Is Your Water Safe for Swimming?

The New Jersey Center for Water Science and Technology is offering the free testing in an effort to monitor and protect the State’s water resources. They will be conducting the testing in accordance with the EPA’s Method 546. Harmful algal blooms (HABs) can be found in lakes, ponds, rivers, and reservoirs- including those used for recreation or drinking water supplies- throughout New Jersey. HABs are often formed by cyanobacteria, a group of photosynthetic bacteria, also known as blue-green algae. While cyanobacteria are naturally present in most aquatic ecosystems, the extremely higher cyanobacterial cell numbers that occur during HABs can produce dangerous amounts of various toxin, collectively referred to as cyanotoxins. Cyanotoxins pose a threat to human health as well as the health of domestic animals, aquatic plants and animals, and other wildlife.