Algae Levels Low, But Still No Swimming At Crystal Lake In Newton

NEWTON, MA — It's summer and it's hot. So when the city announced that people and pets are to stay out of Crystal Lake for the foreseeable future, it may have wilted some plans.

Boating, fishing and swimming - both from the bathhouse and beyond - was closed Wednesday because of heightened levels of algae in the water. Officials recommend that pets not even have contact with the water or any algae that is on the shore.

Thursday the city had an update with good news and bad news:

The good news: City officials announced that water samples collected on Tuesday and tested by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health show algae in the water at the beach in the swimming area are not at dangerous levels.

The bad news: Crystal Lake is still closed to swimming until a second water sample is tested and returns within guideline levels established by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

Want to know more details? Laboratory analysis of the water sample collected on August 6 showed a cyanobacteria level of 39,000 cells/ml, below the MDPH guideline level of 70,000 cells/ml.

The microcystin toxin level was <1 ppb, which is below the recommended level of 14 ppb.

So why the fuss?

Officials spotted an algae bloom at the lake on August 5. Because the green-blue algae known as cyanobacteria can be toxic, Massachusetts Department of Public Health recommended more testing and closing the lake until the city was certain levels were safe. The next water sample will be collected by MDPH on or around Tuesday, August 13.

Results are expected by Friday, August 16. If the second water sample is also below guidance limits, city officials said they expect to reopen the lake to swimming. But that's not a lot of time to swim: The last day the boathouse is normally scheduled to be open is Aug. 18.

If the second water sample exceeds the guidance limits, the lake will remain closed to swimming for the remainder of the season.

Regardless, the city said you can still head to Crystal Lake Park and Bath House to picnic, play and enjoy the lake from the shore. Not quite swimming, but better than nothing.

Read more: Crystal Lake Is Closed: No Swimming, No Pets In The Water

Patch reporter Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna).