Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute and the Hamilton County Soil and Water Conservation District have collaborated on a study detailing long term trends of the water quality in 21 Hamilton County lakes.
“The State of Hamilton County Lakes: A 25 Year Perspective 1993 – 2017” was developed to deliver a countywide assessment of the current and historical water quality status and in hopes of guiding future watershed management decisions. » Continue Reading.
The Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute (AWI) has been awarded a five-year, $9.3 million contract by New York State to implement the Adirondack Park Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Program.
The contract calls for the AWI to implement a region-wide watercraft inspection and decontamination program to stop the introduction, spread, and transport of aquatic invasive species such as Eurasian watermilfoil, zebra mussels, and spiny waterflea. Through it, 58 stewards will be funded at dozens of locations across the park. Public-facing efforts are seen as key as recreational watercraft susceptible to spreading invasive species move about the park in the coming months. » Continue Reading.
The Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute has received a $594,276 grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for its ongoing work in controlling and preventing the spread of aquatic invasive species.
The funds will go toward work carried out by AWI stewards at approximately 10 different locations, including Upper St. Regis Lake, the St. Lawrence River and the lower Raquette River Reservoirs. » Continue Reading.
T
he Adirondack Lake Assessment Program (ALAP) celebrates its 20th season this year of monitoring the water quality of dozens of lakes and ponds across the Adirondacks. ALAP is a partnership between Protect the Adirondacks and the Adirondack Watershed Institute at Paul Smith’s College.
Believing good public policy is dependent on accurate data and science, ALAP started in 1998 with three objectives: 1) to organize long-term water quality data on individual lakes and ponds in the Adirondack Park; 2) to provide long-term trend data on individual lakes and ponds for local residents, lake associations, property owners and local governments to help organize water quality protection efforts; and, 3) to assemble a profile of water quality conditions across the Adirondacks. » Continue Reading.
The election last night in Lake George was a referendum on protecting the lake and the lake won. Last night, the team that was swept into office in 2011 on a platform of real change in town government built around protection of Lake George was handily re-elected.
Dennis Dickinson won as Supervisor and Marisa Muratori and Dan Hurley won for the Town Board. Dickinson and Muratori narrowly lost the Republican primary in September, but were elected on the Reform Party line. This is the second time that Muratori has been elected on a third party line. Hurley was elected as a Democrat. » Continue Reading.
The Adirondack Park may become the first region in New York State to have its own, integrated program to halt the spread of aquatic invasive species.
Governor Andrew Cuomo has asked the state legislature to appropriate $1 million to develop the Adirondack-wide strategy.
According to Morris Peters, a spokesman for the Division of the Budget, the money for the new initiative will come from an increase in appropriations to the Environmental Protection Fund. » Continue Reading.
Standing next to a small, unnamed stream near where it empties into Mountain Pond on a cool September day, scientist Dan Kelting reads a sensor he just dipped in the water to measure electrical conductivity, which is used to gauge road-salt concentrations.
Pure water is a poor conductor of electricity, but road salt, or sodium chloride, increases conductivity. Based on the conductivity reading (285 microsiemens per centimeter), Kelting calculates that the water contains 80 milligrams of chloride per liter. This means the stream contains roughly 160 times more chloride than a similar size stream a few miles away.
Why the difference? The stream near Mountain Pond, north of Paul Smith’s College, is downstream from Route 30, a state highway that is heavily salted in the winter. The other stream, which Kelting refers to as Smitty Brook, runs through the Forest Preserve and is upstream of roads. » Continue Reading.
Boaters on Adirondack waterways will be a lot more likely to be questioned about whether they are transporting invasive species at local boat launches this year thanks to a boost in funding for two water steward programs. The Watershed Stewardship Program at Paul Smith’s College will nearly quadruple its workforce across the central Adirondacks this year while the Lake George Association is also expanding its coverage at Lake George.
With the help of a grant from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, Paul Smith’s stewards will help protect three major recreational areas: Saratoga Lake; the Lake Placid, Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake region; and the Fulton Chain of Lakes in the Old Forge area. The Lake George Association’s Lake Steward Program on Lake George will also significantly expand over last year’s level thanks to new funding provided by the Lake George Park Commission. » Continue Reading.
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