Last summer brought more outbreaks of potentially dangerous blue-green algae in New York lakes and ponds than any summer in memory, and conditions so far this year are conducive to new outbreaks.

But some state and local agencies, and citizen groups, are doing what they can to prevent a recurrence or prepare for one if it happens, and a first-ever sampling program is being hastily assembled.

Blue-green algae, more properly known as cyanobacteria, can grow rapidly in the latter half of the summer, turning the water hues from bright turquoise to frothy white and, in some cases, releasing toxins that can cause skin and respiratory irritation and more serious health problems.

State officials have been unwilling to say how many New York water bodies were affected last summer, though an academic expert, Gregory L. Boyer, said he knew of about a dozen. Two dogs died after swimming in toxin-laced waters, Boyer said, though he knew of no confirmed human health problems in New York last year.

At Sodus Bay in Wayne County, which had its worst-ever blue-green algae outbreak last August, local groups have applied for no fewer than four grants to deal with cyanobacteria and the over-abundance of phosphorus and other pollutants that fuel its growth.

“I think there’s a heightened awareness and a heightened willingness to cooperate as a result of last year’s event,” said Edward Leroux, president of Save Our Sodus, a nonprofit citizens group that focuses on the bay’s water quality.

An initial $14,500 grant is in hand, with that money going to help pull together information needed to devise a long-term strategy.

One grant they are seeking from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency would pay for application of a common chemical, hydrogen peroxide, to kill cyanobacteria. It’s never been tried on a large scale in New York before.

“It really is a short-term solution. You have to lessen nutrients if you want a long-term solution,” said Boyer, who is chairman of the chemistry department at the State University College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse and a leading cyanobacteria expert who works closely with New York officials and consults in other states and countries.

Continue reading this three-page feature by Steve Orr via Unsafe algae could make a return | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com.