Signs of the algae growth that was feared by environmentalists following the opening of the Bonnet Carre’ Spillway are beginning to show up on Lake Pontchartrain and that could spell even worse problems as the weather heats up for summer, according to biologists.

Some bright green growth is easy to spot floating near the shores of Lake Pontchartrain, extending for miles east and west of the Causeway in Mandeville and covering the mouth of Bayou St. John on the south shore.

“It will become more abundant as the water warms up,” said UNO biologist Michael Porrier. “The danger is it will smother the grass beds and kill them by shading them.”

Biologists predicted blooms of algae would follow the nearly month-long opening of the spillway that allowed nutrient-rich fresh water from the Mississippi River to flow in and change the salinity and conditions of Lake Pontchartrain.

People who live near the Mandeville lakefront say they already see the effects, which they contend are similar to what happened 11 years ago when the spillway was last opened.

“It totally screwed up the lake,” said 72-year-old Sonny Fisher, who saw the effects last time. “It took the Basin Foundation forever to try to get it straightened out.”

Spillway water released this time has churned up the bottom of the lake, causing sediment to rise to the top, making the lake look browner than normal. Dr. Poirrier says in a couple of weeks, when the weather heats up, would be prime time for an algae bloom.

“Too much algae is a bad thing,” he said. “It results in low, dissolved oxygen, which basically suffocates fish.”

Biologists say water fowl could also be in danger in a major bloom.

The Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation is hoping the effects on the lake are not as bad as 1997 since the Corps only opened about half as many bays as they did back then.