The State Water Resources Control Board has recommended a danger advisory, its highest warning for toxic algae, at Lake Pillsbury after sampling ahead of the Labor Day weekend found toxin levels above the state’s danger threshold, Lake County Health Services said in a notice. The reservoir sits behind PG&E’s Scott Dam on the upper Eel River and is the largest lake in the Mendocino National Forest. It has 31 miles of shoreline, according to the U.S. Forest Service. The county said State Water Board staff collected a water sample at Lake Pillsbury Resort on Aug. 24 as part of a pre-holiday assessment and found high concentrations of cyanobacteria, the microscopic bacteria also called blue-green algae, and 23.84 micrograms per liter of microcystins and nodularins, the toxins the bacteria produce.

Other algae bloom news:

• The Salinas Californian (Calif.): Central Coast sea lions hit hard by Monterey Bay toxic algae bloom
• Lassen County News (Susanville, Calif.): Harmful algal bloom advisories issued for sections of Bridgeport Reservoir