The project has led to the installation of 10 stream gaging stations on tributaries into Seneca Lake. All gages have at least 6 months of data, with some having data going back to March 2025. Stream gaging entails continuous measurement of stream stage (i.e. water height) and periodic measurement of stream discharge. Discharge is related to steam stage with a statistical relationship established by a stage-discharge curve, thus allowing estimation of discharge from stage. All sites show relatively strong stage-discharge curves, indicating confidence in estimated discharge into the next year of the project.
In addition to measuring stream discharge, grab samples at each site have been collected for around five different flow events. Samples have been analyzed for total nitrogen and total phosphorus. In 2026, the goal is to sample 7 to 8 flow events and also analyze for soluble reactive phosphorus and total suspended solids.
The availability of continuous discharge on these tributaries plus periodic water quality measurements allows for the evaluation of model projections from the 2022 9 Element Nutrient Management Plan developed for Seneca Lake. As additional data is collected, this will allow for evaluation of nutrient loading at the small watershed scale and support informed management of the watershed and lake. No other entities routinely collect this data.
As a note, the typical route to install stream gaging is via USGS. A USGS gage can cost approximately $15k/yr for measuring streamflow alone, not adding water quality data. Thus, this project provides a cost effective way to collect data that would normally be unavailable but which is essential for proactive decision making regarding lake management.
By providing technical expertise to dedicated Seneca Lake Pure Waters volunteers, the CoE is able to enhance citizen science efforts and generate data sets that will have long term value in lake management.