7/31/2024
WT Staff
 July 31, 2024 updated 254 pm EDT
HAPPENING NOW
NWS: Heat Advisory for NYC
Urgent Weather Message issued 340 am July 31 by NWS New York
HEAT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 8 PM EDT THURSDAY...Heat index values of 95 to 100 expected in the Bronx, Kings (Brooklyn), New York (Manhattan), Northern
Nassau, Northern Queens, Richmond (Staten Island), Southern
Nassau, and Southern Queens Counties. Hot temperatures and high humidity may cause heat illnesses.
New York City residents should call 3 1 1 to identify cooling center locations and obtain `Beat the Heat` safety tips.
Impacting New York (Manhattan)-Bronx-Richmond (Staten Island)-Kings
(Brooklyn)-Northern Queens-Northern Nassau-Southern Queens-
Southern Nassau Counties.
The latest satellite image from NCCOS was captured July 30 at unknown wind speed. Baie Missisquoi HAB has filled in a higher density in the open water in the north half of the bay, not encroaching on shorelines. The south half of the bay remains in the appearance of dispersed mats, concentration 600 to 700 thousand cells per 100 ml with no hot spots. East of Shelburne Bay, presumably Shelburne Pond is visible with a lakewide HAB 2 to 3 million cells per 100 ml.
From the NYS DEC HABs reporting center, one hundred and fourteen HABs on the notifications dashboard Wednesday morning, up from eighty-three this time yesterday. New reports yesterday for the Finger Lakes include Canandaigua Lake, currently hosting 17 HABs in the north half of the water body. 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
US EPA Health Advisories for public drinking water for microcystins and cylindrospermopsins, two common liver toxins produced by cyanobacteria. Note these levels are health advisories, not legally enforceable regulatory limits. Two levels are identified, separating the population by age. The first level applies to pre-school aged children, the second level applies for those age 6 and up. The advisory gives a maximum level of each toxin that would not produce negative health impacts over a ten day period. For microcystins, .3 ug/L under 6 yrs old; 1.6 ug/L for 6 and older. For cylindrospermopsins, the level for preschoolers is .7ug/L, for those 6 and up, 3 ug/L.
Lake Erie west basin: Ohio, Michigan
The latest satellite view from NCCOS was captured July 30 at surface wind speed 16.1 mph, mostly cloud obscured with a partial view of the HAB extending from Maumee Bay northward along the Michigan shoreline. The North Maumee Bay area is in view at 900 thousand to 1 million cells per 100 ml. Maumee Bay State Park still posted with algal toxin advisory, new test results show the microcystins level is down from 40 ug/L to 4.7 ug/L, below the EPA guideline for recreational water, 8 ug/L. Sandusky Bay HAB Aphanizomenon is not visible in the current image. See the last Ohio HAB report here.
Louisiana: The latest upload from the NCCOS was captured July 30 at wind speed 4.0 mph. This image is completely clear, the wind speed allows for a reliable assessment of HABs position, extent and concentration. Small localized HABs appear along the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain at low concentration 50 thousand cells per 100 ml. Wetland Watchers Park is still the hot spot, 2 to 3 million cells per 100 ml. Lake Boeuf HAB has dropped concentration overnight, from 1 million down to 800 thousand cells per 100 ml, a closer match with other lakes in the area, Lake Verret, Lac des Allemands, Bayou Fortier, Bayou des Allemands all around the 600 to 800 thousand cells per 100 ml. See the latest full 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. See the California HAB tracker report with advisories by watershed region, HAB DANGER and WARNING advisories are pinned to the map with bluegreen tags, the full list is 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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