In connection with the intensive multiplication of blue-green algae on a number of key lakes of Bavaria, local medical services and organizations for environmental protection were forced to introduce official bans on bathing. Such preventive measures are aimed at the minimization of risks to the health of the population, since the accelerated growth of toxic microorganisms directly threatens the safety of vacationers.
On Lake Altmühlsee, located near the city of Gunzenhausen (administrative district of Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen), the ban on bathing now officially extends to two popular beach zones. According to statements of representatives of several local health departments, the reason for the radical measures became a mass increase in the number of cyanobacteria. The situation is aggravated by the hydrological features of the water body, where stagnant water at high air temperatures contributes to the formation of dense colonies of microorganisms.
Lake Ebertshausener See in Odelzhausen
Analogous strict restrictions continue to operate also on Lake Ebertshausener See, which among local residents is also known as Widenzhausener Weiher, located in the commune of Odelzhausen (administrative district of Dachau).
Regularly conducted laboratory checks of the quality of lake water have again confirmed a critically high concentration of blue-green algae in this water body. Sanitary inspectors emphasize that the current restriction to an equal degree extends both to people and to domestic animals, in particular to dogs, which are susceptible to the impact of natural toxins.
In parallel with this, at the water body Ebenhausener Weiher in Baar-Ebenhausen (district of Pfaffenhofen an der Ilm), the responsible municipal services adopted a decision to promptly close an isolated children’s bathing zone.
Representatives of the profile health department of Pfaffenhofen gave detailed explanations regarding this step, noting that children, by virtue of the un-strengthened state of their immunity, are far more vulnerable to biological threats than adults. In addition, the specificity of children’s behavior in the water is connected with frequent accidental swallowing of liquid during swimming and diving. In relation to the remaining, deeper water area of this water body, specialists have not yet introduced a complete ban, but call upon visitors to display increased circumspection.
Blue-Green Algae Cause Nausea, Diarrhea, and Skin Rashes
Biologists note that the stormy distribution and the so-called “blooming” of blue-green algae occurs predominantly at stably high air temperatures and during periods of calm. The dangerous toxins produced by cyanobacteria are capable of provoking in a person acute nausea, diarrhea, severe headaches, or pronounced allergic rashes on the skin covering.
The situation presents a special danger for the organism in those cases when vacationers accidentally swallow contaminated water or when toxic compounds contact with the mucous membranes of the eyes and nasopharynx.
In connection with this, Bavarian medical services urgently recommend to tourists and local residents to turn close attention to official warning signs, flags, and information plaques installed on the coast.
Upon a visually noticeable change in the color of the water, the appearance of greenish foam, or a decrease in transparency, citizens need to completely abandon water procedures for the sake of preserving their own health and life.
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