PAUL SMITHS, N.Y. (January 31, 2023) - The Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute recently announced that it has been awarded a 5-year contract from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority to conduct continued routine monitoring of Adirondack lakes beginning January 2023. The project continues the work started by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation to understand the impacts of acid rain on aquatic resources.

The original Adirondack Lakes Survey in the 1980’s examined nearly 1,500 Adirondack lakes for 20 measures of water quality. This research uncovered crucial evidence about the impacts of acid rain on Adirondack lakes and streams and led to important changes to the Clean Air Act including reduction in coal-fired power plant emissions. It also allowed scientists to collect an unprecedented amount of data about the chemistry, biology and physical characteristics of lakes in the Adirondacks. The Adirondack Long-Term Monitoring program was initiated in 1982, focusing on collecting monthly chemistry measurements from 17 lakes. In 1992 the program was expanded to 52 lakes. The Adirondack Watershed Institute is carrying this legacy forward.    

The project is funded by NYSERDA’s Environmental Research Program with support from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In conjunction with various contractors, this cooperative arrangement has supported the Adirondack Long-Term Monitoring Program since 1998, providing high-quality data documenting environmental change over several decades. It has also contributed a better understanding of the processes involved in ecosystem acidification and its recovery through interpretation of trends and other data analysis.

“We are grateful to NYSERDA and to the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation for four decades of regional lake surveys and for what this has meant for our region and air pollution reduction,” said Zoë Smith, executive director of the Adirondack Watershed Institute. “The Adirondack Lakes Survey and Adirondack Long-Term Monitoring established the Adirondacks as highly sensitive to pollution emissions from Midwest coal-burning facilities which led to drastic changes to federal policies and consequently, we are starting to see the recovery of our lakes, forests and wildlife.”

Under its Adirondack Long-Term Monitoring contract, AWI will deploy field scientists beginning this February to collect water samples at 58 sites located on state and private lands in the Adirondacks. Annual monitoring will include sampling in all four seasons. This project adds to the nearly 150 sites in AWI’s current lake monitoring network.

“NYSERDA is pleased to continue funding the Adirondack Long Term Monitoring Program for another five-year term in cooperation with our partners at DEC, EPA, and the U.S. Geological Survey,” said Jeremy Magliaro, Program Manager of NYSERDA’s Environmental Research Program. “This monitoring program will enable our state and federal policy makers to better understand the effects of air pollution on the State’s sensitive Adirondack waters while documenting trends in ecosystem recovery from acid rain pollution.”

Together with the new Adirondack Long-Term Monitoring contract and its existing lake and stream monitoring programs, AWI will be operating the most extensive long-term lake monitoring program in the Adirondacks.

“We already have a good understanding of watershed conditions in the Adirondack Park,” said Dr. Brendan Wiltse, senior research scientist for AWI and the Adirondack Long-Term Monitoring project coordinator. “Winning this contract allows us to leverage our existing Adirondack Lake Assessment Program and regional stream monitoring program to expand regional long-term water quality monitoring in the Adirondack Park. Adirondack lakes are facing stress from climate change, road salt, harmful algal blooms, failing septic systems, and invasive species. High-quality, long-term data that documents changes to our environment are essential to inform effective and equitable policies that protect clean water.”

Under its contract, AWI will convene an Adirondack Long-Term Monitoring science advisory committee to identify opportunities for additional sampling with a specific focus on climate change, facilitate utilization of the data to advance the science and understanding of the Adirondack ecoregion, and strengthen collaboration among regional organizations.

About the Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute

The mission of the Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute is to protect clean water,

conserve habitat and support the health and well-being of people in the Adirondacks through scientific inquiry, stewardship and real-world experiences for students. adkwatershed.org.

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