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Geologist Sees Sea Where Lake Champlain Now Flows

Geologist Sees Sea Where Lake Now Flows

Geologist Sees Sea Where Lake Now Flows

John Rayburn,
SUNY New Paltz
environmental geologist

Although it’s not as exciting as spying the Lake Champlain monster, the discovery of bones from a prehistoric seal in the bed of a former inland sea in the Lake Champlain Valley should intrigue anyone interested in New York state’s natural history.

John Rayburn, a SUNY New Paltz environmental geologist, will share his research findings during a visit to the SUNY Cortland campus on Tuesday, Sept. 25.

Rayburn, a specialist in glacial geology, geomorphology and paleoclimate studies, will discuss “The Champlain Sea: A Record of Marine Conditions in the Lake Champlain Valley” at 7 p.m. in Brockway Hall Jacobus Lounge.

The event continues the Geology Department’s ongoing speaker series that has run for a number of years. The talks are free and open to the public.

While today’s Lake Champlain Valley contains a most impressive long lake, in prehistoric times an inland sea dominated that same region, according to Rayburn.

The marine embayment developed in northern New York around 12,000 years ago at the end of the last Ice Age, Rayburn explained. The weight of the Laurentide Ice Sheet had pressed the entire surface of the earth downwards over the preceding millennia and, as the edge of the ice retreated northwards, salt water was able to flood along the Saint Lawrence Seaway and enter the Champlain Valley.

“The evidence is in the sediments,” Rayburn said. “Marine shells are found in clay deposits throughout the region for this time, and bones of a marine seal also have been found.”

Rayburn has spent the past 14 years documenting the timing and causes of the Champlain Sea event using sediment cores and shoreline deposits. His work has shown the linkage between catastrophic floods from ice-dammed lakes in the Ontario basin and changes in lake and sea levels in the Champlain Valley. These floods reshaped much of the landscape of northern New York and may have influenced circulation of the North Atlantic Ocean and global climate.

David Barclay, a SUNY Cortland associate professor of geology, noted that the College’s own Brauer Education Center in Selkirk, N.Y., is located south of the area flooded by the Champlain Sea.

“However, some of the glacial lakes that were in the Champlain Valley extended south into the Albany and Brauer area, and the catastrophic floods swept all the way down the Hudson Valley and out past what is now New York City,” noted Barclay, who leads geology field trips to the area for his Supplemental Field Studies class.

Rayburn and Barclay are conducting ongoing research in the Champlain Valley using tree rings to model regional climate change.

Rayburn joined SUNY New Paltz’s Geological Sciences Department in 2007 as an assistant professor. He teaches courses within the Geological Sciences and Environmental Geochemical Science programs.

He earned a Ph.D. at Binghamton University, where he was a graduate fellow and teaching assistant. He received an M.Sc. in geology from University of Manitoba. Rayburn completed a bachelor’s degree in geology at SUNY Plattsburgh and another in economics from St. Lawrence University. He completed a research fellowship with the U.S. Department of the Interior’s U.S. Geological Survey in Reston, Va.

Previously, as a Mendenhall Fellow at the United States Geological Survey, Rayburn conducted research on the record and mechanisms of abrupt climate change.

Since 2008, he has edited the New York Glaciogram, an informal newsletter of shared geology information in New York state. He is a co-principal investigator of a study that involves undergraduate student researchers titled “A Comprehensive Approach to Watershed Characterization Focusing on the Source of New York City Water.” The program is funded by the National Science Foundation.

The series is sponsored by the Geology Department, the Geology Club, Campus Artists and Lecture Series and the student activity fee.

For more information, contact Barclay at (607) 753-2921.

Sea Lamprey in Lake Champlain

Sea Lamprey

Petromyzon marinus

Adult sea lampreyThe sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) is one of four lamprey species found in the Lake Champlain Basin. Lamprey are eel-shaped fish with a skeleton made of cartilage and they belong to a primitive group of jawless fish called Agnathans. Sea lamprey have smooth, scaleless skin and two fins on their back (dorsal fins). The sea lamprey is parasitic; feeding on other fish by using a suction disk mouth filled with small sharp, rasping teeth and a file-like tongue. These are used by the sea lamprey to attach to a fish, puncture its skin, and drain its bodily fluids.

Sea lamprey have a complex life cycle. Their first four years are spent as ammocoetes – a blind worm-like larval stage – in the soft bottom and banks of waters that flow into Lake Champlain. They then transform into the parasitic adult stage and enter the lake to feed on landlocked Atlantic salmon, lake trout ; which they prefer due to their small scales and thin skin – and other fish species. After twelve to twenty months in the lake the adults migrate back into the streams to spawn, after which they die.

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Lampreys in Lake Champlain

Moderate numbers of sea lampreys were first noted in Lake Champlain in 1929. The sea lamprey has long been considered a non-native invasive species that entered Lake Champlain during the 1800s via the Champlain Canal. Recent genetic studies indicate that the sea lamprey may, in fact, be native to Lake Champlain.

Three other lamprey species are found in the Lake Champlain Basin. Two are non-parasitic, and although the third species is parasitic, it does not seem to have much impact on the Lake Champlain fish community.

Whether or not the sea lamprey is native to Lake Champlain, it has detrimental impacts on the Lake Champlain fisheries, ecosystem, and human residents that are very significant.

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What Are The Impacts of the Sea Lamprey?

Lake trout with sea lamprey attached.

Sea lamprey have a major detrimental impact on the Lake Champlain fish community, the Lake Champlain Basin ecosystem, the anglers that fish Lake Champlain, and the many people throughout the watershed whose livelihood is directly or indirectly supported by the fishing and tourist industry.

Adult sea lamprey attach to a host fish, rasp and puncture its skin, and drain its body fluids, often killing the host fish. Their preferred hosts are salmon, lake trout and other trout species, however they also feed on other fish species, including lake whitefish, walleye, northern pike, burbot, and lake sturgeon. The lake sturgeon is listed as a threatened species in New York and an endangered species in Vermont and it is likely that sea lamprey are affecting their survival.

Most sea lamprey hosts are native fish species that have been part of the Lake Champlain Basin ecosystem for thousands of years. Additionally many of these fish species are important sport fish, highly prized and sought after by anglers.

Fresh lamprey wound on a fish and the lamprey that was removed from the fish.

Prior to any control measures being taken, catches of lake trout and salmon in Lake Champlain were a fraction of catches in similar lakes, despite intensive stocking efforts. High wounding rates indicated that sea lamprey were having a significant impact on the lake trout and salmon populations, and were preventing the restoration of these native fish species to Lake Champlain.

Studies on the Great Lakes show a 40 to 60 percent mortality rate for fish attacked by sea lamprey. Other studies found that a single sea lamprey can kill 40 or more pounds of fish during its adult life. The abundance of sea lamprey were obviously having significant impacts on Lake Champlain’s fishery and ecosystem.

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Sea Lamprey Control

Liquid TFM applied to a stream during a lamprey control treatment.Due to the severity of the impacts that sea lamprey have had on the Lake Champlain fishery and ecosystem, and the social and economic impacts on the people who live in the Lake Champlain Basin, it was determined that sea lamprey populations should be controlled. The federal and state governments, the agencies that manage Lake Champlain, the various organizations that are concerned with Lake Champlain and the people who live in the Lake Champlain Basin generally agree that it would be irresponsible not to control the sea lamprey population.

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The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service formed a cooperative and began an integrated control program to reduce the sea lamprey population in Lake Champlain to  acceptable levels. This program is not attempting to eliminate the sea lamprey from Lake Champlain, but only to reduce the impacts of sea lamprey on the lake’s fishery and restore balance to the ecosystem.

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Control Efforts

Bayluscide being distributed from boat during a lamprey control treatment on a delta.Physical methods of control include the use of barriers that prevent adult sea lamprey from migrating up waterways to spawn and traps to capture adult sea lamprey before they can spawn.

However, the most effective form of control has been the treating of tributaries and deltas with lampricides – TFM in tributaries and Bayluscide on deltas. The lampricides target the larval sea lamprey, killing them before they can transform into their parasitic adult form.

It should be noted that after years of study in Lake Champlain, the Great Lakes, and other places where sea lamprey are controlled using lampricides, fisheries managers have concluded that the lampricides have little or no known permanent effect on populations of non-target species present in the treatment areas.

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Control Program

small map showing the different methods employed to control Lake Champlain sea lamprey with different color codes
(Click on Map to Enlarge)

Evaluation of an eight year experimental sea lamprey control program that took place in Lake Champlain in the 1990s documented significant benefits for fish and anglers. These benefits included decreases in wounding rates on trout and salmon, increases in weight and survival rates of lake trout, increases in angler catch rates of lake trout and a benefit to cost ratio of 3.5 to 1.

At the end of the eight year experimental sea lamprey control program, a limited, three-year interim sea lamprey control program was undertaken from 1998 to 2000. After a thorough environmental review, a long-term sea lamprey control program began in 2002.

Fish sampling programs, salmon returns to fish ladders, angler surveys and sampling of larval sea lamprey are used to measure the effectiveness of the control program. The control program may be expanded to other streams and delta areas if significant sea lamprey populations develop in them.

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Assessments of sea lamprey populations are made before any control measures begin and again afterwards to determine the effectiveness of the controls. Field staff, using a variety of capture methods, sample both adult and larval sea lamprey from streams and deltas to determine the presence and density of sea lamprey populations. This information is used to determine which streams or deltas are in need of control measures and which control measures to use.

Scientists and fish managers continue to consider, other methods to reduce sea lamprey impacts. These include the use of pheromones (chemical attractants naturally produced by lamprey) to capture adult sea lamprey, the release of sterile males to disrupt spawning, and the stocking of lamprey-resistant strains of fish.

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More about Sea Lamprey:

  • Sea Lamprey Events – Schedule and announcements of treatments and other events related to sea lamprey control on Lake Champlain
  • Sea Lamprey Experts – Experts on Lake Champlain sea lamprey discuss the natural history and past, current, & future control efforts

The post Sea Lamprey in Lake Champlain appeared first on Lake Champlain Life.

Have You Signed the Petition to Close The Champlain Canal Yet?

Join Over 500 Other Friends of Lake Champlain

Please Sign The Petition to Close the Champlain Canal!

 

Petition to Close The Champlain Canal

Spiny Water flea

The Champlain Canal is a 60-mile long canal that connects Lake Champlain with the Hudson river.  At its peak, it was used by thousands of people to transport goods and for transportation. Today the canal is used mostly by recreational boaters and some commercial vessels.Approximately 20 invasive species have already been introduced to Lake Champlain through the canal, and the spiny water flea threatens to be the next invasive species that invades Lake Champlain. Like other lakes in the U.S., the Lake Champlain ecosystem, including fish and wildlife, and the surrounding economy will be significantly compromised with the invasion of the spiny water flea.  It is estimated that the total annual cost of invasive species linked to the canal is nearly $500 million (Pimentel, 2005; http://bit.ly/Ozpywt), clearly illustrating the economic importance of disconnecting the canal from Lake Champlain.  With 5,000 pleasure boats using the canal each year (Dan Weiller, spokesman for the NY State Canal Corp), it costs $100,000 of public funds per boat to keep the canal open.Numerous options exist to close the canal while accommodating boat traffic. Funding has already been set aside to cover the costs of closing the canal.

Please sign and share this petition to protect Lake Champlain and the regional economy from destructive invasive species.

You can learn more about the effort to disconnect the canal here: http://bit.ly/ChampCanal

You can also read “Feasibility of Champlain Canal Aquatic Nuisance Species Barrier Options” for suggested solutions on how to close the canal:http://www.uvm.edu:8889/~seagrant/communications/assets/ansbarrierrprt06.pdf

The post Have You Signed the Petition to Close The Champlain Canal Yet? appeared first on Lake Champlain Life.

New York State Acquires 156 Acres of Lake Champlain Wetlands

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced the acquisition of 156 acres of southern Lake Champlain, including 2,140 feet of undeveloped shoreline. The property is located in the Washington County town of Dresden (about midway from Ticonderoga and Whitehall, New York) between Lake George and the narrow headwaters of Lake Champlain. Here are the details of the purchase:

State Adds 156 Acres of Wetlands on Lake Champlain to Forest Preserve

DEC Partners with the Nature Conservancy to Conserve Chubbs Dock Property

New York State Acquires 156 Acres of Lake Champlain Wetlands

South Bay, Lake Champlain

ALBANY, NY (07/31/2012) (readMedia)–

In partnership with The Nature Conservancy (TNC), the state has acquired 156 acres on Southern Lake Champlain in the Town of Dresden, Washington County that will be added to the State Forest Preserve, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Joe Martens announced today.

Known as the Chubbs Dock property, the land features 2,140 feet of undeveloped shoreline and 70 acres of wetland communities that support rare plants and falls within an area that provides critical breeding, staging and migration habitat for thousands of waterfowl species.

“Chubbs Dock conserves excellent wildlife habitat along the narrow headwaters of Lake Champlain,” said Commissioner Martens. “The property will be added to the Forest Preserve and serve as part of a travel corridor for wildlife between the Adirondack and Green Mountains. Thanks to our partners TNC, Washington County and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for making this land preservation possible.”

With funding through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s North American Wetland Conservation Act grant program, TNC purchased the property for $500,000 in November 2009. The property was then donated to New York State in May 2012. TNC has previously utilized North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) grants to protect Mill Bay Marsh and Huckleberry Marsh in the Lake Champlain watershed.

“This is a great example of strategic, high leverage conservation work of regional and national importance,” said Michael Carr, Executive Director of the Conservancy’s Adirondack Chapter.

“Not only is New York State keeping intact some of the largest wetlands on Lake Champlain, but doing it in a way that will also secure public access for hunting, fishing, boating, and wildlife-oriented recreation-all of which contribute to the state’s outdoor recreation economy.”

The NAWCA grant application was supported by Washington County and included a commitment by the county to transfer an adjoining 283-acre tract on Maple Bend Island. Both transfers happened this year, adding a total of 439 acres with significant wetlands to public ownership. As part of the Forest Preserve, DEC will pay taxes on both properties. Public access to Lake Champlain and its shoreline is limited because most of the shoreline is privately owned. State acquisition of Chubb’s Dock will provide for new public access.

Protecting wetlands is also an important part of mitigating the impacts of climate change by helping to maintain the connection between wetlands and riparian habitat.

The NAWCA of 1989 provides matching grants to organizations and individuals who have developed partnerships to carry out wetland conservation projects in the United States, Canada, and Mexico for the benefit of wetlands-associated migratory birds and other wildlife. The Act was passed, in part, to support activities under the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, an international agreement that provides a strategy for the long-term protection of wetlands and associated uplands habitats needed by waterfowl and other migratory birds in North America. In December 2002, Congress reauthorized the Act and expanded its scope to include the conservation of all habitats and birds associated with wetland ecosystems.

The Act emphasizes multi-stakeholder partnerships as necessary and valuable mechanisms for wetlands conservation, and for this reason proposals submitted for funding under the Act must include a substantial partnership component. Wetlands conservation projects focus specifically on the long-term protection, restoration, enhancement and/or management of wetland ecosystems.

The North American Wetlands Conservation Fund, set up under the Act, is funded through several federal sources, including direct appropriations, interest from receipts under the Pittman-Robertson Trust Fund, receipts from the Sportfish Restoration Account, and fines and forfeitures collected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Division of Bird Habitat Conservation is responsible for facilitating and administering grants under the Act’s two grants programs.

By focusing on public-private partnerships and working with multiple stakeholders to leverage federal dollars several times over with non-federal funding sources, the NAWCA Program has become one of the nation’s most successful conservation programs.

Posted Tuesday July 31, 2012 at 09:59 am by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

Champlain Hudson Power Express Progress Update

Champlain Hudson Power Express

The Champlain Hudson Power Express (CHPE) project is moving along ahead of schedule with help from the summer’s good weather. This update on the progress of the CHPE project appeared in The Glens Falls Post Star online edition Poststar.com. Learn more about the CHPE, Click Here.

Good weather means good dredging: Hudson River project on target so far this summer

FORT EDWARD – This year’s Hudson River dredging project is well on its way to accomplishing — and perhaps exceeding — the goal for the season, after weather delays affected the first two years of dredging.

“Thus far, it’s been a terrific summer in terms of productivity,” said General Electric spokesman Mark Behan, of Behan Communications. “And we have more than two months of dredging still ahead.”

For GE, the goal is to meet the dredging standards set out by the Environmental Protection Agency, and exceed them if possible, Behan said.

GE for years in Fort Edward and Hudson Falls dumped polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, into the river before the substances were deemed harmful. GE is now conducting a multi-year cleanup under the EPA’s direction, to remove PCB-contaminated sediment from the bottom of the river.

This year, the goal is to dredge 350,000 cubic yards, or about 400,000 tons, of sediment from the river. As of July 21, 230,000 cubic yards had already been dredged. Last year, the dredging season lasted through early November.

Some increased production was expected this year, because of facility improvements made during the off-season. While the goal is dredging 350,000 cubic yards this year, project officials said late last year that, with the addition of another barge unloading station, as much as 450,000 cubic yards could be dredged.

“We are hopeful GE will exceed the goal, though there are many factors that could impact productivity,” EPA spokeswoman Larisa Romanowski wrote in an email. “Given where we are today, if all goes well, GE will likely exceed the 350,000.”

Factors that could disrupt productivity and are largely beyond the control of project operators, aside from weather, include the shipping of sediment off-site by train and the canal system, because dredging is dependent on use of the Champlain Canal.

Once the contaminated sediment is removed, it’s loaded onto barges and taken to a processing plant to be treated. It’s then shipped by train to a disposal facility.

Good weather has allowed for the project’s progress this summer, a departure from the weather-related delays in 2009 and 2011, the first two years dredging took place.

Last year, spring flooding meant the dredging season began late, and a rainy summer with high water levels posed challenges and sometimes delayed work. But warm fall weather allowed dredging to continue later in the year, and 363,000 cubic yards, or about 75 acres, were dredged.

This year, water levels are within the predicted range, and haven’t impeded dredging, Behan said.

This is the third year dredging is taking place, and the second year of the project’s second phase. The second phase is expected to last five to seven years.

After this year, it is expected that more than 1 million cubic yards of sediment will have been dredged from the Hudson over the three years. The goal is to dredge roughly 2.5 million cubic yards of sediment from a 40-mile stretch of the river from Fort Edward to Troy.

Once an area is dredged, clean backfill — a mixture of soil and gravel — is laid on the river bed. The material is sourced locally so it’s consistent with the Hudson River watershed, and it becomes the foundation for growth of plant and animal life.

Dredges are currently operating in a part of the river about two miles south of the village of Fort Edward, Behan said.