Finger Lakes

The 11 Finger Lakes of New York are critical sources of drinking water and economic drivers in the region. Several of the lakes are some of the lowest-nutrient, cleanest lakes in the country, yet they face many water quality challenges. In particular, harmful algal blooms (HABs) are now found throughout the Finger Lakes in the summer and fall. Large quantities of surface foam appear on many of the lakes after HABs, which release biopolymer rich organic material into the lakes during and after blooms. GAR is conducting leading research to understand why HABs occur in low-nutrient lakes, why foam forms, and if lake foam can accumulate legacy and emerging pollutants of concern

Learn More about HABs and Foam in the Finger Lakes (GAR articles)

Why is PFAS-enriched foam forming on some of the cleanest lakes in the country? | Binghamton News
OUTDOORS: Why harmful algal blooms in the Finger Lakes are so challenging to mitigate | Sports | fltimes.com
Researchers find foam, algae connection on Canandaigua Lake. Democrat and Chronicle
CLWA Receives Grant for PFAs Research – CLWA

Get Involved! - Introducing the Finger Lakes Foam Reporting Tool

Originally developed for Canandaigua Lake, we worked with the Canandaigua Lake Watershed Association (CLWA) to expand this tool to the rest of the Finger Lakes. Now you can report lake foam you see on any of the 11 Finger Lakes, which will allow us to start documenting this phenomenon and help us respond to sample foam. In particular, this fall we are conducting a PFAS enrichment in foam research project on Keuka, Skaneateles, Owasco, and Seneca Lakes in collaboration with CLWA, Binghamton University, the NYSDEC, and with funding from the Water Resources Institute at Cornell Unveristy