Cyanobacteria Alert

Yesterday evening we received an email from NH DES stating that Cyanobacteria had been detected in Pleasant Lake. A bloom was found by someone on Lamson Lane and they drove a sample down to Concord for testing. The results prompted the state to issue a warning not to swim in the lake. Being after 5 pm, it has taken some time to confirm all of this.

The town’s health officer, Nick Baer, went down to the lake last evening and visited where the bloom was seen and several other locations around the lake. At that time he was unable to locate a bloom. A state expert said that if there wasn’t a visible bloom, it should not pose a health threat, so therefore things will continue as normal, avoiding beach closures and other warnings. Nick will continue to test tributaries on Monday to see if any cause can be determined.

We wanted people to be aware of this event even though it seems to be short lived and keep an eye out for green film on the surface of the water and to please let us know if anything is spotted this weekend

If you see an unusual green film on the surface of the lake (not yellow pollen), please email, with a photo if possible, and the location to:
information@plpa.net
townadmin@newlondon.nh.gov and
n.baer@newlondon.nh.gov

To learn more from NH DES about identifying Cyanobacteria, click HERE.
And this is an informative video by the state of Vermont on how to distinguish cyanobacteria from something else. Click HERE

THANK YOU