Water Quality Update for Friday, September 27th 2024

IN THIS REPORT:

  • Recap of September Blooms
  • Using Remote Sensing to Monitor for cyanoHABs in Canandaigua Lake
  • CyanoHABs in the News
  • Information for Private Drinking Water System Users
As September comes to a close, it has certainly been a notable month for water quality. In last week’s report, we highlighted the severity of the harmful algal blooms (HABs) affecting Canandaigua Lake and other Finger Lakes. The image below, taken the afternoon of Friday 9/20 from the lake’s north end, shows just how extensive the blooms have been, even in open water areas.

Canandaigua Lake experienced an unprecedented 14 consecutive days of cyanoHABs, from September 10th through September 23rd—marking the longest documented stretch of bloom activity since cyanoHABs monitoring efforts began in 2015. Fortunately, cooler temperatures and a few rainy days have brought some relief this week, with only two small localized blooms reported on 9/26. However, some years we have seen blooms well into October, so we urge you to continue using visual indicators before entering the water or letting pets swim. Identification photos can be found at the bottom of this email to help you recognize potential cyanoHABs.

A special thanks to Emily DeBolt for capturing this image.
We’d like to take a moment to recognize the outstanding efforts of our 77 volunteers who have worked tirelessly this summer to document the lake’s water quality. Their commitment is vital to advancing our understanding of these evolving water issues. Thanks to their work on the cyanoHABs and Secchi disk programs, 630 reports have been submitted thus far. As the Association Director, I want to personally thank each and every one of our volunteers for their invaluable contribution. These reports not only inform our local community but also provide crucial information to the Department of Health, municipal partners, water purveyors, state and local agencies, and the broader research community. The Watershed Council, consisting of the municipalities and its Watershed Manager Kevin Olvany, are also incredibly appreciative of all the volunteer reports coming in. Citizen scientists are the heart of this community, and these efforts will leave a lasting impact on the ongoing research.

As we head into October, the official CyanoHABs monitoring program will conclude on October 3rd, with our final scheduled water quality update going out on Friday, October 4th. Please note that many of our dedicated volunteers will continue to monitor and report beyond this date. If significant bloom events occur in October, you can always check the interactive map on the CLWA website or our Facebook page for the latest information.

If you’re interested in learning more about our research partnerships, check out the video below featuring Dr. Bahram Salehi from SUNY ESF. Last Friday, we captured this footage as drones flew over the lake, collecting multispectral imagery to train AI models for remote water quality monitoring. This is another great example of how volunteer data is helping advancing the science of cyanoHABs

Thank you for your continued vigilance and support.

Lindsay McMillan, CLWA Association Director
Remote Sensing to Monitor for CyanoHABs on Canandaigua Lake

On Friday, September 20th, 2024, CLWA had the opportunity to connect with Dr. Bahram Salehi, Associate Professor of Remote Sensing Engineering at SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF), and PhD Candidate Sina Jarahizadeh as they performed research on Canandaigua Lake. Learn more about their work to monitor lakes experiencing harmful algal blooms using a combination of multispectral and satellite imaging in the short video below.

 

CyanoHABs in the News: The Growing Severity of Harmful Algal Blooms in the Finger Lakes
The intensity of the blooms in Canandaigua Lake and surrounding Finger Lakes was covered heavily in the local media this past week. Check out the following highlights, in case you missed them.

Health expert warns of record-setting harmful algal blooms in Canandaigua Lake (13 WHAM News)

Harmful algal blooms on the rise in local lakes this summer (FL Times)

CyanoHABs remain a concern for lakes across Western NY (WROC TV)

Harmful algal blooms spread across nearly every Finger Lake (Democrat and Chronicle)
Information for Private Drinking Water System Users

Until recently, living on Canandaigua Lake and drinking its water, it was considered sufficient for a private water system to filter sediment and particles and have a method to kill microbes such as E.coli.

Today, homeowners must go a step farther to remove toxins such as blue-green algae and plasticizer chemicals. This requires considering updated water purification for potential contaminants.

Read this special contribution by Dr. Bruce Capron to see how some homeowners are approaching updates to their private drinking water systems.

Read the article here.