The Finger Lakes Water Hub

Transcription

1 1 The Finger Lakes Water Hub Aimee Clinkhammer May 6, 2017 Cayuga Lake Watershed Network Meeting

2 2 Presentation Outline History and Establishment Staff Goals and Priorities Ongoing Activities Approach

3 3 Why is the Hub Needed? The Finger Lakes Important natural resources for NYS Drinking water sources Recreation and tourism Fishing Property values Critical resources to protect and rehabilitate cayugalake.org

4 4 History What led to the establishment of the Hub? Historic and ongoing water quality issues in the Finger Lakes Erosion Nutrient and sediment enrichment Dissolved oxygen issues Invasive species Recent/emerging issues TMDL/9E watershed plans Harmful algal blooms (HABs) Algal toxins in Auburn s water supply in 2016

5 5 Establishment Announced by Gov. Andrew Cuomo in October 2016 Hub consists of three technical staff and a watershed coordinator Works in DEC Regions 7 & 8 Part of DEC Great Lakes Program Working on all 11 Finger Lakes First staff member hired in January 3, 2017 Fully staffed May 4, 2017

6 6 Staff Staff Member Position Experience Scott Cook Aimee Clinkhammer Lewis McCaffrey, PhD Tony Prestigiacomo Research Scientist 3, Hub Supervisor Watershed Coordinator Senior Scientist Research Scientist II over 30 years of experience at DEC, thorough knowledge of key NYS water quality issues/programs coordination of stakeholder groups, project management geology, with 25 years of experience in hydrogeology, water chemistry and health monitoring and assessment of lakes, reservoirs, and streams

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8 8 Goals Overarching goal: To safeguard the water quality of the Finger Lakes and their watersheds

9 9 Priorities Collaborate with local stakeholders Develop a strategic work plan Compile existing data sets Fill data gaps Improve applicability, quality & usability of data Understand watershed issues facing all 11 Finger Lakes Use research findings, available expertise from stakeholders to find funding for well-informed, targeted improvement projects Create a plan for each of the lakes Honeoye Lake

10 10 Priorities Finger Lakes Action Agenda Individual lakes and watershed-wide Prioritize projects for funding

11 11 Watershed planning 303d list of impaired waterbodies (can also be used for protection) Plans document: Sources and inputs from pollutant Allowable pollutant level to meet water quality standard Actions that will improve water quality Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) 9 Key Element Plan

12 12 Ongoing Work Management Plans Cayuga Lake TMDL Owasco Lake 9E Plan Conesus Lake TMDL Honeoye Lake TMDL

13 13 Other Ongoing Activities Data coordination and validation Research gaps Evaluate the use of emerging technology (drones) Meeting with stakeholders HABs monitoring and understanding Owasco Lake

14 14 Citizens Statewide Lake Assessment Program (CSLAP) State volunteer lake monitoring program Run jointly with NYS Federation of Lake Associations in collaboration with UFI and SUNY ESF Initiated 1985 with 25 lakes and 150 volunteers no lake size limits, public or private lakes included

15 15 CSLAP Overview All lakes sampled 8x per year- biweekly from May/June through September/October Surface samples analyzed for nutrients, algae, color, ph, conductivity, calcium Open water and shoreline HABs samples Hypolimnetic samples analyzed for nutrients, iron, manganese, arsenic Field data includes water clarity measurements, standardized lake perception Most lakes sampled single site in deepest part of lake-multiple sites established at larger lakes Limited plant surveys conducted at some lakes

16 16 CSLAP Outputs CSLAP reports issued annually for each lake (on DEC and FOLA websites) Audience = lake associations, lakefront residents, municipalities, agencies, academic researchers Assessment summaries used for state PWL /305b assessments and for 303d recommendations Primary data for NYS HABs notification program Data used for TMDLs and 9E Plans

17 17 CSLAP on the Finger Lakes Funded through EBP Ocean and Great Lakes Two sites/lake Coordination with ongoing sampling and monitoring CSLAP Training Future projects?

18 18 Approach Coordinate DEC programs and offices Leverage existing research Collaborate with stakeholder groups Seek expertise from the array of experts in the region Facilitate multi-disciplinary analysis of data and modeling Current water quality status, trends, forecasting Taughannock Falls SP

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20 20 DEC Central Office DEC Region 7 DEC Region 8 Research Institutions Finger Lakes Water Hub State/Federal Agencies Citizen Groups Municipalities Lake Associations Watershed Councils

21 21 Thank You Aimee Clinkhammer Watershed Coordinator Finger Lakes Water Hub NYSDEC, Bureau of Water Assessment and Management Connect with us: Facebook: Twitter: twitter.com/nysdec Flickr: