Monitoring of potentially toxic blue-green algae began July 1 at 16 additional sites in the five upper Highland Lakes, the Lower Colorado River Authority recently announced. Officials urge people to avoid contact with the algae while in the lakes and prevent dogs from touching or ingesting water in the Highland Lakes.
Oct. 14, 2021, Updated: Testing at 16 sites in five of the Highland Lakes in September did not detect any toxicity from blue-green algae. LCRA testing has not detected toxicity in algae in the Highland Lakes since June when small amounts of cyanotoxins were determined to be present, but not at quantifiable levels. LCRA conducts testing in lakes Buchanan, Inks, LBJ, Marble Falls and Travis. The City of Austin conducts testing in Lake Austin and Lady Bird Lake.
Even though it has been several months since toxicity has been detected, LCRA continues to recommend people and pets avoid contact with algae in the lakes. “We want people and pets to stay safe,’’ said John Hofmann, LCRA executive vice president for Water. “You can’t tell by looking at algae whether it’s producing toxins, so our advice continues to be to stay away from any algae.”
Updates and additional information on blue-green algae are available on the LCRA website.
