As summer hits its peak and the July Fourth holiday nears, an outbreak of blue-green algae on New Jersey’s largest lake has prompted the state’s environmental department to warn people to stay away from the water.
The agency also advised local authorities to close all public beaches.
“The Department of Environmental Protection is advising the public to avoid swimming in or contact with Lake Hopatcong water due to an extensive Harmful Algae Bloom, or HAB, confirmed this week by aerial surveillance,” the agency wrote in a press release.
“Based on the widespread nature of the HAB, the recreational advisory may be in place for weeks, if not longer.”
Lake Hopatcong straddles Sussex, Passaic and Morris counties. About 50 miles northwest of New York City, it’s a popular summer holiday destination.
The warning advised people to refrain from any water activities, including boating, kayaking and wading. Fish from the lake should not be eaten, it said.
The bloom of cyanobacteria, more commonly known as blue-green algae, was confirmed Wednesday. Contact with it can cause rashes, flu- or allergy-like symptoms, gastroenteritis, respiratory irritation and eye irritation.
Blue-green algae has become notorious in recent years for its massive outbreaks in Lake Superior and Florida’s Lake Okeechobee. Experts believe the increased algae blooms may be fueled by climate change.
https://weather.com/news/news/2019-06-27-algae-lake-hopatcong-new-jersey
I live right near the Hopatcong State Park. Hopatcong is the filthiest lake in New Jersey (not that any of the lakes or rivers in this forsaken hell-hole are clean). I wouldn’t touch that sewage water with a forty foot barge pole.