Signs are back up in the Tahoe Keys warning about the algae bloom. Photo/LTN

By Lake Tahoe News

An algae bloom in the Tahoe Keys similar to what cropped up last August is back.

“We started monitoring for this at the beginning of April. We found it at multiple locations in the Keys,” Greg Hoover, with the Tahoe Keys Property Owners Association’s water quality staff, told Lake Tahoe News.

Cyanobacteria, which is better known as blue-green algae, was found to be at low toxic levels at three locations in mid-May and when retested a week ago was found at only one location.

Hoover said it’s possible the contaminant is left over from last year and not necessarily a new outbreak. He said this is because the canals in the South Lake Tahoe neighborhood had little ice on them this past winter. The algal bloom does not like cold.

Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board is monitoring how the Keys is handling the situation.

Large signs have been posted in various locations warning people not to come into contact with the water. The biggest threat is to dogs and children who might swallow the water.

“We are a little surprised to see it identified so early in the season,” Dan Sussman with Lahontan told LTN. This is in part because of the amount of rain that fell in May and that there was not sustained warm temperatures in the last month. “There could be more blooms as it warms up.”

Testing will be ongoing.