Limnology and Water Quality of the Rainbow Lake Chain: Update on the 2021 Field Season

Adirondack Watershed Institute

Brendan Wiltse, Elizabeth Yerger, Lija Treibergs, Joline Hall, & Connor Vara

First initiated in 1997, the Rainbow Lake Monitoring Program was specifically designed to describe the trophic status of Rainbow Lake and Clear Pond and to detect impacts from shoreline areas with dense concentrations of camps. Now 24 years later, the program represents an excellent example of long-term limnological monitoring in the Adirondacks. Long-term limnological data sets are essential for evaluating ecosystem response to disturbances, providing a baseline to evaluate change, or detecting response to management intervention. The objective of this report is to provide an update on the lake monitoring program by summarizing the results from the 2021 field season and describing historical trends in the key water quality indicators. Detailed descriptions of the morphometry of the lakes, field and lab methodology, and guidelines for interpreting the data can be found in the 2017 Annual Report, available on the web pages of the Rainbow Lake Association as well as the Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute.