Avoid Water Contact, Oxford Says

OXFORD, CT — Jackson Cove is closed to swimming and fishing until further notice, Oxford Parks & Recreation announced Friday on the recommendation of the Housatonic Valley Health District.

The department’s notice did not identify the specific water-quality concern or provide a reopening date. But a Lake Zoar Authority report released Friday showed a July 28 sample from Jackson Cove contained more than 21 parts per billion of microcystin, a toxin associated with cyanobacteria, commonly called blue-green algae.

The report cites 8 parts per billion as the recreational-water threshold advised by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Connecticut Department of Public Health. Jackson Cove’s result was therefore at least 2½ times that level.

Testing had shown no microcystin at Jackson Cove on July 22, according to the authority’s prior weekly report. The Lake Zoar Authority says Western Connecticut State University monitors cyanobacteria at sites around the lake during the summer, while local health officials and towns conduct public-beach testing.

The health district says public beaches can reopen after subsequent testing meets the criteria it sets for safe bathing water. The advisory announced Friday applies specifically to swimming and fishing at Jackson Cove.

For more Northern Connecticut news, follow Patch editor Jay Kenney.