With waterfowl hunting seasons underway, the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality is advising hunters to be aware of blue-green algae in wetlands and lakes.
Brian Houle is an environmental scientist with DEQ. He says there are currently eleven advisories and ten warnings in various water bodies across the state. Swimming in or ingesting water contaminated with blue-green algae can cause a variety of symptoms ranging from nausea, diarrhea and even seizures. There are no known antidotes for the toxins that can be found in blue-green algae. He says hunters can google “ND HABS” to find a map of current advisories and warnings, but they should still be advised that harmful algal blooms may exist in places that have not yet been identified.
"There's a blanket warning because we do only investigate and sample at lakes that are for recreational use, or publicly accessible, and that are typically a lot larger. Waterfowl season is interesting because a lot of times, people are on these smaller ponds and lakes that are more stagnate, maybe on private land or public land. And so we just don't have eyes on the ground to really see or investigate all those. The onus is really on the hunters who are going to be on out there, especially with dogs."
Houle says the blooms may stay active until freeze-up. He says having plenty of fresh water for rinsing and drinking can be helpful if there is any exposure.