Friday a.m. at Sandy Lake Beach
“It” appeared at Sandy Lake Beach quite suddenly on Tuesday a.m. Aug 6, 2019
On Wed a.m., Aug 7, HRM took water samples and put up a No Swimming sign; a Risk Advisory was issued later in the day.
At 1:54 p.m.on Thursday Aug 8., the Risk advisory for Sandy Lake was lifted
I looked at the beach area this a.m. (Friday Aug 9, 2019), and indeed there was no longer the bubbly scum where the water meets the shore, and no wafts of suspended material drifting in as observed on Tuesday.
There was still some debris around and walking through the water still left a trail of bubbles, but not as pronounced as it had been on Wednesday. So “it” has subsided.
It’s still not completely clear what caused “it”, it being, apparently or possibly, a bloom of diatoms – that’s according to info forwarded by Councillor Tim Outhit, received from Cemeron Deacoff (Water Resources Specialist, Planning and Decelopment, HRM) on Thurs, Aug. 8:
We received the lab results late yesterday afternoon that the specimens identified in the lab were principally diatoms (a form of algae), with trace amounts of one species of cyanobacteria that does not produce any toxins. Correspondingly, staff (i.e., P&D Acting Director Eric Lucic) has approved lifting the PSA. Corporate Communications is now drafting that PSA…
‘Very grateful for HRM’s quick attention to “it”!