7/29/2024
WT Staff
 July 29, 2024 updated 1104 am EDT
HAPPENING NOW
NWS: Heavy rain upstate may produce localized flooding tomorrow
Hazardous Weather Outlook issued 327 am July 29 by NWS Binghamton
Scattered showers and thunderstorms Tuesday afternoon into Wednesday
then again Friday may produce heavy downpours that lead to localized
small stream and urban flooding.
Impacting Northern Oneida-Yates-Seneca-Southern Cayuga-Onondaga-Steuben-
Schuyler-Chemung-Tompkins-Madison-Southern Oneida-Cortland-Chenango-
Otsego-Tioga-Broome-Delaware-Sullivan Counties.
St Lawrence River and Lake Champlain watersheds upstate north continue to run much above seasonal normal Monday, below normal to normal flows in the west, including the southwest, more below normal rated streamflows coming on in the central, southeast and Long Island. Two extreme lows are recorded Monday, one in the south facing Chemung River watershed, the other in Lower Hudson River watershed.
The latest satellite image from NCCOS captured July 28 shows Lake Champlain's northeast HAB moving away from the shorelines of Baie Missisquoi, continuing to appear as dispersed mats of a lower concentration than observed so far this season. The HAB appears to have retreated from its southward expansion, no longer edging for Alburg-Swanton, tucked back up close to the bay where it originated in late June, running a consistent concentration around 600 thousand cells per 100 ml, no hot spots. The Vermont pond we have been reporting at high concentration may be Shelburne Pond, the HAB in this image looks like it has rocketed up to 4 million cells per 100 ml.
From the NYS DEC HABs reporting center, eighty-nine HABs remain on the active roster Monday, down from ninety reports on Sunday. One HAB has been shifted from the active file to the archives overnight, as of Monday morning, no new reports have been confirmed since Sunday. We will check back in the afternoon for new reports and confirmations. More to follow. See bluegreen tags on the map to the right for the impacted water bodies with at least one active HAB, the full list of HABs is found here.
WT HAB Tracker from state sources and where available, the satellite monitoring program of the NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science
Lake Erie west basin: Ohio, Michigan
The latest satellite view from NCCOS captured July 28 at surface wind speed 5.1 offers a partially cloud obscured view of the Lake Erie west basin and the HAB occupying the south half of this water. The east edge of the HAB is cloud obscured in this image, we cannot tell if it has expanded further east over the last 24 hours, the previous image showed the east extent in line with the Toussaint River outlet. The southwest extent of this HAB is squeezing inland into Maumee Bay at 600 thousand cells per 100 ml, the concentration up in North Maumee Bay remains the hot spot at 1 to 1.5 million cells per 100 ml. Maumee Bay State Park still posted with algal toxin advisory has HAB visible up to the shoreline, the concentration is up to 600 thousand cells per 100 ml. Sandusky Bay HAB Aphanizomenon appears to be filling in density and increased in concentration to 800 thousand cells per 100 ml west and east of the OH-269 bridge. Clouds obscure the extent of this HAB on the open water side of Cedar Point. See the last Ohio HAB report here.
Louisiana: The latest upload from the NCCOS July 28 at wind speed 4.3 mph shows most southeast water bodies, no activity noted in Lake Pontchartrain, the hot spot between Bayou Shaffer and Avoca Island Cutoff has calmed down to half the concentration reported yesterday, 1 million cells per 100 ml. Lake Verret, Lake Palourde, Lac des Allemands, Bayou Fortier and the Pen HABs are visible around the 600 to 800 thousand mark. Black Bay HAB is below 200 thousand cells per 100 ml, Chandeleur Sound appears with no HAB activity. See our last report here.
California: Clear Lake is the HAB hot spot in California this week with ten DANGER level postings and three HAB WARNINGS. Lake Elsinore, Lake Anza, Contra Loma Reservoir are also posted with Danger alerts on one or more locations. HAB WARNINGS apply to Pyramid Lake, Santee Lake #7 and a pond in Heritage Park, San Diego County. These advisories warn to avoid all contact with this water. Thirty six HAB caution advisories are listed, updates are in progress.
HAB DANGER and WARNING advisories can be found on the map with bluegreen tags here.
Georgia:
Georgia Healthy Beaches program of Coastal Public Health tests beaches, posting permanent and temporary advisories about bacteria levels. Jekyll Island has two permanent advisories in place, both beaches tested clear for bacteria in the last quarterly water sample. As of this report, all St Simons Island and Jekyll Island beaches are marked with the green light signal, no temporary advisories are issued for elevated bacteria. No new information has been found on the presence of HABs in Georgia since our last update. Georgia Environmental Protection Division does accept reports from the public of suspicious algal blooms. As we receive updates from EPD, the results will be found here. The latest Georgia beach advisories are available here.
See the North American drainage basin map here, scroll all the way down to see how surface water moves across the continent into the Pacific, Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico and Arctic Oceans. WT Media Group tells the story of water in three countries, Canada, USA and Mexico. See the drinking water advisories, hazardous spills, floods, drought and harmful algal blooms plotted on the maps, as the water flows. Check out the CrimeBox for historic prosecutions under the Clean Water Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act box for details on public drinking water facilities, interviews with the scientists and tech developers on the leading edge of clean water technology here.
As many drinking water facilities are supplied from surface water reservoirs, the streamflow situation is pertinent to both drinking water supply and quality. High flows can stir up sediment and cause turbidity in the reservoirs, requiring additional treatments to render the water potable. Low flow volume is linked to warmer temperatures in the reservoir and can be an issue for water quality where HABs are present. WT tracks streamflow trends with an eye to the impacts on drinking water supply and quality in each of the state's watersheds. Check the watershed layer on the map to see the direction of flow and streamflows that may be impacting drinking water today.
USGS Provisional Data Statement
Data are provisional and subject to revision until they have been thoroughly reviewed and received final approval. Current condition data relayed by satellite or other telemetry are automatically screened to not display improbable values until they can be verified.
Provisional data may be inaccurate due to instrument malfunctions or physical changes at the measurement site. Subsequent review based on field inspections and measurements may result in significant revisions to the data.
Data users are cautioned to consider carefully the provisional nature of the information before using it for decisions that concern personal or public safety or the conduct of business that involves substantial monetary or operational consequences. Information concerning the accuracy and appropriate uses of these data or concerning other hydrologic data may be obtained from the USGS.
Harmful Algal Blooms: WT follows the movement and growth of harmful algal blooms (HABs) as provided by the satellite monitoring program of the NCCOS for New York's Lake Champlain, Ohio's Lake Erie and Louisiana's Lake Pontchartrain and surrounding area. Interpretation of satellite images is best in clear conditions at wind speed less than 4 mph, where the appearance and extent of HABs is reliably matched to a color scale for concentration. HABs are known to produce algal toxins of concern for raw drinking water sources and recreational water bodies. Plan beach access to avoid HABs and consider carrying a rapid test kit to detect the toxin microcystins.
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