Saskatchewan lakes a hot spot for toxic algae

Peter Leavitt, a professor of biology with the University of Regina, said the Prairies are a breeding ground for toxic algae. He said 40 per cent of all Saskatchewan lakes have it.

While Saskatchewan is home to many beautiful lakes and rivers, sometimes the water isn’t as safe as we might think.

Peter Leavitt, a professor of biology with the University of Regina, said the Prairies are a breeding ground for toxic algae. He said 40 per cent of all Saskatchewan lakes have it and it can be harmful to our health.

“Dogs can be poisoned,” Leavitt said. “They’ll jump in the green water and go, ‘Oh, this is fun.’ And they’ll come out, shake the water off, and then they’re covered in green, like, slime, and they’ll just lick it off.”

Leavitt said with humans, it affects largely our gut due to the bacteria and flora, which makes us feel very sick.

He said the algae can come from several factors.

“Toxic algae is definitely higher in sort of southwestern Manitoba, southern Saskatchewan and southeastern Alberta. It’s sort of the prairie ecozone and it’s because you’ve got deep, rich soils. You’ve got lots of nutrients naturally there and you have lots of agricultural activity. It’s also pretty hot.

“Fertilizer from farms when there’s a lot of drainage or a lot of runoff or there’s urban pollution, the cyanobacteria or the blue-green algae does really well.”

Sarah Mantyka with the City of Saskatoon’s water and waste operations said blue-green algae often looks like bright green paint floating on the water and can sometimes look like grass blades.