ITHACA, N.Y. – Much of Ithaca sits on what used to be wetlands. Infill, drainage ditches, culverts and so on have been engineered to drain the swamp, a process that recurred throughout the Finger Lakes region and across New York. As a result, the state has lost over half its wetlands by some estimates.
The disappearance of wetlands has major consequences for the health of the Finger Lakes, according to Andy Zepp, executive director of the Finger Lakes Land Trust.
“It’s kind of like losing a kidney for the lake,” Zepp said during a presentation about the health of the Cayuga Lake watershed hosted by the League of Women Voters at the Tompkins County Public Library on Monday.
Wetlands work like filters, Zepp explained, slowing the time it takes for water to reach the lake and allowing chemicals and nutrients to settle out in the process. As wetlands have been replaced by impermeable surfaces and intensively farmed land, the flow of unfiltered runoff into Cayuga and other Finger Lakes has increased dramatically.
Last summer, all 11 Finger Lakes were home to harmful algal blooms, Zepp said. The green, slimy-looking blooms consist of cyanobacteria, which feeds off nutrients in runoff and poses health risks to people, pets and wildlife.
When outbreaks occur, Zepp said, “it’s like paint in the water.”
Finger Lakes Land Trust is one of several organizations working to reverse the damage. Efforts to collect accurate data, reduce nutrient-rich runoff and restore natural filtration systems are underway around Cayuga.
Diagnosing lake health
Last summer on several occasions, visitors to the beach at Taughannock Falls State Park were met with signs stating, “Harmful algal bloom alert. Avoid contact with blooms.” Because the blooms can be toxic to people and pets, their appearance can interrupt summer plans to enjoy the lake and on a deeper level indicate a problem with the lake’s health. To address the issue, scientists need to collect precise data about the underlying causes of algal blooms.
Hilary Lambert, steward of the Cayuga Lake Watershed Network, said groups around the region are collaborating to collect and test water samples as the first step toward developing effective, long-term solutions.
“It takes a network to protect a watershed,” she said at Monday’s event, invoking her organization’s motto.
In part, that’s because the watershed itself is so complex. There are 37 major creeks and hundreds of smaller streams flowing into Cayuga Lake, Lambert said, not to mention dozens of municipalities and agencies overseeing regulations.
One group wading into the muddle is the Community Science Institute, which trains volunteers to collect water samples and then tests the samples in their in-house lab. Nate Launer, CSI’s outreach coordinator, said volunteer teams have collected over 80,000 data points throughout the watershed and helped monitor about 40 harmful algal blooms last summer.
Reliable data will allow researchers to answer questions like what weather and environmental conditions promote cyanobacteria blooms, where nutrient-rich runoff is coming from, and whether interventions are working to curb the problem, Launer said.
But while research is ongoing, Zepp said one thing is already clear: we need to slow the flow of water into the lakes.
Re-plumbing the Finger Lakes
The depletion of wetlands is at the heart of Cayuga’s problems, but several factors – such as agricultural practices, building codes, increasingly intense storms, and higher occupancy at lakeshore rentals – have contributed to higher levels of phosphorous and nitrogen in the lake, Zepp said.
The Finger Lakes Land Trust and partner organizations are therefore taking a multi-pronged approach to protecting the lake.
Measures to protect the lake could be mandated by the state or municipalities if there were political consensus, Zepp said. For instance, regulations could limit development along tributaries or require adequate stormwater management on agricultural and commercial sites.
In lieu of political support for stringent land-use regulations, though, establishing land trusts that conserve land into perpetuity is one way of protecting key areas. FLLT has spent years piecing together an “emerald necklace” of interconnected public land around the south end of Cayuga Lake. The group adds over 1,000 acres of preserved land per year by their own estimate, with protected parcels throughout the region.
Related: Finger Lakes Land Trust announces permanent protection of 89 acres within Emerald Necklace
Of course, not all land is available for purchase or open to conservation measures. Zepp said FLLT is exploring engineering solutions to slow runoff in targeted areas, such as detention basins in areas prone to flooding, and is advocating for municipalities to insist on effective stormwater management plans for new development.
The Department of Environmental Conservation set up a “Finger Lakes Water Hub” in Syracuse a few years ago, with a handful of employees dedicated to working with local organizations to promote lake health. Zepp and Lambert both said the hub is a positive sign of the state’s investment in the issue and said the hub is working to establish limits on the amount of phosphorous and nitrogen that can be present in Cayuga.
Actually reducing the concentration of nutrients in the lake, though, will require a lot of politicking on a farmer-by-farmer basis, as Lambert put it, as well as a strong commitment to municipal regulations, according to Zepp.
Those interested in learning more about watershed protection efforts can find a directory of organizations through Sustainable Finger Lakes. The Community Science Institute is currently recruiting volunteers to monitor water quality; learn more on their website.
Featured image: Toxic algal bloom on the southeast shore of Cayuga Lake, Aug. 2 2017. (Courtesy of Finger Lakes Land Trust)