As of May 15, 2023, the City of Austin announced the presence of blue-green algae at every monitoring site on Lady Bird Lake and Lake Austin, except Walsh Boat Landing.
Harmful algae has been recorded on Lady Bird Lake since 2019, which has sickened and killed several dogs. Since then, there has been harmful algae on Lady Bird Lake every year. In addition, they have detected blue-green algae on Lake Austin.
Exposure can happen through ingesting or touching the algae. Because of the history of blue-green algae and its toxicity, people and pets are strongly urged to avoid contact with it.
The City of Austin recommends the following tips when visiting natural bodies of water:
People and Pets
• Do not drink water directly from natural bodies of water.
• Avoid contact with algae.
• Rinse skin or animal fur after contact with water.
• Do not allow dogs to lick their fur prior to rinsing.
Do not enter natural bodies of water if
• Water is warm or stagnant, or you see scum, film, or algae.
• There has been rain in the past three days.
• There are a lot of dogs present.
For more information, visit https://www.austintexas.gov/page/algae.