Do you want muddy sediment flowing into your drinking water source? Do you want this sediment laden with nutrients feeding excessive weed growth and contributing to potentially toxic harmful algal blooms? Do you know there are several governmental agencies, along with nonprofit organizations, actively working to reduce the amount of sediment flowing from our streams and ditches?
Within the lake's 200-square-mile watershed, Cayuga County Soil and Water Conservation District personnel have installed water and sediment control basins, numerous agricultural land drainage improvements (i.e. grassed waterways), miles of roadside ditch and stream bank stabilization measures, and assisted with funding for winter cover crops. The basins are easily identified by the orange standpipe out in middle of a field. Over just the last two years, the district has sprayed over 20 miles of scraped roadside ditches with green 鈥渉ydroseed,鈥 allowing new grass to hold back erosion. In steep areas where hydroseeding is not practical, large quantities of rock are installed. Reducing the scouring effect from roadside ditches is very important since research estimates they contribute 22% of the sediment entering Owasco Lake. Using a variety of best management practices, the district stabilized eroding streambanks on six major streams and 25 smaller tributaries. At another site, they created a 2.5-acre floodplain/wetland ecosystem. A very effective soil retention practice is the expanding use of winter cover crops. Driving around our rural roads, you have probably noticed that many of the fields are covered in green grass or similar small plants 鈥 winter cover crops hold the soil in place. Farmers keep more of their valuable topsoil.
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The Cayuga County Water Quality Management Agency's Nutrient and Sediment Working Group compiled the county's Guidelines for Municipal Maintenance of Roadside Ditches.
The Owasco Inlet provides about 50% of the lake's total water inflow. A unique project to capture sediment just upstream in the Owasco Flats involve three new ponds. Bruce Natale, recently retired engineer with Cayuga County Planning & Economic Development, shepherded their installation. They will divert and collect large volumes of inlet water during high flow, allowing sediment to settle out in the ponds.
Also in the flats, several plots of land were acquired by different entities 鈥 the city of Auburn, the Nature Conservancy and the Finger Lakes Land Trust. Their similar goals are to maintain or restore these properties with their natural vegetative habitat, including wetlands at some sites. These measures provide maximum soil retention and nutrient filtration capabilities and additional wildlife habitat. In October, the land trust established the Owasco Bluffs Nature Preserve, protecting 1,100 feet of the lake's shoreline. The Nature Conservancy acquired another valuable property upstream and adjacent to Fillmore Glen State Park. Its emphasis is to find other properties in the watershed that have the most impact on maintaining water quality.
All of these efforts require funding. The major sources are federal, state and nonprofit grants. Many grants require cost-sharing. For example, donations from local foundations and private citizens allowed the Owasco Watershed Lake Association to cost-share some of the roadside ditch work.
The inspectors from the Owasco Lake Watershed Inspection and Protection Division of the Owasco Lake Watershed Management Council regularly examine the watershed for areas to minimize sediment loss and erosion. If you see a problem, visit .
For more detailed info about sediment control measures, attend OWLA's annual Bob Brower Scientific Symposium (in plain English), in person or virtually, the morning of Saturday, March 6, at .
