Blue-green algae that has plagued Hamilton’s waterfront this summer has prompted city officials to close another beach.
Beach Boulevard beach has been closed by public health after staff confirmed the presence of the toxin-producing algae, the city said in a news release Tuesday.
Public health is advising that residents and pets avoid all contact with water along the shoreline of the east-end beach.
Warning signs will be posted and remain in effect until the blue-green algae subsides, says public health.
People who come into contact with or ingest water containing the algae may experience skin irritations, sore throats, swollen eyes and lips, fever, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.
“A small dog could be killed if it was drinking that water,” McMaster University Prof. Gail Krantzberg, a water scientist, previously told CBC Hamilton.
The same type of algae, called cyanobacteria, has caused a stench at Bayfront Park and Pier 4 this month as it’s begun to rot.
Some Bayfront Park users have described the smell as similar to a porta-potty or sewer and noticed it as far as 500-metres away.
Public health has advised residents to avoid those areas of water as well.
At council’s request, city staff will be preparing a report about the algae issue and propose ways to avoid outbreaks in the future, which will become increasingly challenging with climate change.
The algae forms in shallow, still waters, and proliferates when temperatures rise and there’s high nutrient loads.
It can bloom in Hamilton’s water into late November or early December, public health says.
The safety of Hamilton’s drinking water is not affected, it says.