Summer of cyanobacteria coming to a close at Chisholm Creek Park

The naturalist and fisheries biologist at Chisholm Creek Park in north Wichita are projecting that the recent cooling in the weather will finally put an end to a summer of hazardous blue-green algae that has limited use of the park’s biggest lake.

Jim Mason, the naturalist who works for the city of Wichita at the park, said the area isn’t getting enough rain to flush out the lake and that cold weather may be the only antidote to an algae bloom that has had the lake under state public health warnings for almost two months.

“I hope this turns the trick,” he said.

“I would expect that would be the case,” added Jessica Mounts, district fisheries biologist for the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism. “As the water cools off the algae and stuff tends to dissipate.”

The park is home to 163 species of plants and 214 species of animals – and a family of algae/bacteria that can give you cramps, vomiting, diarrhea, blisters, difficulty breathing and liver damage, and kill your dog.

The culprit is “microcystins,” a family of toxins released when the single-cell organisms that make up blue-green algae die and sink to the bottom of a body of water.

Blue-green algae – it’s more neon green in color – is also known by the name cyanobacteria. The organism involved is actually a bacteria that exhibits some plant-like characteristics, including use of chlorophyl to turn sunlight into energy, Mounts said.

The health warning specifically applies to the North Chisholm Creek Park lake, just north of K-96 near Woodlawn. Testing this week by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment found that the lake still has an unacceptably high level of microsystins, even though the algae may not be immediately visible, said spokeswoman Sara Belfry.

The last time there was a warning on the lake, in 2012, it didn’t get lifted until November when cold temperatures finally killed off the algae and cleared the water.

The algae looks like a green scum – sometimes like spilled paint – floating on top of the water.

Chisholm Creek is the only lake in Sedgwick County under an algae warning by KDHE. But that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the only one with a toxic algae problem, Belfry said.

The department only tests for cyanobacteria when it gets a complaint, she said.

There is no known way to eradicate blue-green algae, which is actually a world-wide phenomenon, according to the World Health Organization. Virtually all bodies of water have some.

It becomes a health issue when the algae concentration rises in water that is still, warm, shallow and contains a high level of nutrients, especially phosphorus.

Phosphorus is commonly introduced into the lake through runoff from phosphorous-rich soil, fertilized lawns and farm fields. Scat from wildlife also contributes, Mounts said.

Once the algae has taken hold, “it’s very difficult to get it out of the lake, if not impossible,” Belfry said.

Remedial action, according to KDHE and the WHO, consists mainly of attempting to prevent or reduce future algae blooms. That can be done by limiting use of fertilizer in the watershed that feeds the lake and proper disposal of upstream human and pet waste.

While the water can make people and pets sick, it doesn’t seem to have much of an effect on park wildlife, Mounts said.

Fish, birds and reptiles have different metabolisms and are largely immune to the algal toxins. Other types of wildlife that are more susceptible to cyanobacteria have survival instincts that kick in, she said.

“If they drink out of something that makes them sick, they won’t go back,” Mounts said.

This story was originally published September 12, 2014 at 7:16 PM with the headline "Summer of cyanobacteria coming to a close at Chisholm Creek Park."