Toxic algae in Delta.

[Dan McKenzie]

did anybody else miss hearing about this?

Toxic algae bloom puts delta off limits
Rashes, intestinal problems possible for humans; risk of death for pets.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

STOCKTON, Calif. A particularly bad outbreak of toxic algae in the San Joaquin-Sacramento River delta is keeping water lovers on land.

Tests in the west delta in late August showed there was an algae bloom intense enough to severe rashes, gastrointestinal problems and potentially long-term complications in people, and the death of pets that may drink the water or lick their fur, health officials said.

Although algae blooms are common in the delta during the summer, "this was a particularly bad year," said Peggy Lehman of the state Department of Water Resources.

One test showed the amount of algae cells per millimeter of water near Sherman Island, in the delta, was 70 times the level needed to cause sickness in humans.

San Joaquin and Contra Costa county officials were alerted about the algae levels before Labor Day weekend. San Joaquin County officials posted signs at marinas to alert boaters, but Contra Costa did not. No public announcements were made.

"If we get further indication from the state that it is important for us to post, then we can do that" said Sherman Quinlan, head of Contra Costa County's Environmental Health Division.

But windsurfers and others who felt they'd been unnecessarily exposed to a risk wondered why more wasn't done to alert the public.

"It just seems odd. Is this something new, or has it been there and nobody mentioned it before?" said Steve Smith, who heads the Rio Vista Windsurfing Association.

[Shad*Wizard]

I wrote about it in the waterfowl forum this morning, Dan...Thanks for printing the full article...

[Fishin' Dave]

OUCH!

Thanks CoCo County

[Mike]

Oh thank God! That is what that "rash" was all about.

[185vsfrog]

Man I fished sherman last week. I was wondering why I have been having the squirts all this week

[jack morris]

I am wondering what effect this will have on eating the fish(stripers,sturgeon and salmon) Jack

[sashimi911]

According to the information I pulled off of the internet, they're not aware of any impact this stuff might have to the fish themselves. The bloom is at it's peak right now and you can see the stuff everywhere (small square flakes with a blue-green color). If you type "Toxic Blue Algae" into your browser you can pull up some pretty good information. This stuff is no joke and is really bad on the Klamath. I recommend that you carry a bottle of disinfectant like a liquid soap and wash your hands often after handling fish or even your lures.

[Hollywood]

can you send any of that water down south? HAR HAR HAR!

[sashimi911]

For more information on this check out this link. It has the study that was perfomred on the delta waters. You'll find that some of the areas with the highest concentrations of this stuff are also some of the most popular bass fishing areas.

http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/bluegreenalgae/ ... tation.pdf

[BassManDan]

Toxic blue-green algae is more common than most people think.
Yes its a big problem in the Klamath and can potentially be a problem in just about any body of water. All the advise I can give is:

DON'T LICK YOUR BASS!!!

[Greg_Cornish]

Oh thank God! That is what that "rash" was all about.

What'd you tell the wife it was, LOL?

[brambo0311]

Whath the problem with licking you bassth.

[brambo0311]

Oh crap he is a fish biologist. He might know what he is talking about. PITA might say I violated the fishes rights and she hasnt blinked since. If I lick another fish I will make sure I swap out the copenhagen when im done.

[adamsj13]

Should I not fish the Delta until the toxins are down?

[brambo0311]

I will be out there friday through sunday. I think they should have posted this earlier in the year to get rid of the wake boarders. I dont think I will be cutting line with my teeth though. Maby some hand sanitizer. I dont know how bad the stuff is, I will leave the dog at home though.

[ash]

All the advise I can give is:

DON'T LICK YOUR BASS!!!

I guess that means I am back to toads....

[brambo0311]

What I heard from cooch is that stuff is almost gone out of the delta, and has just started at clear lake. I dont think its gunna keep me away.

[Shad*Wizard]

It (algae) was still over by the Antioch launching ramp as of yesterday morning...Didn't see any up by Garcia Bend on the Sacramento River above Freeport yesterday afternoon...Very few salmon guys at the Bend...Maybe 12 boats at Vieira's this morning trolling, things look pretty slow for salmon...

[Cooch]

go fishing on the Delta from July 22 through August 31st? Did you not see all the algae floating ALL over the river system, especially in Franks, Middle River, Latham, down in Sandmound or into the big Bay in Disco? What's happening out west, is mild by comparison! Do you guys remember the Algae Bloom that occured right after the flooding of Jones Tract a few years back? That was FAR worse than what we saw this year! What year was that, 2004, June ta be exact. Hmmmmm, look at their study from the link above! Ya think there's a reason why the Mildred area was really high? What year was that study? Hmmm, 2004, Hmmmmm.

More importanty, and I ain't no scientist, but over the past 2 plus weeks I have noticed, as the water temps have pummeled from 77 degrees down to 67, the vast majority of the middle Delta that was so engrossed with this stuff, which first started to appear after the first Hyacinth spraying that took place the week of July 9th, the middle Delta has cleared emmensly to where ya hardly see that floating flakes anywhere. I really believe that it indeed has been bad the past three years, and it's a direct relation to the Jone's tract flooding and the spraying! It never used to be this bad until they started to use this new "fertalizer, hormone" stuff to create a rapid growth and death of the hyacinth!!!!!!

This is the first I have heard of anything in regards to a ban, to stay out of the water because of serious health issues. It's also the first time I can ever recall, of hearing anything about an algae bloom on the Delta in the press, when infact it indeed has been around fer a few years now. What in God's name took em so long to report this in the first place? Heaven ferbid we might have seen them test the River when it was at it's peak back in late July and early August! Did anyone here see signs in San Jaoquine County launch ramps? What about Sacramento County? Let's not point fingers here at Contra Costa County, let's go to the state who took the tests in the first place! I mean C'mon, they quoted this Piggy Lehman of the DWR.

At this point in time, scare tactics and a big Hoax. Don't git me wrong, that crap ain't good, look how most of the poor folks ended up at ClearLake that were around when it was so bad there! LOL But as they say, better late than never right! The worst is over and it is subsiding fast with the falling water temps. Crimeny Cripes, this state is so SCREWED UP!

[macinckirk]

Crimeny Cripes, this state is so SCREWED UP!

Amen to that