Lake Metroparks has quickly closed the pond at Canine Meadow Dog Park “due to high bacteria levels,” it introduced in a Sept. 5 Facebook submit.
The resolution got here after employees noticed what “looked like algae,” Park Services Director Tom Adair stated. Per park district coverage, an organization will check the water for the presence of dangerous algae.
According to the Facebook submit, folks can nonetheless go to Canine Meadow’s massive and small canine areas. The park is positioned at 9010 Euclid-Chardon Road in Kirtland, east of the Lake Metroparks Farmpark.
Adair stated that the park district was nonetheless ready on check outcomes as of the morning of Sept. 6. It will reopen the pond if checks present that the water is secure, whereas it’ll preserve the pond closed and conduct further checks if the water is discovered to comprise “a potentially harmful type of algae.”
“It’s possible that it’s safe right now, but we don’t like to risk it,” he stated.
“We generally get it back up and running within a week or so,” Adair added. “The one thing that can exacerbate that would be if we got a period of heavy rains that push sediments and substances into the pond. That can kind of mess up those readings or cause more bacteria, just depending on the situation.”
“So, we’re hoping for some stable weather over the next couple of days,” he stated previous to storms that swept via the realm on the afternoon of Sept. 6.
In the meantime, Adair added that folks can go to the canine swim space on the east finish of the Lake Erie Bluffs seaside, 2901 Clark Road in Perry Township. A path map is accessible on the park’s web page at lakemetroparks.com.
He stated last October that the Canine Meadow pond normally closes a couple of instances a 12 months, with most closures being on account of excessive ranges of fecal coliform micro organism. The closures occur most frequently in July, August and September and are available after intervals of heat temperatures and excessive humidity.
These ranges typically return beneath the protection threshold in a couple of days because the climate adjustments, with out the necessity for outdoor intervention.
Adair added that the presence of dangerous algae is much less frequent within the pond.
The website for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources states that “although many species of algae do not produce toxins, some species of blue-green algae can cause harmful algal blooms.” It provides that blue-green algae are a type of micro organism often called cyanobacteria.
