Elimination of cyanobacteria and microcystins in irrigation water—effects of hydrogen peroxide treatment

AbstractCyanobacterial blooms pose a risk to wild and domestic animals as well as humans due to the toxins they may produce. Humans may be subjected to cyanobacterial toxins through many routes, e.g., by consuming contaminated drinking water, fish, and crop plants or through recreational activities. In earlier studies, cyanobacterial cells have been shown to accumulate on leafy plants after spray irrigation with cyanobacteria-containing water, and microcystin (MC) has been detected in the plant root system after irrigation with MC-containing water. This paper reports a series of experiments where lysis of cyanobacteria in abstracted lake water was induced by the use of hydrogen peroxide and…