"Harmful algae and cyanobacteria, sometimes called blue-green algae, can produce toxins (poisons) that can make people and animals sick and affect the environment. Learn more about them to keep you, your family, and your pets safe.
Algae and cyanobacteria are simple, plant-like organisms that live in water. Algae and cyanobacteria can quickly grow out of control, or “bloom.”
Blooms can occur in fresh water, salt water, and brackish (a mixture of fresh and salt) water around the world. Blooms sometimes look like foam, scum, mats, or paint on the surface of the water. They can even make the water appear different colors, including green, blue, red, or brown.
Blooms are more likely when water is warm, slow-moving, and full of nutrients such as nitrogen or phosphorous. Nutrients get into water when fertilizer, sewage, or runoff from cities and industrial buildings washes into lakes, rivers, or oceans—for example, during rainstorms.
Blooms of algae or cyanobacteria can harm people, animals, or the environment if the blooms
- Make toxins
- Become too dense
- Use up the oxygen in the water
- Release harmful gases
Effects of climate change, such as warmer water, might be making blooms worse.
How People and Animals Get Sick
People and animals (including pets, livestock, and wildlife) can get sick when they have contact with water or food that contains certain types of algae, cyanobacteria, or their toxins.
People and animals can get sick if they
- Swim, wade, or play in or near contaminated water
- Eat contaminated fish, shellfish, or supplements
- Drink contaminated water
Illnesses and symptoms can vary depending on how a person or animal was exposed (came into contact with algae, cyanobacteria, or their toxins), how long they were exposed, which type of toxin was present, and how much toxin was present..."
Algae and Cyanobaceria
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