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Poster Abstracts
Title: Evaluation of Historical Changes in the Deposition of Mercury and Its Relationship with Organic Carbon in Onondaga Lake, NY
Authors:
Stephanie Gindlesperger, Charles T. Driscoll
Syracuse University
Abstract: The authors of this poster examined long-term patterns in the deposition of mercury and organic carbon to lake sediments of Onondaga Lake through the collection and analysis of sediment traps deployed between 1993 and 2006. The traps were deployed in the south basin of the lake in triplicate placed at a depth of 10 meters. The sediment trap samples were analyzed for total mercury using method USEPA 7473 on a Milestone DMA analyzer. The samples were also analyzed for carbon and nitrogen using an elemental analyzer. Seasonal trends show that as the organic carbon flux increases, the mercury flux increases. Mercury would be expected to be largely associated with organic carbon. The concentration of mercury deposited to sediments has declined since the1990s. As also expected, the downward flux of mercury from the water column appears to be decreasing. There is also a positive correlation between particulate organic carbon flux and the mercury flux in the sediment traps. Future research includes analyzing for mercury and organic carbon from sediment traps collects in the 1980's.
Title: Automated Analysis of Near-Real-Time Surface Water Quality Data
Authors:
David M. O'Donnell, Susan M. Doerr O'Donnell and Anthony R. Prestigiacomo
Upstate Freshwater Institute
Abstract: Central New York's Near-Real-Time Surface Water Quality Network was established in 2000 on Onondaga Lake and the Seneca River. The network has continued to expand and now includes robotic platforms on the three eastern most Finger Lakes (Owasco, Skaneateles and Otisco Lakes), Onondaga Creek, and multiple sites on the Seneca River. Data from these platforms are made available in near-real-time on the project's website (www.OurLake.org). Significant improvements have been made to the website over the past six years including the addition of an automated data analysis section in 2005. Current data analyses include: 1) the determination of thermocline depths for the lakes in the network, 2) estimation of density stratification including density gradients, 3) the prediction of interflows (density currents), 4) estimation of transparency in Onondaga Lake from in situ turbidity measurements, and 5) the calculation of suspended solid loading estimates to Onondaga Lake from Onondaga Creek. This poster highlights some of these analyses.
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Title: A Temporal Dendrogeomorphological Assessment of the Rattlesnake Gulf Landslide, Tully Valley, New York
Authors:
Kathryn Tamulonis
Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Cornell University
William Kappel
U.S. Geological Survey
Abstract: The Tully Valley, New York, is a 6-mile long glacial trough located in the eastern Finger Lakes region and has a landslide history dating back nearly 10,000 years. In 1993, the largest landslide in the state since the early 1900's occurred on the west wall of the valley. Presently, two slow-moving earth slides are active in tributary valleys to the Tully Valley. Precipitation, ground water, and landslide displacement measurements and a dendrogeomorphologic study indicate that the Rattlesnake Gulf landslide movement occurs on several scales - (1) shallow displacement immediately following precipitation, (2) deep seated movement related to the moving five-year precipitation average and (3) periodic storm-generated stream discharges that erode the landslide toe. Dendrogeomorphology relates dendrochronololgy to landform evolution as tree ring growth patterns provide dates for significant geomorphic events. Thirty-four tree cores and sections were collected from the landslide areas. 18 control samples were also collected in adjacent, but unaffected areas. Tree rings were measured to determine years when ring growth changed from concentric to eccentric, which was assumed to be triggered by landslide displacement. With these data, an event index was generated to temporally analyze landslide activity. A cyclic Fourier function and a multiple regression model were used to correlate the event index to the five year moving precipitation average and time. The results imply a multi-year lag exists between precipitation and deep ground-water discharge into the landslide, which causes deep seated movement. Model cyclicity also suggests that landslide activity has a 70-year cycle, with destabilizing years in 1927 and 2000. Drought periods followed by persistent above-average precipitation and correspondingly high stream discharge, which erodes the landslide toe, as well as harvesting of mature trees above and within this landslide, may be the cyclic displacement triggers.
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Title: A Solar Pond in Central New York "Thinking Green While Wading In The Brine"
Authors:
William Kappel
U.S. Geological Survey
Abstract: The Tully Valley in central New York has provided many hydrogeologic challenges to those who have worked there over the past decade and century. Mud volcanoes, landslides, brine-mining, and land-surface subsidence related to these phenomena have provided many graduate students and practicing hydrogeologists with opportunities to work and study in the valley. In relation to understanding the subsidence in a former brine field and nearby mudboil activity, a new challenge was provided less than six months ago by the presence of a solar pond. What is a solar pond? It is simply a pool of brine-laden water which collects and stores solar energy. It contains layers of brine with increasing concentration (and therefore density) to its bottom. When solar radiation (sunlight) is absorbed, the density gradient in the pond prevents heat in the lower layers from upward convection thereby trapping the heat in the bottom of the pond. The temperature at the bottom of the pond can be several times the temperature found in the fresher water near the surface. The heat trapped in the bottom layer can be used for different purposes, such as the heating of a building. It also has been used for industrial hot water and to drive turbines for generating electricity in equatorial countries where water temperatures can exceed 100o C. The solar pond in the Tully Valley 'found' in June, 2007 is just now being studied, and it may have the potential for household heating in the Syracuse region.
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Title: Subsidence and Bedrock-Fracture Development In The Tully Valley, Central New York
Authors:
William Kappel
U.S. Geological Survey
Gayle Gleason
Geology Department, SUNY-Cortland
William Hackett
Geology Department, University of Vermont
Abstract: Bedrock fractures are slowly opening along the east and west valley walls adjacent to former brine fields in the Tully Valley, apparently in response to brine-mining of halite deposits at depths of 1,200 to 1,400 feet below land surface. Three joint sets have been identified that correspond to similar jointing patterns throughout central New York - Set I strikes roughly N10W; Set II strikes roughly E-W, and Set III strikes roughly N65E. Sets I and II are interpreted as cross-fold and strike joints of Alleganian orogeny age (~320- to 250- million years ago), while Set III may be older. The location and orientation of these now-active fractures reveals the joint framework 'imprinted' within the bedrock. It also appears that different brine-mining techniques have affected the location and magnitude of fracture opening adjacent to the eastern and western brine fields. The development of these open fractures appear to affect surface- and ground-water flow patterns and may be related to mudboil activity, located several miles north of the two brine fields.
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Title: The Occurrence and Distribution of Deep Chlorophyll Maxima (DCMs) in Owasco Lake, NY
Authors:
Anthony R. Prestigiacomo, Julia B. Braunmueller, Adam J. P. Effler, and Christopher Strait
Upstate Freshwater Institute, Syracuse, NY
Abstract: The Upstate Freshwater Institute has monitored water quality on Owasco Lake and other NYS Finger Lakes for the past two decades. In 1996, UFI monitored all 11 Finger Lakes monthly and documented the occurrence of a deep chlorophyll maximum (DCM) in each lake. DCMs are characterized by an increase in chlorophyll concentration at depth and can generally be grouped into one of three cases. In case one, the increase in chlorophyll is due to an increase in phytoplankton biomass. In case two, the increase in chlorophyll is due to an increase in the chlorophyll-to-carbon ratio (i.e., no increase in biomass) in phytoplankton cells as an adaptation to lower light levels at depth. Case three is a combination of the first two cases. DCMs have been shown to be important in lake primary production and food web dynamics in other deep, clear water systems. The objective of this analysis was to document the occurrence of DCMs in Owasco Lake, NY. Data used were in-situ chlorophyll profiles, collected with rapid profiling instrumentation (SeaBird or ISUS Profilers). Selected DCM profiles are presented from 1996 and 2004-2007 demonstrating that DCM formation is common in this lake. All three cases of DCM manifestation were observed. The daily water quality profiles from UFI's robotic monitoring platform (www.ourlake.org) showed the occurrence of a DCM in late July 2007. The information was critical in timing a lake-wide survey which was conducted to determine the spatial distribution of the DCM in Owasco Lake. Eleven sites on the lake's main axis were monitored, and the results showed that the DCM was consistent in terms of peak depth (8-10m) and magnitude (4-6 µg/L) throughout the lake. However, the DCM appeared to be a combination of both of the above mentioned cases (i.e., case three). In summary, DCMs appear to be a common feature in Owasco Lake. DCM formation and duration and relationships between light and nutrients are currently being investigated. Finally, the role of DCMs in lake ecology, nutrient cycling, and pollutant and toxin formation are being considered.
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Title: The Occurrence of Cyanobacteria Toxins in Onondaga and Oneida Lake Revisted
Authors:
Gregory L. Boyer, Xingye Yang, Amber Hotto, Juliette Smith, Margaret Pavlac, Sean Thomas and Michael F. Satchwell,
Faculty of Chemistry, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry,
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 and Oneida Lake have been re-examined periodically since 2002 for the occurrence of cyanobacterial toxins. Samples were collected bi-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 both HPLC using a sensitive fluorometric technique, and by LCMS. In contrast to our previous findings, trace levels of microcystins (0.1-1.8 ug L-1) and toxic Microcystis were found in samples collected from Onondaga Lake. In addition, high levels (up to 15 μg L-1) of the neurotoxin, anatoxin-a were observed 2003. The overall number and toxicity of the samples was similar to what was observed in many other New York State lakes, but significantly less than what has been observed for Oneida Lake and Lake Neatahwanta. The correlations of these results with water quality parameters, and ramifications of what these results mean in terms of the future uses of Onondaga Lake will be discussed.
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Title: Bottom Boundary Layer Turbulence in Onondaga Lake and Its Replication in a Laboratory Setting
Authors:
P.J. Rusello and Edwin A. Cowen
DeFrees Hydraulics Laboratory, Hollister Hall
School of Civil & Environmental Engineering
Abstract: Boundary mixing is an important process in the transport and diffusion of mass from the bed to the water column and visa-versa. Multiple physical processes contribute to this coupling with turbulence generally the largest contributor. While turbulence has strong effects on physical, biological, and chemical processes in the bottom boundary layer relatively little process-based understanding of turbulent transport of mass at the sediment-water interface exists. For those physically modeling boundary layer processes in the laboratory, there is particularly little guidance on how to accurately reproduce in-situ benthic boundary layer turbulence levels in the laboratory environment. To guide ongoing work examining benthic fluxes from water to sediment or sediment to water, in-situ measurements of turbulent and mean flows were made with Acoustic Doppler Velocimeters (ADVs) and a high resolution (minimum 1 cm depth cell) Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) at two locations in Onondaga Lake. These measurements were made during October 2007 while the lake was still stratified and received significant heat and momentum fluxes from the atmosphere. Turbulence intensities, TKE, Reynolds stresses, and bed stress are calculated from the data in an effort to characterize the range of turbulence levels encountered in Onondaga Lake. Using the field data as a guide, a method for generating homogenous, isotropic turbulence with zero mean flow (Variano, et al. 2006) is adapted to a chamber suitable for the study standard sediment cores taken from Onondaga Lake. A series of peristaltic pumps is randomly driven to generate a range of turbulence levels representative of those found in Onondaga Lake on the basis of TKE, a turbulent Reynolds number and individual turbulent intensities. A Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) system is used to directly measure the instantaneous (in time) two dimensional velocity field in the chamber over sufficient time scales to accurate determine the above turbulence metrics. The pump system is calibrated after comparison to the in-situ field measurements to produce the range of turbulence levels found in Onondaga Lake.
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Title: An Optics Survey of the Western Basin of Lake Erie
Authors:
David M. O'Donnell, Gina F. Quaring and Michael E. Spada
Upstate Freshwater Institute, Syracuse, NY
Abstract: An optics survey of the relatively shallow (<13 m) Western Basin of Lake Erie was conducted over the three day period 12 September - 14 September 2007. Measurements were made in support of a Lake Erie bio-optical model. A profiling instrumentation frame was deployed that creates detailed vertical profiles of the Inherent Optical Properties (IOP) over the visible spectrum (400-730 nm). The IOP frame carries several instruments including 1) a WETLabs® ac-s that measures hyperspectral beam attenuation (c(λ)), absorption (a(λ)), scattering (b(λ)), and 2) a WETLabs® BB9 multispectral backscattering (bb(λ)) meter. Measurements of the underwater light field were made using a Satlantic® HyperPro II hyperspectral radiometer. This instrument measures both the underwater downwelling irradiance (Ed(λ)) and the underwater upwelling radiance (Lu(λ)) as well as the out-of-water incident irradiance (Es(λ)). Additional instrumentation was configured on the IOP frame to measure CTD, chlorophyll a (CHLf a), turbidity and 660 nm transmissometry (c660). Water samples were collected for suspended solids (TSS), particle absorption (ap(λ)), dissolved color (ag(λ)), chlorophyll a (CHLf a), and individual particle analysis (IPA). These samples were filtered and preserved onboard for latter laboratory analysis. Comparison between the normalized water leaving radiance (Lwn) measured by the HyperPro and the MODIS instrument aboard the Aqua (EOS PM-1) spacecraft are presented. The optics model that describes the dependence of Lwn on bb and a is also investigated. The backscattering ratio (bbp/bp) which lends insight in to particle composition is presented and is shown to have a strong relationship to the fixed solids fraction of the total suspended solids (FSS/TSS).
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Title: An Investigation of Bacterial Contamination in Onondaga Creek
Authors:
Donald J. Hughes, Danielle Spartano, and Ed Michalenko
Onondaga Environment Institute, Syracuse, NY 13204
Abstract: We conducted an investigation of bacterial contamination in Onondaga Creek, a tributary of Onondaga Lake, Syracuse, NY. The creek watershed (~300 km2) progresses from mixed forests, agricultural (esp. dairy and orchards) to heavily urbanized land served by separated sewers and, further downstream, combined sewers. Grab samples of creek water and sewer pipe inputs were collected periodically between April19 and August 2, 2007 in the urban watershed. Less-frequent creek and tributary sampling was conducted in rural parts of the watershed. All samples were analyzed for fecal coliforms using membrane filtration. Fecal densities in the urban watershed were observed to generally increase from upstream to downstream, rising from a mean of 604 colony-forming units/100 ml (cfu/dL) in an area served by separated sewers to 2250 cfu/dL in the commercial combined sewer area. The most substantial increase occurred within the combined sewer area, between a largely residential area (mean = 1020 cfu/dL) and the central business district (CBD). Routine fecal coliform loading increases during dry weather demonstrated that sources of bacteria other than CSOs and storm water must exist. Various pipes and tributaries discharging into the creek during dry-weather contained bacterial levels ranging from <2 to >4000 cfu/dL. Fecal coliform densities downstream of the CBD were observed to vary between 900 and 8300 cfu/dL over an 8-hour period during dry weather. In contrast, densities upstream of the CBD remained in the 140-670 cfu/dL range. Sampling conducted in the rural parts of the Onondaga Creek watershed showed variable levels of fecal coliform contamination in the agricultural Tully Valley. Levels were strongly linked to precipitation, with densities of 5,100 to >20,000 cfu/dL observed during a large storm event.
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Title: A Matter of Millimeters: The Realm of Redox as Revealed through Porewater Profiles of Oxygen and Sulifde in Onondaga Lake Sediments
Author:
G. Albert Galicinao, Martin T. Auer and David L. Perram
Michigan Technological University
Abstract: Redox reactions include those aerobic and anaerobic processes mediating the mineralization of labile organic carbon. Widely applied in the treatment of domestic and industrial wastes, these reactions are also a significant feature of the biogeochemistry of freshwater and marine environments, including wetlands. Phenomena commonly observed in the hypolimnia of eutrophic lakes, such as oxygen depletion, nutrient release, trace metal transformations and the accumulation of reduced species end-products, are a reflection of redox-mediated processes occurring in the sediment. Mathematical models, critical to the development of management strategies addressing these issues, require a quantitative characterization of the sediment environment and the redox processes taking place there. Prior to the advent of microprobe technologies, such a characterization was considered to be somewhere between difficult and impossible. The limitations to such measurements were related to vertical resolution, sample volume and ex vivo analysis. Today, microprobes provide the capability to make in vivo measurements of selected analytes at resolutions of less than 100 micrometers. Here, we present, for the first time, profiles of dissolved oxygen and hydrogen sulfide in the porewater of Onondaga Lake sediments, applying these to infer the vertical distribution of aerobic respiration, denitrification, sulfate reduction and methanogenesis. One of the most striking features of these profiles is the finding that aerobic mineralization is limited to a thin film, only 1-2 mm in thickness, at the sediment-water interface. The zones of denitrification and sulfate reduction follow in an order consistent with the ecological redox series, but reaching little more than a centimeter into the sediment. Below this point, labile organic carbon mineralization proceeds via methanogenesis. The importance of these observations to lake management lie in the fact that much of the redox-mediated processing of labile organic carbon takes place within the domain of recently-deposited sediment, suggesting that the system may be quite amenable to chemical amendment and that the response to changes in labile organic carbon deposition may be more rapid than previously thought.
Title: Changes in Labile Organic Carbon Flux as Reflected in the Hypolimnion of Onondaga Lake: A Modeling Retrospective
Author:
Martin T. Auer
Michigan Technological University
David A. Matthews
Upstate Freshwater Institute
Steven C. Chapra
Tufts University
Abstract: Symptoms of lake eutrophication and evidence of the ecosystem's response to management (de-eutrophication) are manifested in surface waters through the frequency and severity of nuisance algal growth and accompanying changes in water clarity and taste and odor problems. These reflections of a lake's water quality are clearly evident to the public. Less available to the lay audience, but of great interest to the limnological community, are changes in the rates of accumulation and depletion of electron acceptors and reduced species end-products in a lake's bottom waters. These phenomena are of particular importance because they reflect the combined effects of both present-day and legacy contributions to the lake's water quality, i.e. as driven by current and historical delivery of labile organic carbon to the sediment. Thus changes in accumulation/depletion rates can provide direct evidence of the system's response to water quality management. A companion presentation provides a historical review of rates of hypolimnetic oxygen depletion in Onondaga Lake and relates variation in those rates to changes in phosphorus loading. The role of labile organic carbon deposition (and subsequent diagenesis), the operative link between phosphorus loading and hypolimnetic oxygen depletion, is implicit in, but not directly accommodated by, that analysis. Here, we apply a simple redox model in calculating rates of labile organic carbon deposition corresponding to observed rates of oxygen and nitrate depletion and sulfide accumulation in the hypolimnion of Onondaga Lake. The model is applied to a multi-year database of field measurements, spanning a period over which substantial reductions in phosphorus loading to the lake were achieved. The attendant response of model-calculated labile organic carbon flux provides an additional perspective regarding the linkage between nutrient management and lake water quality, i.e. another yardstick for measuring the efficacy of lake remediation.
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