Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Loss Of Nutrients And Soil From Sandy Pond Tributaries, Oswego County, N.Y., Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis, Daniel White

Joseph C Makarewicz

North and South Sandy Ponds comprise one of the largest coastal bay ecosystems on Lake Ontario. Unlike South Sandy Pond, North Sandy Pond supports intensive recreational activities and intensive shorefront residential development including a commercial campground and several marinas. Both ponds have an over abundance of nutrients and are the likely cause of the over abundance of aquatic weeds in the water. The limnological literature is quite clear on the causes of this unwanted overabundance of aquatic weeds and microscopic plants – an excess amount of nutrients or fertilizers are entering the water. A short list of possible sources of …

Management Approaches For The Control Of Aquatic Plants, Joseph Makarewicz, Daina Beckstrand, Isidro Bosch

Joseph C Makarewicz

This guide is designed to provide information on the ecological values and problems associated with aquatic macrophytes, to present methods used to control the troublesome species, and to provide suggestions on how to implement a lake management plan that would deal with macrophytes as legally and as safely as possible.

Concentration Of Selected Priority Organic Contaminants In Fish Maintained On Formulated Diets In Lake Ontario Waters, Joseph Buttner, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis

Joseph C Makarewicz

Fish were grown in Lake Ontario water under conditions simulating commercial aquaculture and then analyzed for 10 priority organic contaminants. Black bullheads (Ameiurus meias) were grown in cages placed in a bay of Lake Ontario. Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were grown in terrestrial raceways served with Lake Ontario water. Yearlings were reared on a commercial ration in these systems, which partially isolated them from the contaminant-laden food web and bottom sediments, to an average weight of 93 g for black bullheads (range, 31-220 g) and 213 g (29-558 g) for rainbow trout. Concentrations of contaminants in skinless fillets of both …

Segment Analysis Of Sheldon Creek: The Location Of Sources Of Pollution, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis

Joseph C Makarewicz

Considerable concern about the deteriorating condition of Lake Neatahwanta has existed for well over a decade. A goal of the Oswego County Soil and Water Conservation District water quality monitoring program was the development of a statistically defensible database of ecologically important parameters that would allow stewards of the watershed to prioritize and determine which sub-watershed had the largest potential impact on Lake Neatahwanta. After three years of sampling the four creeks draining into the lake, Sheldon Creek, as opposed to Ley, Summerville and Granby Creeks, was determined to be losing the largest amounts of water, soil and nutrients from …

An Addendum To Segment Analysis Of Sucker Brook: The Location Of Sources Of Pollution, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis

Joseph C Makarewicz

This supplemental report is an addendum to the original study 'Segment Analysis of Sucker Brook: The location of sources of pollution' (Makarewicz et a/. 1999). In the original study, recommendations for further investigation of two segments of Sucker Brook were suggested as follows. 1. The segment above Site 7 (Figure 1) in the City of Canandaigua had high concentrations of soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) and total phosphorus (TP) during an event January 1999. The source(s) was not identified. 2. The segment between Sites3 and 4 (Figure 1) had high concentrations of soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP), total phosphorus (TP) and total …

Chemical Analysis And Nutrient Loading Of Streams Entering Sodus Bay, N.Y, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis

Joseph C Makarewicz

In response to public concern created by an abundance of nuisance weeds (i.e. macrophytes) within the three embayments of Wayne County (Sodus, East and Port Bays) , the Aquatic Vegetation Control Program was created in 1987 to develop long-term management strategies for the Bays. The program is administered jointly by the Wayne County Planning Board and the Wayne County Soil and Water Conservation District. The Soil and Water Conservation District recognized early that management of the Bay ecosystem would require the development of a data base presently not available. Toward this end, the Wayne County Soil and Water Conservation District …

Silver Lake Limnological Survey, 2004, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis, William Guenther

Joseph C Makarewicz

During the spring, summer and fall of 2004, a limnological survey of Silver Lake was conducted. The purpose of the survey was to update the status of Silver Lake. Some of the questions being asked were as follows. Was the lake highly productive? Were the bottom layers of the lake devoid of oxygen? Was phosphorus being released from the sediments into the water column? Were there algal blooms? What might be the cause of them? Were there blue-green algae present? Were algal toxins present? When? Monitoring was designed to take samples only during the summer period with depth to minimize …

Uptake And Retention Of Mirex By Fish Maintained On Formulated And Natural Diets In Lake Ontario Waters, Joseph Makarewicz, Joseph Buttner, Theodore Lewis

Joseph C Makarewicz

Fish with no detectable levels of the contaminant mirex were grown in Lake Ontario waters under conditions simulating commercial aquaculture. Benthic black bullheads (Ameiurus me/as) were grown in cages placed in a bay of the lake. Pelagic rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were grown in terrestrial raceways served with Lake Ontario waters. Contaminant-free fingerlings were reared to a large size on a commercial ration in these systems, which partially isolated them from the contaminant-laden food web and bottom sediments. Black bullheads fed a mirex-spiked, commercially prepared food had mirex concentrations that exceeded the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) action level …

Genesee River Monroe County, New York, Joseph Makarewicz, Matthew Nowak

Joseph C Makarewicz

Originating in Potter County, Pennsylvania, the Genesee River travels 157 miles northward before emptying into the Rochester Embayment at the Port of Rochester on Lake Ontario. The 2,500-mi watershed of the Genesee River is predominately in agriculture and forest until it reaches the suburban urban environment of the City of Rochester, New York. Several wastewater plants, including Eastman Kodak’s industrial waste plant (King’s Landing) and Scottsville, and Honeoye Falls sewage treatment plants, discharge into the river. Just west and east of the outfall of the Genesee River into Lake Ontario are Charlotte and Durand Eastman Beaches that are periodically closed …

Twelvemile Creek Niagara County, New York, Joseph Makarewicz, Matthew Nowak

Joseph C Makarewicz

The east branch of Twelvemile Creek (69 mi2) flows through northern Niagara County to its mouth at Lake Ontario 12 miles east of the Niagara River, near the village of Wilson, New York. From fall through spring, good runs of steelhead and brown trout with the occasional Chinook and Coho salmon occur into the creek. Agriculture, especially row crop farming, is predominant within the watershed, though natural protected land is also plentiful. The Wilson-Tuscarora State Park provides a buffer between the creek and agriculture immediately around the mouth of the creek, while upstream farms directly line the creek. Nuisance algae, …

Niagara River Niagara County, New York, Joseph Makarewicz, Matthew Nowak

Joseph C Makarewicz

The Niagara River carries water from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario and is the major source of Lake Ontario’s water volume. Famous for the immense Niagara Falls, the 36-mile river is used by over 1 million people in the United States and Canada for functions including drinking water, recreation, and hydropower (Niagara Parks 2009). The Niagara River drains the entire upper Great Lake system into the final lake, Lake Ontario, and due to this huge volume of water has a large potential to change Lake Ontario’s water quality. Nuisance algae, bacterial abundance, and algal mat development along the southern shoreline …

Port Bay Wayne County, New York, Joseph Makarewicz, Matthew Nowak

Joseph C Makarewicz

Located midway between Rochester and Oswego, New York, Port Bay is one of southern Lake Ontario’s larger but relatively shallow (<25 feet) embayments. The perimeter of the bay is primarily residential, but portions of the shoreline and watershed are part of the Lake Shores Marshes Wildlife Area. Wolcott Creek is the major tributary of Port Bay and drains ~27 mi² of land that is mostly in agriculture. The bay receives treated effluent from the Village of Wolcott Sewage Treatment Plant. Port Bay suffers from cultural eutrophication and is on the New York State 303d list of Impaired Waters due to an overabundance of phosphorus. Benthic anoxia is a major effect of this eutrophication. Port Bay is impacted by nuisance algae, and harmful algal blooms have been observed (Makarewicz et al. 2009). This short report provides a synopsis of …

Lake Ontario Coastal Initiative Action Agenda, Joseph Makarewicz, Betsy Landre, Stephen Lewandowski, John Terninko, Elizabeth Thorndike

Joseph C Makarewicz

The mission of the Lake Ontario Coastal Initiative (LOCI), encompassing all New York State North Coast stakeholders from the Niagara River to the St. Lawrence River, is to enlist and retain broad public commitment for remediation, restoration, protection, conservation and sustainable use of the coastal region. This mission will be accomplished by securing funds and resources to achieve scientific understanding, educate citizens, and implement locally supported priorities, programs and projects as identified through this Initiative.

Sodus Bay Wayne County, New York, Joseph Makarewicz, Matthew Nowak

Joseph C Makarewicz

Sodus Bay is one of Lake Ontario’s major embayments separated from the lake by a 7,500-foot long barrier beach. The bay is located in Wayne County, New York, and is 4.4 miles in length and 2.4 miles across. This major point of access to Lake Ontario contains 12 marinas, 13 waterfront restaurants, 2 public access sites, a public beach, and a sailing school. The 46-mi² Sodus Bay watershed is composed of land that is 30% agriculture, 4% developed land, 61% forest, and 4% wetlands. First Creek, Second Creek, Third Creek, Sodus Creek West, Sodus Creek East (Glenmark Creek), and …

Cape Vincent Harbor: Summer Data Report To The Army Corps Of Engineers Buffalo District, James Haynes, Joseph Makarewicz

Joseph C Makarewicz

Fish, benthos, macrophytes and birds were collected or observed over two days (16 July through 17 July 1979) at Cape Vincent Harbor, New York, to evaluate the potential biological impact of dredging on the harbor. Figure 1 is a map of the harbor area indicating the location of sampling sites. Observed fishing pressure and boat traffic were minimal during the two-day sampling trip. This is a preliminary data report. The final report will include both our analysis and interpretation of the data regarding potential impacts of dredging.

Final Data Report: Sodus Bay Limnology, Lake Chemistry, Phytoplankton And Zooplankton Abundance And Nutrient And Soil Losses From The Watershed, 2004, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis

Joseph C Makarewicz

During the spring, summer and fall of 2004, limnological and sub-watershed data were collected from Sodus Bay. In general, monitoring and analysis were designed to meet the following objectives: document current lake, sediment and nutrient conditions; document stream loading to the lake; characterize the bay's community of phytoplankton and zooplankton to provide a benchmark against which the effectiveness of future management actions can be measured. This program will assist in developing a watershed enhancement plan and provide data for a simulation to determine the need for and likely success of adding alum to decrease phosphorus loss from the anoxic hypolimnion.

Segment Analysis Of Johnson Creek: The Location Of Sources Of Pollution, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis

Joseph C Makarewicz

Johnson Creek is located in the southern portion of the Lake Ontario watershed, Orleans and Niagara Counties, New York. The relatively large watershed encompasses 98.6 square miles and flows into Lake Ontario near Kuckville, New York. Two years of continuous water quality monitoring indicated that the Johnson Creek watershed was a source of phosphorus, nitrate, organic nitrogen, sodium and soils to Lake Ontario. That is, Johnson Creek and the watershed it drained are a source of nutrients and soil pollution to Lake Ontario relative to other watersheds of similar size in western New York.

Where are the sources of nutrients, …

A Technique For Identifying Pollution Sources In A Watershed: Stressed Stream Analysis Revisited, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis

Joseph C Makarewicz

This article describes stressed stream analysis, and how it is used to identify and prioritize sub-watersheds by their relative contribution to the deterioration of the lake ecosystem and, subsequently, to locate point and nonpoint sources within priority sub-watersheds.

Epilimnetic Phytoplankton And Zooplankton Biomass And Species Composition In Lake Ontario, 1986 To 1992., Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis, Paul Bertram

Joseph C Makarewicz

Results of the Food Web Workshop II (Hartig et al. 1991) indicated that Lake Ontario may be the next Great Lake after Lake Michigan to demonstrate the effects of changing nutrient levels and food web controls. Total phosphorus loads into the lake declined by 80% since 1972 and have approached the target loading set by the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreements between the United States and Canada. Spring total phosphorus levels declined from 25 to 14 IlglL between 1971 and the late 1980s and are currently below 10 Ilg/L. Although declines in chlorophyll-a were relatively low and transparency has not …

Characterization And Prioritization Of The Watersheds Of Niagara County, New York, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis, Daniel White, Mark Seider, Victor Digiacomo

Joseph C Makarewicz

In recognition of the need to acquire a uniform, organized approach to addressing surface 6 water degradation and given the diverse nature of non-point sources of pollution within the County, the Soil and Water Conservation District formed a committee known as the Niagara County Water Quality Coordinating Committee (WQCC). Since little was known about the environmental status of other major creeks in Niagara County, the WQCC recommended a study to evaluate nutrient and soil loss from 17 watersheds and their creeks. The purpose of the monitoring program was to collect water quality data to quantify the concentration and loading of …

Water Quality Of The North End Of Cayuga Lake: 1991-2006, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis, Daniel White

Joseph C Makarewicz

The Seneca County Soil and Water Conservation District (SCSWCD) has collected limnological data on the waters of the northern end of Cayuga Lake since 1991. This report updates the 1999 report (Makarewicz et al. 1999) with data taken by the SCSWCD from 1999 to 2006. The purpose of monitoring the northern portion of Cayuga Lake was to determine the health of the Cayuga Lake ecosystem and to determine if any temporal trends existed in Cayuga Lake water quality. The water quality of Cayuga Lake has been studied since the early 1900s when secchi disk readings were first taken. At that …

Nutrient And Sediment Loss From A Niagara County Watershed : The East Branch Of Twelvemile Creek, May 1998 To May 2000, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis

Joseph C Makarewicz

Discharge and nutrient loss from a Niagara County tributary, Twelvemile Creek, was intensely monitored for two consecutive years by automated gauging and sampling techniques. This report focuses on the two annual cycles monitored (19 May 1998 to 18 May 1999 [Year 1] and 19 May 1999 to 17 May 2000 [Year 2]). The sampling regime allows an accurate measurement of discharge, nutrient and soil loss from a watershed during hydrometeorological events and nonevent conditions. Discharge and concentrations of nitrate, total phosphorus, sodium, total suspended solids, and total kjeldahl nitrogen were measured and converted into the amount of material lost from …

Water Chemistry Of The North And South Basins Of Conesus Lake, Joseph Makarewicz, Isidro Bosch, Theodore Lewis

Joseph C Makarewicz

The objective of this study was to determine if there were differences in the chemistry of the north and south basins of Conesus Lake during the summer stratification period. To achieve this objective, water samples were taken from 18 May to 2 November 2000 from both basins.

Population Studies Of Eurasian Watermilfoil ( Myriophyllum Spicatum ) And Zebra Mussels (Dreissena Polymorpha) In Conesus Lake, N.Y. (Summer 2000), Isidro Bosch, Joseph Makarewicz, Jennifer Emblidge, Douglas Johnson, Michael Valentino

Joseph C Makarewicz

The primary goal of our research during the summer 2000 was to examine the distribution and density Eurasian watermilfoil beds and of populations of zebra mussels in Conesus Lake. The results of this study improve our knowledge of these populations and contribute to the scientific foundation required for consideration of possible management strategies. A secondary goal of this project was to extend our long term database on macrophyte growth at two sites first studied by Herman Forest and his colleagues in 1967.

The Development Of An Stream Water Quality Assessment Index To Evaluate Stream Health Conesus Lake Tributaries Spring 2011, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis, Blake Snyder

Joseph C Makarewicz

The major goal was to develop an assessment tool for watershed health utilizing the USDA data base. Such a tool would allow the county to evaluate the status of watersheds; that is, are they improving, getting worse, or not changing. An evaluation tool of this type would allow further development and direction of the Conesus Lake Watershed Management Plan.

Monitoring of two of the USDA streams (Cottonwood Gully and North McMillan Creek) was changed to the spring rather than the summer. This was done as a result of last year’s work which suggested that spring monitoring may provide a better …

New York’S North Coast A Troubled Coastline: Lake Ontario Embayments Initiative, Joseph Makarewicz

Joseph C Makarewicz

The North Coast of New York State stretches over 140 miles through seven counties from the Niagara River in the west to the St. Lawrence River in the east creating a boundary between the Province of Ontario in Canada and New York State. The bays, river and creek mouths, wetlands, and ponds, generally called the embayments in this report, are the subject of this initiative. Located on the south shore of Lake Ontario, they are of vital importance to the economic well-being of the area and are threatened by pollution. The embayments are suffering from many impairments that significantly limit …

Nutrient Loading Of Streams Entering Sodus Bay And Port Bay, Ny, Joseph Makarewicz, Theodore Lewis, Robert Williams

Joseph C Makarewicz

The Wayne County SWCD, in cooperation with the Center for Applied Aquatic Sciences and Aquaculture at SUNY Brockport, have successfully identified and prioritized several problems associated with water pollution on two watersheds. The initial goal was to identify any pollution problems that may have existed. The first objective was to identify and prioritize which nutrients were of concern. The second objective was to identify and prioritize which tributaries and their watersheds were the most impaired. All of these objectives have been achieved. Our current goal is to identify the sources of priority pollutants within the priority 2 tributaries and to …

Water Quality Of Conesus Lake, 1985-1986, Joseph Makarewicz, Herman Forest

Joseph C Makarewicz

An intensive study of Conesus Lake and its tributaries was undertaken between April 1985 and December 1986 with the following general objectives: (1) To evaluate the water quality of Conesus Lake, the source of drinking water for the Town of Livonia and the Villages of Geneseo and Avon; (2) To identify, if possible, water of lower turbidity within the lake; (3) To identify, if possible, causes of higher turbidity in raw water intakes of the Livonia and Geneseo water treatment plants; (4) To evaluate what effect, if any, the construction of a perimeter sewer has had on nutrient levels within …

Water Quality Of The Coastal Zone Of Lake Ontario- Loci Revisited, Joseph Makarewicz

Joseph C Makarewicz

No abstract provided.

Oak Orchard Harbor Summer Data Report To The Army Corps Of Engineers Buffalo District, Joseph Makarewicz, James Haynes

Joseph C Makarewicz

On 8 and 9 July 1979 benthos, fish, macrophytes and birds were collected or observed at Oak Orchard Harbor, New York, to evaluate the potential biological impact of dredging the harbor area. This is a data report. In the final report, our analysis and interpretation of the data collected will be presented. Figures 1 and 2 are maps of the Oak Orchard Harbor area indicating the location of sample sites. Table 1 provides information on bottom characteristics at the benthos sampling sites. Fishing pressure and boat traffic were heavy compared to the usage during the fall 1978 sampling trip. Water …