As a toxic band of algae blooms along the West Coast, local fishery-dependent economies have taken a large financial hit and residents are being asked to exercise caution.

that scientists still don’t know much about the algae, but what they’ve seen so far has them concerned. The bloom shows no signs of subsiding and after collecting samples from along the West Coast this summer, they have , which produces domoic acid, a toxin that can harm or even kill seabirds, people and mammals.

Stretching from the Central California Coast to Washington and possibly even Alaska, the harmful algae bloom (HAB) contains some of the highest concentration levels of domoic acid ever observed in Monterey Bay and off the Central Oregon coast,.

Because of the possibility of this year, water temperatures in the Pacific Ocean could be unusually high throughout the next year, meaning the algae could last through 2016, Raphael Kudela, professor of ocean ecology at the University of California Santa Cruz .

According to Kudela, scientists previously believed domoic acid was water soluble and could be flushed out of the bodies of the animals that ingested it. However, researchers have observed build up of domoic acid in the tissues of fish, causing them to doubt this idea and believe that the toxin is than they previously thought.

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If ocean waters remain warm in the future, the effects could be severe and impact the whole ocean food web, Coastal Shellfish Lead Biologist Dan Ayres .

In a (NOAA), they predicted that a year-long shutdown of Washington's major tourist attraction of recreational razor clam digging could lead to as much as $22 million lost in revenue. Additionally, reduced lodging, transportation and dining sales for the city could translate into of as much as $13.3 million.

that as of May, Washington has lost an estimated $9.2 million because of the razor clam fishery closure. The commercial crab fishery, , has taken a hit also.

In California, officials have and clams and commercially or recreationally caught anchovies, sardines and crabs from Monterey and Santa Cruz counties. Oregon officials have stopped all shellfish harvesting from the Columbia River to Tillamook Head and closed the state's entire coastline to razor clamming, .

In Kitsap, Washington, district health officials are urging residents to stay out of the Kitsap Lake and nearby creeks because of the algae bloom, . The area is seeing a bloom known as , which can make people sick and kill animals.

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The lake has become clouded with the algae blooms, which have the appearance of a bright green paint in the water, . In addition to steering clear of the water, health officials have advised people to and to keep their pets and other animals from being exposed to it. Boats exposed to the lake should be .

State health departments in California, Oregon and Washington have all issued warnings against catching or eating shellfish or small plankton-eating fish like anchovies and sardines from areas off the coast, . Affected fisheries have been closed off by state fish and wildlife management agencies, which has already .

, contact with contaminated water can cause skin irritation or rash and swallowing the water can result in diarrhea, cramps, vomiting and dizziness.

For health precautions, they recommend such as swimming, wading, water skiing, etc. Never cook with the affected water and if you decide to eat fish from affected water, from the fish before cooking.

Water may be infested with a harmful algae bloom if it has a that is colored pea-green, blue-green or brownish-red.

MORE ON WEATHER.COM: China Algae Invasion

Qingdao, China

This picture taken on July 22, 2015 shows a youth walking through algae at a beach in Qingdao, in eastern China's Shandong province. The algal phenomenon, an annual occurrence in Qingdao, is usually caused by an abundance of nutrients in the water, especially phosphorus, although the triggers for the enormous blooms which began to appear in the Yellow Sea in 2007 remain uncertain. (STR/AFP/Getty Images)