What’s that orange stuff? Algae bloom flourishes at Stanley Park’s Lost Lagoon

If you’re visiting Stanley Park this summer, you may notice that Lost Lagoon looks much swampier than usual.

If you’ve been to Stanley Park this summer, you may be wondering what the strange-looking orange stuff is on the edges of Lost Lagoon.

It’s a type of algae that began blooming in early May and continues to flourish, with the organic material stretching metres from the shore into the man-made lake in some areas.

“We’re not testing it, doubt that it’s toxic algae, but they do happen in various lakes,” said Chad Townsend, the Vancouver Park Board’s environmental planner, adding they want parkgoers and their dogs to stay out of the water.

He said they’re monitoring the algae but that they can’t do much except let it run its natural life cycle: bloom, diminish, then sink to the bottom of the lagoon.

“Due to the decisions of the past, we have a major project with Lost Lagoon. It’s human nature, I think, to look for easy solutions and think, ‘This one change would, clean up Lost Lagoon.’ But it is a major project,” said Townsend.

The lagoon used to be a tidal ecosystem connected to Coal Harbour, but a century ago it was closed off for pleasure boating when the causeway was built and the water has no natural circulation. The pond is iconic in the park, but the water has been brackish for years and park board staff expect to present various options for the lagoon’s future in the fall.

Townsend says the board will work with the port authority and First Nations to determine what the future of the lagoon will look like. In pre-colonial times it was a shellfish harvesting site and has cultural significance for local Indigenous communities.