Floating dam to protect swans in Bruges from blue-green algae
The city of Bruges has taken extra measures to protect the swans on the canals from cyanobacteria, better known as blue-green algae. A floating dam ensures that the animals don’t go to unsafe areas.
Blue-green algae are not only dangerous for people swimming in open water, but can also be harmful to swans. In Bruges, the levels remain within acceptable limits in many places for the time being. The highest levels are currently measured at the Coupure, Groenerei and Sint-Annarei canals. The swans at the Wijngaard square sometimes swim in that direction and have therefore been kept ashore at the Bruges beguinage for the past two weeks.
The city is currently investigating how it can improve water quality, as part of the Blue4green project, but the sunny weather of the past few days continues to promote the growth of blue-green algae. “As there is no obvious short-term solution to blue-green algae, we have looked at how we can still allow the swans to swim safely,” said Franky Demon, Bruges’ public domain alderman.
It was decided to mark out a safe swimming area at the Wijngaard square. The fire brigade installed a floating dam to prevent the approximately seventy swans from heading towards the Groenerei and Coupure canals.
Demon also asks that people refrain from feeding the animals. “The swans are given suitable food every day in the form of floating pellets or grains. Bread contains salt and other substances that are harmful to their stomach and intestines. Moreover, bread can absorb blue-green algae, causing the animals to ingest dangerously high concentrations.”
#FlandersNewsService | Illustration © PHOTO IMAGEBROKER
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