SCOPING SESSION
Cayuga Lake Watershed Management Plan
Technical Scoping Session Meeting

September 16, 1998

at

Cayuga County Cornell Cooperative Extension
248 Grant Avenue
Auburn, New York 13021

Present: Daniel Winch (Tompkins County WRC), Marva Gingrich (Montezuma NWR), Jim Malyj (Seneca County WQCC), Bill Kappel (USGS), Cliff Callinan (NYSDEC), Nadia Niniowsky (Cayuga County WQMA), Tom Pearson (NYSDEC Region 8), Steve Eidt (NYSDEC Region 7), Gene Hocutt (CLWN, FLEA), David Zorn (G/FLRPC)

Connected by telephone: Charles McAfree (NYSDOS), Kevin Millington (NYSDOS)

Overview of the Cayuga Lake Watershed Management Planning Project – Discussion of components and timeline. Components include Public Participation/Cooperation with emphasis on public forums and an Intermunicipal Organization, Education Outreach, and Watershed Characterization. It was pointed out that a slide presentation has been developed and is being shown to elected officials and county water quality coordinating committees in support of the Intermunicipal Organization and the technical fact finding portion of the project.

Watershed Characterization/State of the Lake Report Existing Data, Information and Needs – The Genesee/Finger Lakes Regional Planning Council is doing topographic delineation of the Cayuga Lake Watershed and associated subwatersheds, a Salt Storage/Road Deicing Survey, general watershed characterization information and data collection, potential sources of contamination informamtion and data collection, and a survey and document collection of municipal, county, state and federal regulatory and programmatic environment. Information and data needs discussed include the following:

Limnological/Sampling and Monitoring
Land Use
Soils
Potential Sources of Contamination
Natural Resources
Regulatory and Programmatic Environment

Information and sources available for the State of the Lake Report:

-- Limnological monitoring conducted during the harvest season (complete in late winter).
-- Sediment coring samples summarized to determine depositional rates and toxic deposition over time (complete in late 1999)

-- Pesticide monitoring
-- Drinking water monitoring from inflows from six creeks (Fall, Salmon, Paynes, Yoga, Sheldrake, and Taughannock)
-- Draft GIS Data Report including federal, state, local GIS data inventory(done in 6-9 months)

-- Nutrient, chlorophyll a, and secchi disk sampling of the north end of lake since 1991 (currently available)
-- Aquatic macrophyte studies (European Aquatic Moth)
-- Weed densities and harvesting program information
-- Erosion control projects

-- The majority of data collected is on the refuge
-- Water quality sampling done on the north end of the refuge
-- Carp and water fowl studies have been conducted
--       Water fowl and water birds information

-- Currently cataloging information from several departments (planning, health, SWCD, Cornell Extension, public works, and municipal water departments)
-- An aquifer map for the county is approximately 60% complete (done in conjunction with USGS) with wellhead documentation
-- Continuing work on streambank stabilization documentation

-- GIS coverages of watershed delineation and soils available from Planning Department
-- Some monitoring has been done by Jim Hotaling/SWCD
-- NRCS data - EQIP

-- Suggested contact with Canal Corporation, NYS DOT, and Thruway Authority
-- Seneca Meadows Landfill - up for permit, issues regarding groundwater and system loading; effluents; contamination of groundwater in southeast direction; presently hauling leachate, may pipe to Seneca Falls Sewage Treatment Plant

Cayuga Lake Watershed Network – citizen group for coordination, communication and education about the watershed

--     FLEA – 800 member organization focused on lake levels and loss of wetlands

-- Not a lot of independent work - most done in conjunction with county and local agencies
-- SPEDES coverages
-- Data pertaining to Bond Act
-- Joint studies with Tompkins County to reduce phosphorous loading
-- NPS data (done in conjunction with CNYRPDB and county WQCC’s)
-- Priority Waterbody List

Lake source cooling permits

NYSEG permits

-- State GIS initiatives – digital ortho quads, elevation mapping (DEMs), planametrics with 2 feet contours in digital format and cataloged

        --       Digital flood plains

• NYS DOT may have inland, coring data
• DEC Fisheries
• Cornell - Lanny Joyce, Ray Oglesby
• NRCS
• National Weather Service
• USDA supported projects in the watershed
• Sewage treatment plants and water purveyors
• Tompkins County Planning Department
• Soil & Water Conservation Districts
• RIBS sites
• Army Corps of Engineers (sediments for dredging)

Other potential Technical Committee members

Cornell - Bob Johnson, Ray Oglesby, Pat McNalley

Hobart & William Smith College - John Halfman (may also additional data for State of Lake Report)

Syracuse University - Hank Mullins

NYSDEC Region 7 – Les Wedge

NYSDOT – John Zmarthie

Research Consortium

• Thermal loading
• Sewage treatment
• Interconnectedness of Cayuga Lake Watershed to Oswego River Basin, other Finger Lakes, and the Seneca and Oneida Rivers. Cayuga Lake down stream in the basin.
• Get information to elected officials
• Primary goal (Charley McAfree, NYSDOS) – Identify critical projects for Bond Act

Discussion of Limnology Consultant/Academic Institutions

• Inventory and catalog existing data
• Quality control, narrow down and synthesize existing data
• Analyze existing data
• Identify holes in existing data
• Use technical consultant to synthesize and analyze existing data and identify holes in data. Technical consultant should be a generalist.

• Identify source for USEPA land use data – Bill Kappel
• Supply Cayuga Lake Watershed Network Bylaws – Gene Hocutt
• Potential slide presentation to Cayuga Lake Watershed forum – Bill Kappel
• Supply list of technical water quality projects in Cayuga County – Nadia Niniowsky
• Supply copy of USGS Oswego Basin proposal – Bill Kappel

CLW IO 2000