Health Advisory Issued for Cascade Reservoir Due to Harmful Algal Bloom

*Update: The advisory has been lifted as of December 2020.

VALLEY COUNTY, ID — Health officials have issued an advisory for Cascade Reservoir due to a harmful algal bloom.

Central District Health and Idaho Department of Environmental Quality have been monitoring the reservoir. The department says a recent water sample shows that concentrations of toxin-producing cyanobacteria are present and that can be harmful to humans and animals. People with liver or kidney damage are at an increased risk of illness.

Health officials recommend the following precautions when a health advisory is placed on a body of water.

1. Avoid swimming, wading, or other activities. Take extra precautions to ensure children, pets, and livestock are not exposed to the water.
2. Do not drink or cook with water containing a bloom. Boiling and filtering the water can increase the risk.
3. Do not drink or cook with water containing a bloom. Boiling and filtering the water can increase the risk.
4. Wash your hands thoroughly after handling fish caught in water experiencing a bloom. Cyanotoxins can accumulate in fish and the risk to people is being researched. Any fish caught should be cleaned and washed thoroughly in uncontaminated water and any internal organs disposed of before consumption. If people choose to eat fish from this area, filet the fish and remove all of the fat, skin, and organs before cooking.
5. Clean with potable water as soon as possible if water contacts skin or pet fur.

Symptoms of cyanotoxin exposure include rashes, hives, diarrhea, vomiting, coughing, wheezing, and more.

For more information on Cyanobacteria and a map of recreational water quality health advisories in Idaho, click HERE.

You can report a bloom on a recreational water body in Idaho HERE.