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Poster Abstracts
Title: Expanding Impact of EMPACT: Operation Interpretation and the continued partnership between the Syracuse City School District and The Roosevelt Wild Life Station
Authors:
D. Andrew Saunders
Environmental Forest Biology
State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Paul B. Hai
Roosevelt Wild Life Station
State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Abstract: Operation Interpretation is an outgrowth of the 1999 Onondaga Lake/Seneca River EMPACT grant and is a product of the Roosevelt Wild Life Station (RWLS) at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, in collaboration with the Syracuse City School District (SCSD). Operation Interpretation will energize the SCSD science curriculum while engaging all 6th, 7th and 8th grade district schoolchildren in the exciting world of science through the use of local natural history. Each of the six conservation education units produced by the RWLS is developed in synthesis with the newest SCSD Math Science and Technology standards. The six units are composed of a Discovery Kit that includes all components for performing the inquiry-based activities described in the accompanying Activity Booklet. In addition, each unit is complemented by a six-hour in-service teacher training seminar. Activities and hands-on exercises developed by Roosevelt Wild Life Station draw upon the local environment. These are based on local natural history, exploring conservation education through topics examining the ecology of Onondaga Lake, habitat fragmentation, urban wildlife, biodiversity, and invasive species. This project between the RWLS and the SCSD is proving that sound science, good stewardship, and strong partnerships do indeed exist right in our own backyard.
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Title: New York's Near-Real-Time Water Quality Monitoring Network
Authors:
Steven W. Effler, Susan M. Doerr O'Donnell,
Upstate Freshwater Institute Inc.
David M. O'Donnell
Innovative Engineering & Technology
Christopher J. Owen
Apprise Technologies
Abstract: New technologies in remote robotic computer driven monitoring and probe/sensor measurements provide increased capabilities to meet contemporary challenges of protecting water quality, and offer rare opportunities for research and education. The challenges and opportunities in New York are particularly great, because of the richness of the state's aquatic resources and the acute demands on their quality. New York's emerging robotic monitoring network is described, that by the end of 2002 will include 15 robotic monitoring units, located on: Lake George (1 unit), the Finger Lakes (3 units; Otisco, Skaneateles, and Cayuga), Onondaga Lake and its tributaries (3 units), Seneca River (3 units), and reservoirs and tributaries of New York City's water supply (5 units). There are two types of monitoring units, profiling buoys (lakes, reservoirs and rivers), and stream monitors that make measurements on water withdrawn from the stream. The array of robotic measurements presently made within the New York network is presented. In all cases, robotic measurements are being delivered in near-real-time to data centers accessible by water quality managers, and in some cases data are posted in engaging formats in near-real-time at dedicated web sites to engage communities in their local environments. Examples of robotic monitoring data are presented that depict an array of phenomena and impacts. Demonstrations accessing near-real-time water quality monitoring data from multiple sites will be made. Programs are underway to integrate the near-real-monitoring capabilities of portions of the network with existing and evolving mathematical models to provide powerful near-real-time modeling capabilities.
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Title: Estimation of metabolic rates through robotic in situ diel DO measurements
Authors: Rakesh K. Gelda, Steven W. Effler, , and Susan M. Doerr O'Donnell
Upstate Freshwater Institute Inc.
David M. O'Donnell
Innovative Engineering & Technology
Abstract: Primary production and community respiration are important metabolic processes in aquatic ecosystems that need to be quantified in various water quality models (e.g., eutrophication). The advent of robotic monitoring capabilities for a number of water quality parameters has made it feasible to estimate these processes remotely, in near-real-time, and thereby support related near-real-time water quality models. Here we demonstrate the capability for eutrophic Onondaga Lake, N.Y. Estimates of net primary production, community respiration (R') and gross primary production (Pg) are developed and presented for the productive layers of the lake, for time scales ranging from diel to several months, based on four months of robotic diel (mostly hourly) profiles of dissolved oxygen (DO) and temperature. Profiling sequences are controlled by an on-board computer, and collected data are delivered to a remote base station computer through cellular telephone communications. Metabolic rate calculations are made through application of a DO mass balance framework that also accommodates inputs and losses of DO mediated by exchange across the air-water interface and across the lower boundary of the productive layers. Study average estimates of R' (1.5 gO2·m‑3·d‑1) and Pg (1.6 gO2·m‑3·d‑1) obtained by this non-isolated community approach are consistent with levels reported in the literature for similar chlorophyll levels, based on isolated (light/dark bottle) protocols. The non-isolated (robotic) approach is expected to provide reliable estimates of these rates for productive systems at time scales as small as several days to a week. Protocols to fully automate the calculations will be presented.
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Title: Assessing gas transfer across the air-water interface with a robotic monitoring buoy
Authors:
Rakesh K. Gelda, Steven W. Effler, , and Susan M. Doerr O'Donnell
Upstate Freshwater Institute Inc.
David M. O'Donnell
Innovative Engineering & Technology
Abstract:
Exchange across the air-water interface is an important process influencing the pool size of insoluble gases in surface waters. Continuous, robotic monitoring of wind speed can be used to estimate values of the liquid-film transfer coefficient, that are used to quantify the magnitude of exchange, and thereby support related near-real-time mass balance calculations and predictive models. These approaches have utility for oxygen resources (reaeration/primary productivity) and volatile organics (volatilization) issues. Here we characterize the patterns of estimates of oxygen flux (J) across the air-water interface of eutrophic Onondaga Lake, NY, for time scales ranging from diel to seasonal for an eight-month period. The analysis is supported by a high frequency robotic monitoring program that included measurements of dissolved oxygen (DO), and temperature in the lake's surface waters, and wind speed. The magnitude and direction of J is demonstrated to vary dramatically at time scales of diel, day-to-day, and seasonal. Thus large errors in estimates of J may result from extrapolating flux calculations made from short-term data to longer time periods. The variations in J are driven by the departure from equilibrium DO and wind-driven turbulence. Extended periods of high J values are shown to coincide with intervals of large departures from equilibrium DO, but day-to-day differences are driven mostly by variations in wind. A distinct diel pattern of J is manifested for average conditions, with substantially higher values during daylight hours, that reflects the diel patterns of the drivers of both higher DO oversaturation and wind speed over those hours. It is demonstrated that the magnitude of J is substantial relative to net changes in the epilimnetic DO pool, and thus must be accommodated accurately in estimates of primary production and community respiration that are to be based on diel monitoring of DO in the water columns of productive lakes.
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Title: Time transect of genetic change in a recently founded Daphnia population
Authors:
Jennifer A. Fox
Cornell University
Abstract: The genetic consequences of a few individuals founding a population have long been the focus of population genetics models, but the short-term changes immediately after founding have not been examined in natural systems. The recent recolonization of Onondaga Lake by the native Daphnia galeata mendotae provides an excellent opportunity to examine the short-term genetic changes following population founding and test predictions of population genetic models. Variation at microsatellite loci in eggs stored in the sediments is measured to determine allele size variation and heterozygosity of the population at different time points immediately following recolonization. The results of this study provide empirical tests of genetic models of non-equilibrium populations and contribute to our understanding of how genetic variation is maintained in natural populations.
Title: Preliminary Results of the U. S. Geological Surveys' Onondaga Valley Aquifer Drilling Program (In cooperation with the Onondaga Lake Clean-up Corporation, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Onondaga Lake Partnership)
Authors:
Bill Kappel
US Geological Survey
Abstract: Brine from springs in and around the southern end of Onondaga Lake, from former brine wells dug or drilled at the lakes edge and from wells that tapped halite (common salt) beds near Tully, 15 miles south of Syracuse were used commercially from the late 1700's through the early 1900's for salt production. The rapid development of this industry in the 18th and 19th centuries led to the nicknaming of Syracuse as the "Salt City".
The brine originates from halite beds of the Salina Group shales of central New York. The dissolution of halite by ground water creates a brine that moves through an unconsolidated basal aquifer northward to the springs near Syracuse. This poster presents the preliminary results of an ongoing drilling program in the Onondaga Valley which began during the summer of 2002. Preliminary interpretation of the data indicate two separate aquifer-flow systems based on initial hydraulic head data, water quality inferences from specific gravity measurements of unconsolidated formation water/brine, and other observations collected during the drilling program.
Title: Utilization of Spatial Information and Dynamic Segmentation Techniques to Support Planning for Restoring the Natural Course of Onondaga Creek
Authors:
Michael Maute, Gregory Thorhaug, Trevis Gigliotti, Dr. John Felleman,
Dr. Paul Hopkins
NASA Affiliated Research Center
Environmental Resource and Forest Engineering
College of Environmental Science and Forestry,
State University of New York
Samuel Sage
Atlantic States Legal Foundation
Sam Gordon
City of Syracuse Department of Community and Economic Development
Abstract: In Central New York, degraded natural resources are being restored to enhance the economy, environment and quality of life. Due to its central position within the City of Syracuse, Onondaga Creek is such a resource. Since the 1850's, the Creek's channel has been straightened and diverted to reduce flooding throughout the City of Syracuse. This project demonstrates the utility of using spatial information in support of planning for restoring a portion of Onondaga Creek.
The objective of this project was to develop methods to assess the historical and current status of Onondaga Creek using remote sensing and geographic information systems. This assessment integrated historical and current geo-spatial data and imagery to illuminate changes to the Creek channel and create a database of existing conditions. Dynamic segmentation methodologies and querying of the spatial database pinpointed potential rehabilitation areas to focus further analysis. Subsequent analysis reports extracted and summarized the contextual information (e.g. spatial characteristics, existinginfrastructure) necessary to facilitate future rehabilitation work. In addition, project work developed informed visioning components (e.g. comprehensive presentations, visual aids, surveys), as feedback mechanisms for concerned citizens and organizations most affected by creek rehabilitation. When applicable, public comments were incorporated into project work.
This research was a joint venture between the Atlantic States Legal Foundation (ASLF), City of the Syracuse Department of Community and Economic Development and the SUNY-ESF NASA Affiliated Research Center. Results include the organization of an Onondaga Creek GIS tool for future analysis. For ASLF the project has stimulated additional work along Onondaga Creek, in the Onondaga Lake watershed, Southwestern China and the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve in Romania. Finally, the project brought together the stakeholders and key governmental officials important to initiating creek rehabilitation work.
Title: Development of a New Assay Technique for Algal Bioavailable Particulate Phosphorus
Authors:
Daniel M. Nover and Martin T. Auer
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Michigan Technological University
Abstract: Phosphorus is widely recognized as nutrient limiting algal growth in freshwaters. Application of the total phosphorus analyte in setting management guidelines for protection against eutrophication ignores the fact that not all phosphorus is equally capable of supporting and sustaining algal growth, i.e. bioavailable. Management efforts should instead incorporate the concept of bioavailability in targeting sources for nutrient control.
There is no widely-accepted and analytically straightforward chemical method for quantifying levels of bioavailable phosphorus. Currently, algal bioassays are the only true measure of the algal-available particulate phosphorous. A method for performing such assays, originally developed at Clarkson University and applied to Great Lakes tributaries, has been successful utilized by our group to examine phosphorus bioavailability in Onondaga Lake and the New York City reservoir system. This approach employs a dual chamber diffusion apparatus (DCDA) with the target sediment separated from starved algae by a semi-permeable membrane. Phosphorus released by the sediment migrates across the membrane and is taking up by the starved algae where it is sequestered and then analyzed chemically. Bioavailability is expressed as mass algal available phosphorus per mass sediment or as a percentage of the total phosphorus content of the sediment. While this apparatus yields excellent results, it is large, physically unwieldy and a challenge to sample, clean and service. The number of assays which may be simultaneously performed is limited by these constraints.
We are investigating an alternative approach utilizing a Dispodialyzerä (Spectrum Labs). The Dispodialyzerä is a 7-mL dialysis tube which allows diffusive flux of soluble phosphorus but blocks the passage of sediment particles and microorganisms. A sediment slurry is placed in the Dispodialyzerä and the dialysis tube placed in a 45-mL glass culture tube containing phosphorus starved algae. The Dispodialyzerä is transferred to a fresh culture tube of starved algae at three day intervals and the phosphorus accumulated by the original assay measured. Over a thirty-day incubation period, the assay yields a rectangular hyperbola of phosphorus accumulation which asymptotes at the algal available phosphorus content of the original sample.
Efforts underway in development of this new assay include characterization of the batch growth curve for assay algae (Selenastrum capricornutum), determination of diffusion rates for phosphorus in the Dispodialyzerä, and consideration of the potential of microbial phosphorus uptake within the sediment slurry. The assay is expected to be on-line in the spring of 2003 and capable of accommodating 50-100 samples in simultaneous operation.
Title: We built it, and they did not come…but are we sure? Assessing Macroinvertebrate Responses to the Onondaga Lake Littoral Manipulation: Post-Treatment Analysis
Authors:
Autumn M. White, Patricia F. Thompson, and Neil H. Ringler
State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry,
Faculty of Environmental and Forest Biology
Abstract:A wave break (habitat module, HM) was installed in the fall of 2001 with the intention of promoting macrophyte growth by stabilizing the substrate. Macrophytes provide habitat for young fishes as well as habitat and food for macroinvertebrates. Increased macroinvertebrates provide more food for fish. As ubiquitous, generally long-lived creatures, macroinvertebrates are ideal in determining changes due to biotic or abiotc stimuli. We wanted to see if there would be a significant change in the mean densities of macroinvertebrate taxa due to the construction of a habitat module.
Our sampling design and methods in 2002 were similar to those used in 2000; we explored large-scale (2000-m) and small-scale (30-m) distributions. We collected Eckman grab samples of the unaltered substrate (silt and organic sediment) on the shore-side of the HM, in the artificial substrate (gravel piles) within the HM, and on the lake-side of the HM. Our reference sites were randomly chosen on the 1-m contour in the lake beginning with the lake outlet to the mouth of Nine Mile Creek (northwest quadrant).
Our post-treatment analysis in 2002 showed decreased mean densities of macroinvertebrates inside the HM compared to the pre-treatment analysis of 2000. We found higher mean densities in the gravel and on the lake-side of the HM compared to the unaltered substate. We also found decreased mean densities of major taxa such as Chironomidae in the unaltered substrate of the HM compared to 2000. We found zebra mussels outside the HM and on the gravel, but none in the unaltered substrate. Minor taxa such as Plecoptera and Ephemeroptera were found in the HM in 2000, but not in 2002. Macroinvertebrate mean densites in the reference sites remained statistically similar in both years. We reduced variance in the 1-m reference by increasing the grabs collected from ten in 2000 to fifteen in 2002.
The decreases in mean densities of the HM in 2002, compared to the reference and HM of 2000, might suggest that the HM is not fulfilling its intended purpose. One year of post treatment data, however may not be enough to support this. Supplemental years of data may be required if there is a lag time associated with ideal conditions for macrophyte colonization, or if the HM is actually a sediment trap accompanied with anoxic or near anoxic conditions in the substrate due to reductions in wave action.
Title: Phytoplankton and Macrophyte Contributions to the Organic Carbon Budget of New Croton Reservoir
Authors:
Min Xiao and Martin T. Auer
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Michigan Technological University
Abstract: Increasingly stringent federal limits on disinfection byproducts (DBPs, e.g. trihalomethanes) in drinking water have led to a renewed interest in organic carbon dynamics in water supply sources. Although the production of DBPs is not linearly related to organic carbon levels (i.e. varying yields), byproduct problems are typically observed in waters rich in dissolved organic carbon. Researchers at Michigan Tech, Syracuse University, and Upstate Freshwater Institute recently completed a study, funded by the American Water Works Association Research Foundation, which indicated that primary production by algae and macrophytes represented a significant (and manageable) source of DBP precursors in some nutrient-rich source waters. The development of an organic carbon budget is a logical first step in targeting management actions for such systems.
Here we present the results of calculations which quantify the contributions of algae and macrophytes to the carbon budget of New Croton Reservoir. Additionally, we detail the role of bacteria in cycling organic carbon and the impact of their metabolism as a sink term through respiration. Part of the New York City drinking water supply system, New Croton is a mesotrophic-eutrophic water body enriched in DOC. Estimates of the phytoplankton contribution to the carbon budget are based on a suite of measurements which include carbon fixation, respiration and organic carbon excretion. The macrophyte contribution is assessed using a published mathematical modeling for aquatic plant growth, supported by on-site measurements of standing crop and distribution. Bacterial standing crop and carbon uptake were determined through direct counts and radioisotope uptake, respectively.
Phytoplankton were the largest source of organic carbon, producing 2.6x106 kgC over the growing season. Macrophyte production yielded 0.3x106 kgC during this period. It is estimated, based on these calculations and measurements of organic carbon inflow to the reservoir, that internal production accounts for 72% of the load to the reservoir, with phytoplankton being responsible for 90% of that. Organic carbon inputs very nearly balanced outputs for the study period. Respiration represented the largest sink term, accounting for 57% of the loss; outflow (28%) and sedimentation (15%) represented the balance.
Title: A Re-examination of the Occurrence of Cyanobacteria Toxins in Onondaga Lake
Authors:
Gregory L. Boyer, Xingye Yang, Kristy Szprygada, and Michael F. Satchwell
Chemistry Department
College of Environmental Science and Forestry,
State University of New York
Abstract: Cyanobacteria toxins are receiving increasing attention as a problem for recreational and human drinking water supplies. These toxins include hepatotoxins such as microcystin and cylindrospermopsin, and neurotoxins such as the PSP toxins and anatoxin-a. In 2000, a preliminary survey of Onondaga and Oneida Lakes found high levels of hepatotoxic microcystins in Oneida Lake but little to no toxins in Onondaga Lake. This represents an enigma since the predominate cyanobacterium in Onondaga Lake is the potentially toxic Microcystis aeruginosa.
Onondaga Lake was re-examined in the summer of 2002 for the occurrence of cyanobacterial toxins. Samples were collected weekly from June through October and analyzed for microcystins using the protein phosphatase inhibition assay and by liquid chromatography (HPLC). Anatoxin-a and the PSP toxins were measured using liquid chromatography with fluorescent detection. In contrast to our previous findings, microcystins and toxic Microcystis were found in samples collected from Onondaga Lake. Of the 45 samples collected, 12 (30% contained trace levels of microcystins (0.1-0.8 ug L-1) and 4 samples (9 %) approached or exceeded the WHO advisory level of 1 ug L-1 for microcystins in drinking water. The overall number and toxicity of the samples was similar to what was previously observed in other studies of New York State Waters, and significantly less than what has been observed for Oneida Lake. The ramifications of what these results mean in terms of the future uses of Onondaga Lake will be discussed. (Supported by New York State Sea Grant).
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