An Integrated and High-Speed Approach to Monitoring Cyanobacteria in Lakes, Reservoirs and Finished Drinking Water

The way in which utilities and agencies monitor and control harmful algal blooms is changing. New technology and multifaceted approaches are becoming a routine part of HAB monitoring programs Traditional microscopy methods are slow and not always ideal when trying to perform rapid sample analysis for real time lake or reservoir treatment decisions. The FlowCam® Cyano is a high throughput, semi-automated alternative to manual microscopy and has been successfully implemented into many HAB monitoring programs by utilities across the United States and worldwide. It provides imaging technology that is beneficial to Water Managers, Health Officials and Researchers who can use it as part of a comprehensive monitoring program to study community composition and make rapid real time decisions on reservoir treatment options. Here we will present a brief introduction to the FlowCam Cyano technology, detailing how this rapid identification and enumeration method can help utilities see and react to algal blooms in their nascent stages. Highlighting the City of Wichita in Texas, we will show how the FlowCam is integrated into this city’s monitoring strategy in conjunction with other rapid techniques such as qPCR and how this approach informs their treatment decisions.