Weston Reservoir Under Health Advisory For Harmful Cyanobacteria

The Weston Reservoir is under advisory for the health of your, your family, and your pets.

The Wyoming Department of Health issued a recreational use advisory for Weston Reservoir on Tongue Ranger District in the Bighorn National Forest this Monday. The reason is a harmful cyanobacteria bloom. While cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green bacteria, is present and important to water ecosystems in low levels, these blooms are dense concentrations that have adverse effects to people and animals causing rashes, fatigue, disorientation and stomach issues. It can even result in death in extreme cases.

For this reason,  anyone planning to visit Weston Lake during the bloom is advised to avoid the sections of the reservoir where the bloom is present, and heed the following guidelines:

• Do not drink water from the bloom, even if its been filtered.
• Rinse any fish you plan to eat with clean water and eat only the fillet portion.
• Avoid water spray from the bloom.
• Do not allow your pets or any livestock to drink water near the bloom, eat bloom material or lick their fur if they come in contact with it.
• If people, pets or livestock come into contact with a bloom, rinse off with clean water as soon as possible and contact a doctor or veterinarian.

There is no timeline for when the advisory will be lifted. That will be determined by when the bloom dissipates and the concentrations of cyanotoxins in the water return to safe levels.