14 MAY 2007

Lakes Health Warnings Lifted

The health warnings in place for Lakes Rotoehu and Okaro since earlier this year have been lifted. Medical Officer of Health, Dr Phil Shoemack, says that results of regular water testing performed by Environment Bay of Plenty confirm that the algal blooms have disappeared.

This follows the usual pattern seen over the past 15 years where blooms begin to be noticed around Christmas in some of the Rotorua lakes and they often continue till the early months of winter. Somewhat unusually this year neither Lake Rotoiti nor Rotorua had a significant bloom of the blue green algae, otherwise known as cyanobacteria.

Dr Shoemack suggests this is likely to reflect the slow start to summer late last year meaning the water temperature in the lakes didn’t get as high as usual.

He adds “it would be great to think it might represent the end to algal blooms in Lake Rotoiti, but unfortunately this is most unlikely. We expect it will take years for the various measures designed to lower nutrient levels in the lakes to have significant impact.”

ENDS

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