DES MOINES, Iowa—The Iowa Environmental Council has released the Weekly Water Watch report about the advisories issued for beaches in the State of Iowa. The information is taken from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources data collected in the past week.
There are 13 beach advisories for the week of 7/19
12 Beaches with an E. coli Advisory:
Backbone Beach (Dundee, Delaware County, IA)*
Beed’s Lake Beach (Hampton, Franklin County, IA)*
Denison Beach (Black Hawk Lake, Lake View, Sac County, IA)*
Emerson Bay Beach (West Okoboji Lake, Milford, Dickinson County, IA)*
George Wyth Beach (Waterloo, Black Hawk County, IA)*
Lake Ahquabi Beach (Indianola, Warren County, IA)*
Lake Darling Beach (Brighton, Washington County, IA)*
Lake of Three Fires Beach (Bedford, Taylor County, IA)*
Lewis and Clark Beach (Blue Lake, Onawa, Monona County, IA)*
Nine Eagles Beach (Davis City, Decatur County, IA)*
Pleasant Creek Lake Beach (Palo, Linn County, IA)*
Union Grove Beach (Gladbrook, Tama County, IA)*
1 Beach with a Microcystin Advisory:
Lake Darling Beach (Brighton, Washington County, IA)*
1 City and County Beach exceeds the state’s advisory threshold for E. coli.*
View the map on our website to see where it is.
Note: Beach monitoring has resumed at all Okoboji and Spirit Lake beaches this week. Saylorville’s Oak Grove Beach is closed due to flooding.
The Iowa Environmental Council releases the data weekly in the digital Water Watch Report. The IEC on Friday also released information for dog owners. A portion of the press release follows:
This summer, the Iowa Environmental Council announced its newest education and awareness campaign, “Iowa Water Watchdogs.” The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness about the risks of cyanotoxin poisoning in dogs that come into contact with harmful algae blooms in Iowa’s natural waterways.
Cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae, can bloom rapidly in lakes, ponds, and slow-moving streams after periods of warm weather and excessive fertilizer runoff. These harmful algae blooms (HAB) can produce cyanotoxins, such as microcystin, that are harmful to pets and human health. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources monitors these algal toxins weekly at 39 state park beaches across the state and issues beach advisories for microcystin concentrations above an 8 microgram per liter safety threshold. Cyanotoxins such as microcystin can cause flu-like symptoms in humans that ingest or inhale them or rashes from contact with the skin. Dogs are at a greater risk of cyanotoxin poisoning because of their behaviors in the water, including swimming, drinking, and licking water and scum off their fur after being in the water. Because of their smaller size, even a small dose of cyanotoxin can lead to serious health impacts. Symptoms of cyanotoxin poisoning in dogs range from disorientation to tiredness, vomiting, and more serious outcomes like seizures, paralysis, or even death.
(contributed information, IEC)
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