No patterns, lots of blooms and more to learn.

That’s what 2016’s blue-green algae season had to offer, says Beverley Anderson-Abbs, an environmental scientist for the State Water Resources Control Board.

“There have been so many things that have come up unexpectedly that this year has really raised more questions than answers,” Anderson-Abbs said in late December.

For the first time, the state tracked outbreaks of cyanobacteria, commonly known as blue-green algae, confirming reports of blooms in approximately 40 different lakes, rivers, streams and other water bodies across the state, including Lake Elsinore, Pyramid and Silverwood lakes and lakes at the El Dorado East Regional Park in Long Beach.

Anderson-Abbs said it appeared there were more blooms in 2016 than in previous years but because the state wasn’t regularly monitoring the issue she can’t be certain.

“Some of that is just going by what we’ve been able to glean talking to people about what they’ve seen previously,” she said.

Not all of the blooms produced the dangerous toxins that are known to sicken people and animals and the levels of toxins in the water bodies that saw them varied across the state.

In Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, the levels of toxins were high enough to be deemed unsafe and lead to beach closures, but in other water bodies farther north massive blooms, like the one in Lake Oroville, didn’t produce toxins.

“It’s been sort of a weird mix,” she said.

Little is still known about what conditions cause cyanobacteria, which grows in lakes and rivers all over the world, to produce toxins, but warmer temperatures, increased nutrients and low water flows favor cyanobacteria growth. Anderson-Abbs said it’s unclear why the blooms are showing up in one lake versus another, why new species of bacteria are appearing in some places and how much of a role nutrients, like phosphorous, play in the growth of a bloom.

“If we can decrease some of these nutrients, what will the effect be?” she said.

Experts believe California’s ongoing drought has contributed to an increase in blooms and that, even if 2017 brings more rain, blue-green algae is going to continue to pose an issue for recreational and drinking water managers.

“Pretty much everybody in the state has accepted the fact that these aren’t going to go away and they’re likely going to continue getting worse year by year,” Anderson-Abbs said.

Because of that reality, Wayne Carmichael, a professor emeritus at Ohio’s Wright State University who has studied cyanotoxins for several decades, said agencies should start developing plans to mitigate the problem.

“That’s always the more difficult political situation is to get everybody to agree what it is you’re going to do because it all comes down to agricultural practices and industrial practices and domestic water supply practices,” Carmichael said.

Anderson-Abbs said the water board has requested some funding to come up with a research strategy next year as officials continue to analyze data collected from 2016 blooms and compare them to historical trends.

In the new year, the state is expected to start using satellite images from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to notify water body managers when cyanobacteria pigments are detected so they can take samples to check for toxins.

Anderson-Abbs said the water board is also working with the Department of Public Health and Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment to begin tracking adverse health events connected to the blooms.