News

Wednesday, September 6th and Thursday, September 7th were active for cyanoHABs on Canandaigua Lake, with over 20 blooms reported between those two days. This week, there were no cyanoHABs reported.
Volunteer lake monitoring activities will be ongoing through October, with some year-round residents reporting well past that. In previous years, we have occasionally seen blooms in October, so maintaining a reporting network will help us track any changes that may occur.

The Canandaigua Lake Watershed Council has been sampling using a fluoroprobe, which is field instrumentation that can log cyanobacteria levels throughout the water column. Results are showing very low background levels of cyanobacteria in the water column. In addition, the weekly results from six end-of-dock sites as part of the CLWA / SUNY ESF algal monitoring project are only showing low levels of cyanobacteria, and so far there have not been detectable levels of toxins. These samples are taken at the same time each week, in bloom or no bloom conditions. This information is helping us better understand the ambient cyanobacteria and toxin levels when an active bloom is not occurring. In years past, we have mainly tracked levels during an active bloom, which are often elevated. An ongoing question from our members has been – what are the levels like before and after a bloom? This new dataset is helping us better understand that.

We are heading into what looks like a beautiful weekend, and we hope to have a chance to enjoy some time by the water. Please continue to use your visual indicators to look for signs of an active bloom situation – surface streaking, green, discolored water, or surface scums. Calm days (no wind) seem to be more favorable for the rapid proliferation of cyanobacteria and resulting blooms. Please email HABs@canandaigualakeassoc.org with any questions you have.

To follow up on the e-blast sent on Wednesday, it was an active week for CyanoHABs on Canandaigua Lake. Between Wednesday (9/6) and Thursday (9/7), trained volunteers reported 22 blooms. There were also several reports that came in from the general public. Watershed Council staff were also out documenting the extent of the blooms.

The areas impacted the most were the northeast shoreline, from Otetiana Point down past LeTourneau. Conditions were perfect for CyanoHAB formation- multiple days of 90-degree sunny weather with almost calm conditions. On Wednesday, there was a very slight subtle wind (1-2 mph) out of the west in the morning that helped to concentrate the cyanobacteria into blooms along the east side. One of our volunteers who is a sailor noticed the slight wind shift out of the east in the afternoon (the boats on moorings changed directions at the Yacht Club) and we started to get cyanobacteria concentrating into blooms on the west side.

The dots on the map pinpoint the volunteer reports, but there were more areas around the lake that also had blooms as reported by the public.

Since this was the first major cyanoHABs outbreak this summer, several samples were collected and sent to the Finger Lakes Institute in Geneva to help us better understand the levels of blue-green algae (measured by CyanoChlorophyll) to confirm bloom status. All samples collected came back above the bloom threshold of 25 micrograms per liter ( μg/L ). Below you will find a table of these results. More information is also available here.

We thank all our volunteers for mobilizing quickly in response to the situation!

With the change in temperature and some rains yesterday afternoon, we have only received a suspicious report this morning at 10:30 am from Crystal Beach showing some light “dots in the water”. Several other areas have reported clear conditions.

As we head into the weekend, please continue to use your visual indicators to look for signs of an active bloom situation – surface streaking, green, discolored water, or surface scums. Hot, calm days are more favorable for the rapid proliferation of cyanobacteria and resulting blooms. Please email HABs@canandaigualakeassoc.org with any questions.

We are getting reports of shoreline cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cyanoHABs) along the shoreline of Canandaigua Lake. The last few days of hot temperatures and very light winds have provided favorable conditions for cyanobacteria to proliferate and accumulate along the shoreline. The extent of the blooms may go along many properties. See the images below, which were taken this afternoon.

Most of the blooms have been reported along the east side of Canandaigua Lake, but we just received a report along the west side at 2:15 PM.

Both volunteers and watershed staff have been out reporting the extent of the conditions and several samples have been collected, which will be sent for analysis at the Finger Lakes Institute in Geneva. However, we know based on previous year’s results that blooms have the potential to produce high toxins, so please exercise caution and avoid areas that have green discolored water, surface streaking, a pea-soup like appearance, or scums. Be especially careful with pets!

Please check out the resource list below for further reading on cyanoHABs.

Please email HABs@canandaigualakeassoc.org with any questions.

September is here, and has decided to kick off with a beautiful weather forecast for the upcoming Labor Day weekend! We know many of you will enjoy time with family and friends by the lake for the Ring of Fire and unofficial “end of summer” celebrations.

Regarding our current water quality conditions, there have been no CyanoHABs confirmed on Canandaigua Lake this week. Clarity is holding well in the 6-meter range, which is about a meter above this time last year. Average surface water temperature went up 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit from last week, but overall still remains cooler than the last several years at this time.

Volunteers and watershed staff continue to assess overall lake conditions. Over the last few weeks, Watershed Manager Kevin Olvany was out with a research assistant performing lake profiles using a bbe fluoroprobe, which can differentiate different types of algal classes throughout the water column – green algae, diatoms, blue green algae (cyanobacteria), among others. Findings from this week’s profiles found mostly diatoms and green algae at deeper depths (down to 75 feet of water). This data corresponds with what CLWA volunteers are finding as part of an ongoing algal study in partnership with SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) at six nearshore sites – diatoms and green algae mixed in with the occasional microcystis cluster. (The image in the gold circle demonstrates volunteers using an ioLight microscope to look at images from water samples collected as part of the ESF project).

Changes in our algal community over time show a natural transition to more cyanobacteria this time of year. However, this only really becomes an issue when the cyanobacteria has just the right environmental conditions to begin to dominate the algal makeup – resulting in harmful algal “blooms”. As we shift into September, we must remember that this is in fact the most prevalent time of year for cyanobacterial blooms on Canandaigua Lake. Hot, calm days are more favorable for rapid proliferation of cyanobacteria and resulting blooms. With this weekend’s forecast, conditions may change quickly.

Please use your visual indicators when recreating in the lake by looking for signs of active blooms such as surface streaking or a green pea soup-like appearance of the water. Please email HABs@canandaigualakeassoc.org with any questions.

We hope you have a wonderful weekend. Please remember to use your LED Flares this weekend for your Ring of Fire celebrations to help keep our lake clean of residual chemical burnoff from traditional incendiary flares! And consider honoring our local watershed history by attending the Seneca Heritage Day with special guest speaker Peter Jemison on Saturday, September 2nd from 2-4 PM at Overackers Corners Schoolhouse (details below).

Lake Foam Reports Requested

This fall, CLWA in partnership with Global Aquatic Research (GAR) will be looking to sample a lake foam event as part of a study to sample for PFAS (Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances). This is a grant-funded project through the Freshwater Future.

HERE’S HOW YOU CAN HELP.
We will be looking for the ideal lake foam to sample – the thin foam that can be found mid-lake (see photo as an example). We need crowd-sourced data to help us find this type of foam event. CLWA hosts a foam reporting link and we ask the community to please submit reports when foam is observed. The images submitted are sent to the research team in real-time, allowing for quick decision-making on the ideal event to sample.

We thank you for your support!

Submit Foam Report

Current Lake Conditions 

Harmful Algal Blooms:  None Confirmed 

Average Secchi Disk Water Clarity:  6.2 meters

Average Surface Water Temperature:  73.1 degrees F

Lake Level (as of 9:15 this morning):  688.99’ above sea level

No CyanoHABs have been confirmed on Canandaigua Lake this week.

One of our shoreline monitoring volunteers reported conditions near the pier in the City of Canandaigua that appeared suspicious; we collected a sample for analysis but do not believe it will prove to be a cyanotoxic bloom.

However, water quality conditions can change rapidly so continue to make informed decisions about your recreational activities by looking for signs of active blooms such as surface streaking or a pea soup-like appearance of the water. Please email HABs@canandaigualakeassoc.org with any questions.

Have a great weekend!

Current Lake Conditions:  

Harmful Algae Blooms: No Blooms Reported 

Average Secchi Disk Water Clarity: 5.5 meters

Average Surface Water Temperature: 73.5 F

Lake Level: 688.16  feet above sea level

Canandaigua Lake remains free of Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) this week. 

Nearby Finger Lakes such as Keuka and Seneca are beginning to experience isolated blooms as reported on the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s NYHABS website. Many of the region’s shoreline surveillance programs (including the Canandaigua program), enter local data collected by volunteers and professional watershed staff into this statewide NYHABS system to help inform the public of the cyanobacterial blooms occurring around the state. NYSHABS is a great resource and can be particularly useful when planning day trips around the state. Many State Parks and public beaches are also tied into NYHABS to report blooms occurring at those locations. 

As we move through August, volunteers and paid staff will continue to keep a trained eye on Canandaigua Lake waters through an array of water quality programs and monitoring projects. If conditions change, CLWA strives to get the word out in a timely fashion in the community through various channels including these e-newsletters, the CLWA social media pages, and website updates. Please help us increase awareness of water quality issues by sharing and encouraging your neighbors and friends to sign up, and become members! 

As we know, water quality conditions may change daily, if not hourly, so please continue to use your visual indicators to look for signs of active blooms such as surface streaking, or a pea soup-like appearance of the water. Please email HABs@canandaigualakeassoc.org with any questions. 

Have a great weekend!