06/07/2025
It's shaping up to be a warm weekend, but if you're thinking of going for a swim with your dog, avoid Beaver & Elk lakes. A toxic algae bloom is in full swing in both lakes and ingestion of water could pose serious health risks to your dog. Please avoid these lakes until the alert is lifted by CRD. If you are concerned that your dog may have ingested water from an algae bloom area, contact your veterinarian right away.
🚫No swimming at Elk/Beaver lakes due to algae bloom: Aerator fails to stop blue-green algae bloom harmful to people and toxic for dogs🚫
Swimmers hoping to take a dip Elk and Beaver lakes will have to keep waiting for a persistent blue-green algae bloom to dissipate, which has remained notoriously problematic despite expensive efforts to aerate the waters.
In 2022 a $1.4 million aerator was installed to supply oxygen to the water in the hopes of resolving algae blooms that can be harmful to people and toxic to dogs.
Note: an earlier post identified the algae bloom and aerator project at Thetis Lake rather than at Elk/Beaver lakes, in error. More from the CRD on the algae bloom:
The Capital Regional District (CRD), in consultation with Island Health, advises that blue-green algae advisories remain in place for Elk Lake and Beaver Lake located in Elk/Beaver Lake Regional Park (opens in new window).
Blue-green algae can produce cyanotoxins. Visitors are advised to avoid contact with blue green algae and to keep animals on a leash to prevent them from drinking or swimming in the lake until the advisory has been lifted.
The algae usually produce a visible blue-green sheen, which appears as surface scum on the water. Not all blooms are easy to see, and toxins can still be present in the water even if you cannot see a bloom. Blooms are unpredictable and may occur at any time.
These algae are known toxin producers. Ingesting water containing these cyanotoxins may cause a range of symptoms, including headaches and abdominal pain in humans, and can lead to lethal liver damage in dogs.