Dunes City residents left without water.

Byline: Winston Ross The Register-Guard

CORRECTION (Ran Sept 20, 2007): Boy Scout leaders trucked in 3,000 gallons of water for the scouts' use at their lakefront camp near Siltcoos Lake while hundreds of Dunes City residents turned to bottled water and other sources. A story on Wednesday included incorrect information.

DUNES CITY - Hundreds of Dunes City residents are drinking, bathing and washing their dishes with bottled water - using 3,000 gallons trucked in by Boy Scout leaders - after people were warned to avoid contact with water from Siltcoos Lake.

The 3,164-acre lake - the largest on the Oregon Coast and the sole source of drinking water for as much as a quarter of the town's 1,200 residents - has several globs of poisonous blue-green algae in it, Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue Chief John Buchanan said.

After test results showed the water to be toxic, Buchanan and Mayor Sheldon Meyer decided on the alert late Monday night.

On Tuesday, state officials added a public health advisory after tests showed that the density of the algae - officially called Anabaena planctonica - is 3 million cells per millileter, said Ken Kauffman, an environmental health specialist with the state Department of Human Services.

"It's a big one," Kauffman said.

Advisories are issued any time blue-green algae levels exceed 100,000 cells per millileter. The algae is caused by a variety of natural factors, he said. It's difficult to pin down the culprit in this case.

Anabaena planctonica can produce both neuro- and liver toxins, Kauffman said, leading to blurred vision, a loss of balance, abdominal pain and loss of liver function. Death can occur in extreme cases.

Buchanan spent part of Tuesday hunting for an alternate source of potable water for the people who live on, or draw water from, Siltcoos. The lake is a source of water for people in Lane and Douglas counties.

Buchanan was unsuccessful in his search and, at day's end, said the residents were going to have to make do with bottles. He also said state transportation officials had refused his request for electronic reader boards to warn people to avoid the lake, calling it a "liability."

"It's a natural disaster, to have that many homes without water," said Buchanan, who hadn't seen such a case in his 11 years on the job.

Buchanan said the lake is "self-cleansing," but that the residents could be without their water source for the next 10 days to two weeks. Kauffman said it's a matter of "waiting the bloom out," which could take anywhere from a week to several months.

That leaves people such as Anne Kelly, one of the first to encounter the algae, making several trips to the grocery store for bottled water. She plans to use it for bathing, drinking, dishwashing and even flushing the toilet, she said.

"I have enough storage for about seven gallons in the house, so I'll probably go back into Florence tomorrow. Luckily, it's just me and the cat," Kelly said. "But my concern is: how long is this going to last? How toxic is it. And, three, what accommodations are being made for getting us usable water?"

Buchanan said the algae itself looked as if it might be a chemical spill at first, something dumped from a truck, possibly. But hazardous materials workers and an independent lab in Spokane were able to determine that it was the result of an algal bloom.

"It was very weird looking stuff," Buchanan said. "A turquoise color, almost like somebody poured paint on the water."

The toxins are spreading around the lake, Buchanan said, not confined to one spot, so state health officials are working to determine how widespread the effect is.

Siltcoos resident and Dunes City Councilor John Scott said he's drinking bottled water, but is awaiting further news from officials to determine whether he'll shower. In the meantime, Scott said he has seen little evidence that blue-green algae has led to many human fatalities.

He said he recognizes the risks to drawing water from a lake. "We're drinking out of wild lakes," Scott said. "There's beaver and ducks, kids with diapers. Who knows what else?"

Cathy Pitts, another lakefront property owner, is buying bottled water and filling up her recreational vehicle in Florence for showering.

"But our neighbors next door have two little kids, and they don't know if it's safe to give them a shower. We need more information about what's safe and what's not. We're not hearing from the health department," Pitts said. "I called the Westlake postmaster, and told him to spread the word. Everybody's scared, but nobody knows anything."

The cure for this algae, Scott said, is clouds, wind and rain. Clouds help drive down temperatures - algae thrives in warm water - the rain dilutes it and the wind aerates it.

"This is one of our worst fears," said Peter Howison, a Dunes City councilor who voted for a moratorium on new subdivision applications last year, in part because of his concerns about the impact of rampant development in town on the lake's water quality.

Because residents use septic tanks for sewage treatment and development itself can lead to increased runoff, phosphorous can build up and lead to polluted water, Howison said.

"I just hope this is a short-lived thing," he said.

The subject of water quality and development has gotten heated in Dunes City in recent years. Howison and three other candidates elected last fall are facing a recall, in part because of their support of the growth moratorium but also for their efforts to pass more restrictive ordinances concerning development.