<html><head></head><body><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:garamond, new york, times, serif;font-size:16px"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249299"><h3 id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249300">Public health warning issued after blue-green algae bloom found on Klamath River</h3><br id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249301"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249302"></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-style: italic;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249303">By The Times-Standard</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249304"></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249305">Thursday, July 13, 2017</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249306"></div></div><div style="border-bottom-style: none;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249307"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249308"></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249309"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249310">The following is a press release issued by the California Water Resources Control Board:</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249311">Swimmers, boaters and recreational users are urged to avoid direct contact with waters containing blue-green algae (cyanobacteria), now blooming in the Copco Reservoir on the Klamath River in Northern California.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249312">Sample results collected June 27, 2017 from Copco Reservoir at Copco Cove do not meet the State of California’s recommended threshold for blue –green algae toxins in recreational waters, resulting in the posting of the reservoir.</div></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249313"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249314">Copco Reservoir exceeds the “warning” threshold, and has been posted with public health alerts warning against human and animal contact with the water. Cyanobacteria conditions in the Klamath River below the reservoir remain below public health alert thresholds and have not been posted.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249315">Residents and recreational water users can still enjoy camping, hiking, biking, canoeing, boating, fishing, picnicking or other recreational activities at the reservoirs while taking precautions to avoid contact with waters near these bloom areas and any scums along the water’s edge. </div></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249316"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249317">Water quality monitoring is done biweekly in the summer from Link River Dam in Oregon to the Klamath River estuary in California. Sampling continues late into the fall to determine when toxin levels are below the public health thresholds and water contact is safe. This sampling is conducted collaboratively by the United States Bureau of Reclamation, PacifiCorp, the Karuk Tribe, the Yurok Tribe, the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board and the United States Environmental Protection Agency.</div></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249318"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249319">The posting within California is supported by the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), the California Department of Public Health, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Yurok and Karuk tribes.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249320">The blooms appear as bright green in the water, and blue-green, white or brown foam, scum or mats can float on the water and accumulate along the shore. Recreational exposure to blue-green algae toxins can cause eye irritation, allergic skin rash, mouth ulcers, vomiting, diarrhea, and cold and flu-like symptoms. Liver failure, nerve damage and death have occurred in rare situations where large amounts of contaminated water were directly ingested.</div></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249321"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249322">State officials urge those recreating in blue-green algae impacted waters to follow the recommendations below:</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249323">Take care that pets and livestock do not drink the water, swim through algae, scums or mats, or lick their fur after going in the water. Rinse pets in clean water to remove algae from fur.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249324">Avoid wading or swimming in water containing algae blooms or scums or mats.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249325">Do not drink, cook or wash dishes with untreated surface water from these areas under any circumstances; common water purification techniques (e.g., camping filters, tablets and boiling) do not remove toxins.</div></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249326"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249327">People should not eat mussels or other bivalves collected from these areas. Limit or avoid eating fish; if fish are consumed, remove guts and liver, and rinse filets in clean drinking water.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249328">Get medical treatment immediately if you think that you, your pet, or livestock might have been poisoned by blue-green algae toxins. Be sure to alert the medical professional to the possible contact with blue-green algae.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249329">Water users are encouraged to check most recent sampling results on the Klamath Blue-Green Algae Tracker (see link below). Even when blue-green algae blooms are not present, still carefully watch young children and warn them not to swallow the water.</div></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249330"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249331">For more information, please visit:</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249332">Klamath Blue-Green Algae Tracker:</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249333"><a href="http://www.kbmp.net/maps-data/blue-green-algae-tracker" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249334">http://www.kbmp.net/maps-data/blue-green-algae-tracker </a></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249335">My Water Quality – Are harmful algal blooms affecting our waters?</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249336"><a href="http://www.mywaterquality.ca.gov/habs/index.html" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249337">http://www.mywaterquality.ca.gov/habs/index.html</a></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249338">California Department of Public Health:</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249339"><a href="https://archive.cdph.ca.gov/HealthInfo/environhealth/water/Pages/Bluegreenalgae.aspx" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249340">https://archive.cdph.ca.gov/HealthInfo/environhealth/water/Pages/Bluegreenalgae.aspx</a></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249341">CA Cyanobacteria and Harmful Algal Bloom (CCHAB) Network:</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249342"><a href="http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/bluegreen_algae/" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249343">http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/bluegreen_algae/</a></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249344">CA Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment:</div></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249345"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249346"><a href="http://oehha.ca.gov/ecotox/microcystins.html" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249347">http://oehha.ca.gov/ecotox/microcystins.html</a></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249348">US Environmental Protection Agency:</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249349"><a href="https://www.epa.gov/nutrient-policy-data/cyanohabs" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249350">https://www.epa.gov/nutrient-policy-data/cyanohabs</a></div></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249351"></div></div><div style="border-top-width: 1px; border-top-style: solid; border-top-color: rgb(191, 191, 191); clear: both;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249352"><div style="font-family: -webkit-standard;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249353"><form id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249354"><input type="BUTTON" value="Go Back" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; -webkit-appearance: button; cursor: pointer;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249355"> <input type="button" value="Print Page" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; -webkit-appearance: button; cursor: pointer;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249356"></form></div><div style="font-family: -webkit-standard; font-size: 10px;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249357"><b id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249358">URL: http://www.times-standard.com/general-news/20170713/public-health-warning-issued-after-blue-green-algae-bloom-found-on-klamath-river</b></div><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249359"><b id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249360"><br id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249361"></b></div></div><div class="signature" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249170"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1499899035368_249173"><br></div></div></div></body></html>