2015 Annual Report
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
i Onondaga County Department of Water Environment Protection VISION To be a respected leader in wastewater treatment, stormwater management, and the protection of our environment using state of-the-art, innovative technologies and sound scientific principles as our guide. MISSION To protect and improve the water environment of Onondaga County in a cost-effective manner ensuring the health and sustainability of our community and economy. CORE VALUES Excellence Teamwork Honesty Innovation Cost-Effectiveness Safety http://www.savetherain.us Onondaga County Department of Water Environment Protection February 2017 2015 Ambient Monitoring Program ii Final ONONDAGA LAKE AMBIENT MONITORING PROGRAM 2015 ANNUAL REPORT ONONDAGA COUNTY, NEW YORK Final,February 2017 Prepared for ONONDAGA COUNTY, NEW YORK Prepared by Upstate Freshwater Institute Onondaga County Department of Water Syracuse, NY Environment Protection Syracuse, NY EcoLogic Lars Rudstam, Ph.D. Cazenovia, NY Cornell Biological Field Station Bridgeport, NY Anchor QEA, LLC Liverpool, NY Onondaga County Department of Water Environment Protection February 2017 2015 Ambient Monitoring Program iii Final Key Features of this Report The 2015 report is distributed as an electronic file in portable document format (PDF), which can be opened using Adobe Reader. Key results and supporting tables and graphics are included in the main document, with links to additional tables, technical reports, and graphics in electronic appendices. The report and supporting files are available on the Onondaga County web site http://www.ongov.net/wep. Throughout the document the reader will find hyperlinks marked in bright blue, which provide easy access to other sections of the report (e.g., figures, tables) as well as external links to web pages and email addresses. Users navigate to external resources by simply left-clicking on the hyperlink. For web links, the users default web browser will load and navigate to the selected web site. When finished viewing the web site, the user simply closes the web browser leaving the report open at the previous location. When the user first selects a web link, a security warning menu will appear: “Do you trust (domain name here)? If you trust the site choose Allow. If you do not trust the site choose Block”. 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Onondaga County Department of Water Environment Protection February 2017 2015 Ambient Monitoring Program v Final This page intentionally left blank Onondaga County Department of Water Environment Protection February 2017 2015 Ambient Monitoring Program vi Final Table of Contents KEY FEATURES OF THIS REPORT ....................................................................................................... iv LIST OF TABLES .......................................................................................................................... xi LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................................ xiii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................................................... 1 Section 1. Introduction to the AMP ..................................................................................... 13 1.1 Regulatory Requirements ..................................................................................................... 13 1.2 Classification and Designated Best Use ................................................................................ 13 1.3 AMP Objectives and Design .................................................................................................. 20 1.4 Amended Consent Judgment Milestones ............................................................................ 26 1.5 Use of Metrics to Measure and Report Progress ................................................................. 28 Section 2. Onondaga Lake and its Watershed ...................................................................... 35 2.1 Watershed Size and Hydrology ............................................................................................ 35 2.2 Land Use ............................................................................................................................... 36 2.3 Morphometry ....................................................................................................................... 38 Section 3. Onondaga County Actions and Progress with Related Initiatives ......................... 41 3.1 Onondaga County Projects and Milestones ......................................................................... 41 3.2 Progress with Related Initiatives .......................................................................................... 55 Section 4. Tributary Water Quality: 2015 Results and Long-Term Trends ............................. 57 4.1 Tributary Monitoring Program ............................................................................................. 57 4.2 Meteorological Drivers and Streamflow .............................................................................. 58 4.3 Loading Estimates ................................................................................................................. 62 4.3.1 Methodology ................................................................................................................... 62 4.3.2 Results for Key Constituents ........................................................................................... 62 4.3.3 Phosphorus Loading and Bioavailability .......................................................................... 68 4.4 Metro Performance .............................................................................................................. 72 4.5 Prohibited Combined and Sanitary Sewer Overflows .......................................................... 78 4.6 Compliance with Ambient Water Quality Standards ........................................................... 79 4.7 Long-Term Trends ................................................................................................................. 85 4.8 Post Construction Compliance Monitoring Program (PCCM) .............................................. 91 4.8.1 Overview of the PCCM Program...................................................................................... 91 4.8.2 The 2015 PCCM Program ................................................................................................ 92 4.8.3 2015 PCCM Results .......................................................................................................... 96 4.8.3.1 PCCM Event 1 Onondaga Creek – May 18, 2015 ......................................................... 96 4.8.3.2 PCCM Event 1 Harbor Brook – June 8, 2015 .............................................................. 102 Onondaga County Department of Water Environment Protection February 2017 2015 Ambient Monitoring Program vii Final 4.8.3.3 Summary of 2015 PCCM Results ................................................................................ 106 4.9 Microbial Source Trackdown Study 2015 ........................................................................... 108 4.10 2015 Macroinvertebrate Monitoring ................................................................................. 111 Section 5. Onondaga Lake Water Quality: