What’s that yellow goo in the water along the shores of Toronto Islands?
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Posted June 20, 2023 6:48 pm.
Last Updated June 20, 2023 7:00 pm.
If you happened to be at the Toronto Islands this past weekend, you might have seen a bright yellow-green substance floating on the surface of the water and along the shorelines.
Visitors to the islands expressed concerns about whether the substance was toxic given the seemingly suspicious colouring, but authorities say there’s no cause for alarm.
The Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) says the yellow film floating on the water is likely pollen that mixed in with the water.
TRCA staff say this happens when large amounts of pollen is released by trees and plants and carried by the wind. When it lands on the surface of the lake, the waves push the pollen to the shore, concentrating it and making it very noticeable along the water’s edge.
RELATED: Ontario water and air quality a concern, environment report finds
The water remains safe and there is no danger to people who chose to swim in it. However, they caution that “it is not recommended for people who have known pollen allergies to swim in waters containing a high level of pollen.”
Water quality is also not substantially affected by pollen and it does not require any monitoring, intervention or warnings.
Toronto Public Health (TPH) monitors E.coli levels as the bacteria, when present in high levels, can cause severe illness.
“If E.coli levels exceed the City of Toronto safety standard of 100 E.coli / 100 ml of water, then TPH will issue a beach advisory indicating the water quality at the beach is not conducive to swimming due of high levels of bacteria,” a spokesperson told CityNews.
“The Toronto standard for posting a beach advisory exceeds the federal government standard of 200 E.coli / 100 ml of water which has been adopted by the Province of Ontario.”
Click here for daily beach water quality results.
![pollen in water at Ward's Island A film of pollen is seen in waters at Ward's Island](https://toronto.citynews.ca/wp-content/blogs.dir/sites/10/2023/06/20/IMG_2104-1024x576.jpg)
A film of pollen is seen in the waters at Ward’s Island on June 18, 2023. CITYNEWS/Dilshad Burman