Does Buckeye Lake have a low amount of the toxin?
EPA: Samples taken near three beaches along Buckeye Lake over the last three weeks ranged from .4 to 1.3. According to World Health Organization Provisional Guidelines for Microcystin, levels above 20 parts per billion are considered a moderate risk. Right now, Buckeye Lake is testing quite a bit below that level. Weekly testing will continue throughout the recreation season and results will be posted on the Ohio EPA Inland Lakes Monitoring Program web site (http://www.epa.state.oh.us/ dsw/inland_lakes/index.html). If a Water Quality Advisory is issued, it will be posted at the state park beaches and on the above web site. Q: Is the toxin level consistent throughout the lake? EPA: The state has a limited amount of actual sampling data. The samples have been taken at the state park beaches. However, it is reasonable to assume that algal toxins could be present anywhere in a lake where microcystin has been found. This is because the lake is shallow and the water is easily moved by wind.
