Lake off-limits to swimmers after high levels of toxins found

Published 6:00 am Saturday, July 22, 2006

Lone Lake in Langley has been closed to all swimming due to extremely high levels of a toxin produced by blue-green algae.

Signs were posted Tuesday warning people of extremely high levels of a toxin — potentially harmful to humans and animals — produced by a blue-green algae that is floating near the water’s surface.

The indefinite closure left sponsors of the Whidbey Island Triathlon scrambling to find another location for the swim portion of the event. Health department officials don’t expect the lake to reopen in time for the triathlon, which is Saturday, Aug. 6.

“Lone Lake will definitely be closed for the triathlon,” said Dr. Roger Case, Island County Health Officer.

The Island County Health Department closed the 101-acre lake after receiving lab results that confirmed the presence of the toxic bloom.

Health department officials went door to door Wednesday to warn residents living around the lake about the danger. The bloom is present in the entire lake and may occur in succession for several months.

The South Whidbey Parks and Recreation District, the sponsor of the race, is trying to relocate the swim portion to Goss Lake, which is near the existing bicycle route.

Some triathlete competitors are taking the switch in stride.

“I don’t think moving to Goss Lake is a big deal, and it may actually be an improvement,” said Katy Gordon, a veteran triathlete.

“The nasty thing about Lone Lake is all the seaweed they have to mow down before the triathlon. I don’t think Goss Lake has the weed problems,” Gordon said.

“It’s not going to make much of a difference in the bicycle loop either,” she added.

Gordon is the daughter of Curt Gordon, a parks district commissioner and the moving force in developing the triathlon on South Whidbey 10 years ago.

Despite the change in venue for the swimming portion of the triathlon, issues exist over public access at Goss Lake. On Wednesday parks officials and race planners were studying their options.

“At this point we are hoping to move the swim to Goss Lake, but there is a staging issue for the bicycles,” said Art Burke, parks district director.

Burke said they hoped to avoid having to eliminate the swim portion of the race.

Last year, the triathlon attracted nearly 300 participants.

“We want to give our participants a good race,” he said.

“This is the 10th anniversary of the triathlon here, we are hoping there is still a way to have the swim,” he said.

Parks Maintenance Director Tom Fallon was out measuring last week the distance from the Lone Lake beach area to Andreason Road, and from the public area at Goss Lake to Goss Lake Road.

“There is only a small difference in distance between the two. Moving it to Goss Lake will add only 800 feet to the bike race,” Fallon said.

But adequate space for staging the bicycles is an issue.

Lone Lake offers a large, grassy area, near the boat ramp where swimmers rush out of the water and run to their bikes to begin the bicycle race. The public area at Goss Lake is much smaller, however.

If racers are able to start at Goss Lake, they can bicycle about a quarter-mile to Lone Lake Road and pick up the existing route.

Race officials are in the process of working with the Island County Sheriff’s Office to develop an alternate route and staging area.

In the meantime, county health officials will continue monitoring Lone Lake. This is the first time blue-green algae has been documented in a lake on Whidbey Island.

“It’s new to us, but there have been cases reported in other lakes in the state,” Case said.

“It is prevalent this time of year. No one knows where it comes from or when it will leave,” he said.

The bright greenish-blue bloom can be seen along the shoreline. It is actually a bacteria that can cause illness in humans and even death to animals.

“Blue-green algae is known to produce the same toxins as the Paralytic Shellfish Poison produced by red tide organisms in marine water,” Case said.

It can be extremely toxic in small amounts and can cause skin rashes, nausea and vomiting.

It can be lethal to animals within minutes to a few hours, depending on the size of the animal and the amount of the bloom ingested.

Although Case recommends not swimming in Lone Lake, he said boating and fishing is not prohibited.

But he cautions that eating fish caught in Lone Lake may not be safe.

“Cooking does not get rid of the toxins,” Case said.

In Jefferson County the death of two dogs earlier this summer was blamed on blue-green algae bloom at Anderson Lake.

Lone Lake resident Jan Clark said they will stay out of the lake until an all clear is given.

“The algae was obvious earlier this week, surrounding our dock like a paint spill,” she said.

Clark said this is not the first time residents have seen blue-green algae in the lake. A neighbor’s puppy died several years ago after drinking from the lake, she said.

Island County will continue to monitor the lake in the coming weeks.

Blue-green algae is not the only invader at Lone Lake. Homeowners around the lake have been battling the invasion of Brazilian elodea, a non-native weed.

Gayle Saran can be contacted at 221-5300 or gsaran@southwhidbeyrecord. com.