylee Polander, Larry and Jeanine Pratt, Mike Roach, Mary Simmers, Mary Van Vleck, Doug Ward, and Eric Wolinsky. Dr. Mary Watzin's lab at the University of Vermont Rubenstein School of Natural Resources provides all analysis of the samples and Susan Fuller leads the algae monitoring program there. Linda Bocuzzo from the Vermont Department of Health helped guide the program and the Lake Champlain Basin Program provided the funding.
