Russian River testing comes clean for toxins

Russian River beaches tested negative for algae-related toxins this week for a second straight week, Sonoma County health officials announced Thursday.

But signs cautioning visitors against accidental ingestion of river water will remain posted at 10 popular beaches, given conditions that remain favorable to harmful blue-green algae growth, according to Kelly Elder, healthy communities manager for the county.

Richard Fadness, an environmental scientist with the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, said last week it’s still too early in the season to declare the threat over. He said he’d been seeing new areas of blue-green algae, even though the overall amount was relatively low compared with last year and toxins were not necessarily present.

This is the third consecutive year in which health and water quality officials have sounded warnings about the potential for harmful algae, or cyanobacteria, in the Russian River. Certain species can produce toxins, including a neurotoxin called Anatoxin-a that was detected at several beaches in late July and early August.

Weekly testing is conducted at the 10 most popular river beaches between Cloverdale and Villa Grande. Samples most recently were collected Monday.

You can reach Staff Writer Mary Callahan at 707-521-5249 or mary.callahan@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @MaryCallahanB.