Blue Green Algae has been confirmed present in some waters in Alexandra Park, Hastings Hastings Borough Council (HBC) announced this afternoon

The Environment Agency confirmed earlier this week that the water at Shornden Reservoir near Clarence Road has high levels of Blue Green Algae.

The algae can produce a scum that is toxic to animals and can harm people. HBC is warning people to stay out of the water and to keep their pets out of the water, they have put up signs around the affected areas to warn the public.

HBC says it will continue to monitor the waterways in the area. The algae can spread to other waters in the Park, so the council is asking people to be vigilant. The algae is bright green and looks like a fine scum floating on the surface (see photo above).

Fortunately this algae is a natural phenomenon and will go away in time when temperatures drop significantly – this is unlikely to happen until the winter.

Please forward any new sightings of suspected blue green algae to the Environment Agency on their incident hotline (24hrs service) 0800 80 70 60.