Resources for Municipalities within the Cayuga Lake Watershed

Contact our Watershed Manager to talk about needs in your community.  Together you can identify projects, project partners, and funding sources to complete needed water resource work in your municipality.   

2025 Reports

• January 2025: Watershed Manager Summary
• February 2025: Watershed Manager Summary
• March 2025: Watershed Manager Summary
• April 2025: Watershed Manager Summary
• May 2025: Watershed Manager Summary
• June 2025: Watershed Manager Summary
• August 2025: Watershed Manager Summary
• September 2025: Watershed Manager Summary

2024 Reports 

• November 2024: Watershed Manager Summary
• September 2024: Watershed Manager Summary
• August 2024: Watershed Manager Summary
• July 2024: Watershed Manager Summary
• June 2024: Watershed Manager Summary
• May 2024: Watershed Manager Summary
• April 2024: Watershed Manager Summary
• March 2024: Watershed Manager Summary
• February 2024: Watershed Manager Summary

2023 Reports: 

• June 2023: Watershed Manager Summary 
• May 2023: Watershed Manager Executive Summary May 2023
• April 2023: Watershed Manager Executive Summary Document _ April 2023
• January, February, & March 2023: Watershed Manager Executive Summary Document _March 2023

2024

• April 2024
• March 2024
• February 2024
• January 2024

2023

• December 2023
• November 2023
• October 2023
• July 2023
• June 2023
• May 2023 
• April 2023
• March 2023
• February 2023
• January 2023

2022

• March 2022
• April 2022
• May 2022
• June 2022
• September 2022
• October 2022
• November 2022
• December 2022

2021

• April 2021
• May 2021
• June 2021
• August 2021
• October 2021
• November 2021

Actions by municipalities can have positive or negative impacts on water. The following resources outline best management practices, model laws and training for local governments to help understand and implement policies, procedures, and legislation that can help preserve waters within the watershed.

General

• Ordinance Library – from the NYS Association of Conservation Commissions. 

Addressing Stormwater

• Implementing Green Infrastructure
  Green infrastructure works by supporting infiltration of stormwater into the ground, rather than diverting it towards aging drains and pipes, and helps to prevent huge influxes of water at wastewater treatment facilities.
• A Guide for Creating Conservation Overlay Zones
  Conservation Overlay Zones can help protect sensitive areas that affect water quality. 
• Stormwater Management
  (February 26, 2020, webinar recording)
• NYSDEC Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) Funding Document (DRAFT)
• USEPA Fact Sheet on Funding Stormwater Programs
• Tompkins County Stormwater Coalition
• Culvert Projects and Funding Sources (part of Hudson River Watershed Alliance’s Breakfast Webinar Series, Spring 2023)

DITCH MANAGEMENT INFORMATION

Flooding, Hazard Mitigation, and Resiliency

• Climate Mapping for Resilience and Adaptation – Assessment Tool
• Model Laws to Increase Resiliency
  NYS DEC, DOS and others provide this guide to create model local laws to help local governments be more resilient to storms and flooding. Cities, towns, and villages are invited to adapt model local laws to meet the resilience needs of the community 
• Model Local Laws to Increase Resilience (April 20, 2021) –
  • webinar recording Part 1 (Intro to the Community Risk and Resiliency Act)
  • webinar recording Part 2 (Model Local Laws)
  • Model Local Laws Guidance
• NOAA Guide to Assessing Green Infrastructure Costs and Benefits for Flood Reduction
• NY Sea Grant Great Lakes – Causes of Shoreline Erosion and Accretion

Conserving Lands Affecting the Watershed

• Conservation Overlay Zoning
  • March 23, 2022, (webinar recording) | Webinar transcript (PDF)
• Critical Environmental Areas (Mach 23, 2021, webinar recording) | CEA Fact Sheet
• New York State Association of Conservation Commissions Municipal Environmental and Energy Ordinance Library
• Planning – Steps to Protect Water Quality
  • Headwater Streams: Mapping and Planning
    (November 10, 2021, webinar recording)
  • Wetlands: Mapping, Identification, and Field Verification
    (May 12, 2021, webinar recording)
  • Open Space Inventories and Plans
    (February 23, 2021, webinar recording)
  • Natural Resource Inventories
    (January 26, 2021, webinar recording)
  • Streams 101
    (July 23, 2020, webinar recording)
  • Best Practices for Local Environmental Reviews
    (June 17, 2020, webinar recording)
  • Conservation Advisory Councils and Boards
    (September 25, 2019, webinar recording)

Protecting Wetlands

• Wetland and Watercourse Protection Measures
  Local governments can adopt local laws to define wetlands; and regulate activities that may affect floodplains, watercourses, and freshwater wetlands and their buffers. These laws can address the need to absorb floodwater and reduce risk; and adjust to changes expected from increased precipitation. 
• Wetlands: Regulatory Status and Local Protection Strategies
  (May 19, 2021, webinar recording)
• Wetland Conservation
  (March 18, 2020 ,webinar recording)
• Cornell Coopertive Extension, Madison County, Landscaping for Water Quality Resource Page (guidance, plant database, funding resources, training, etc.)

Other

• Pace University’s Land Use Law Center for Sustainable Development: Gaining Ground Information Database of model municipal ordinances and laws. Search by state, municipality, or jurisdiction type.
• Columbia Climate School Sabin Center for Climate Change Law has multiple model municipal ordinances and published papers regarding local laws and climate adaptation.
• Natural Heritage Important Areas (April 15, 2020 ,webinar recording) | Important Areas data and resources
•  Integrating Land Use and Water Management

• NYS DEC Navigating Grant Funding – Municipal Success Stories Webinar – March 1, 2023 Recording

Municipalities can fund water preservation efforts through a number of programs. Make your municipal money go further with the help of the following grants and loans:

• In 2022, as part of the Long Island Nitrogen Action Plan (LINAP), NYSDEC developed a Funding Finder tool. Please view the Funding Finder User Guide for more information on how to use this new tool. 
• Funding Guide Database – from Syracuse University Environmental Finance Center. 
  This reference tool is designed for New York State municipalities and local governments looking to fund sustainable and environmentally friendly capital projects. 

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• Bridge NY – Assists municipalities to ensure reliable bridge connections.
• Buffer in a Bag
  The Buffer in a Bag program provides organizations and private landowners with free tree and shrub seedlings to help establish or improve a stream buffer on their property
• Climate Resilience Grant Program – The goal of the program is to support partners in protecting the lands and waters critical for adapting to climate change.
• Climate Smart Communities Grants
  For eligible climate change mitigation, adaptation, and planning and assessment projects.
• Critical Lands Preservation via Parks
  NYS Office of Parks Recreation and Historic Preservation – Preservation, and Heritage grants for the acquisition, planning, development, and improvement of parks, to municipalities and not for profits with an ownership interest.
• Green Innovation Grant Program for water quality projects that  improve water quality and mitigate the effects of climate change through the implementation of one or more of the following green practices: Green Stormwater Infrastructure, Energy Efficiency, Water Efficiency and Environmental Innovation
• Forest Conservation Easements for Land Trusts Program
  Conservation easements can help protect lands that are important for maintaining water quality. 
• Great Lakes Sediment and Nutrient Reduction Program
  The Great Lakes Sediment and Nutrient Reduction Program provides grants to reduce nutrients and sediments entering the Great Lakes
• Local Waterfront Revitalization Program
  NYS DOS Program for working in partnership with waterfront communities.  An LWRP is a comprehensive land and water use program that expresses a vision for the waterfront and refines State policies to reflect local or regional needs and objectives and allows them to be enforced at the local level.
• New York Great Lakes Basin Small Grants Program – supports local projects that lead to larger-scale activities described in the Great Lakes Action Agenda (GLAA). 
• Non-Agricultural Nonpoint Source Planning and MS4 Mapping Grant:
  Eligible categories: Decentralized Wastewater Treatment Facilities for Failing On-Site Treatment Systems

Green Infrastructure
Stormwater Retrofits
Streambank/Shoreline Stabilization
Comprehensive Stream Corridor Assessment
Stream Sediment and Debris Management Plan
In-Waterbody Controls for Nutrients
Bathing Beach Restoration
Stream Culvert Repair and Replacement
Berm Removal
Floodplain Creation/Restoration/Reconnection
Wetland Creation/Restoration
Coastal Storm Erosion Risk Management
Winter Road Maintenance
Dam Safety Repair/Rehabilitation and Dam Removal

• Rural Communities Assistance Partnership (RCAP)
  The RCAP can assist municipalities <10,000 with work on drinking water and waste water infrastructure needs. 
• Wastewater Infrastructure Engineering Planning Grant.
  Engineering reports are required in the EFC financing application process. Grants are available to help municipalities jump-start their work early on with funding for initial planning, so they can be better prepared to seek financing to help them complete their wastewater, sewer and water quality projects.
• Water Quality Improvement Projects (WQIP)
  WQIP funds implementation projects to improve water quality or aquatic habitat, or protect a drinking water source. Eligible project types include wastewater treatment improvement, non-agricultural nonpoint source abatement and control, land acquisition for source water protection, salt storage, aquatic connectivity restoration, and marine habitat restoration.
• WQIP Land Acquisition Projects for Source Water Protection Toolkit:
  WQIP Land Acquisition Projects for Source Water Protection provides funding to municipalities, land trusts and soil and water conservation districts to purchase land and/or conservation easements to protect their public drinking water.

Note: These are only a small selection of funding opportunities, there are many more.

Feel free to reach out to the Watershed Manager with any questions.

• The Community Science Institute hosts a variety of educational outreach and training events.
• Cayuga Lake Watershed Network: CWIO sister organization collaborating with public and private entities to advocate for Cayuga Lake and deliver education and outreach programming. For more, visit the CLWN YouTube Page.
• Watershed Academy: developed by the US EPA. This compilation of trainings and webinars can help municipalities integrate strategies across planning efforts, and improve outreach and other actions for an increased ability to access funding.
• LEWPA Municipal Training Resources (from Lake Erie but the practices are applicable to municipaliites throughout NY)

• Conservation Overlay Zoning (March 23, 2022, webinar recording) | Webinar transcript (PDF)
• Online Tools for Conservation Planning in the Hudson Valley (July 20, 2021, webinar recording)
• Critical Environmental Areas (Mach 23, 2021, webinar recording) | CEA Fact Sheet
• Open Space Inventories and Plans (February 23, 2021, webinar recording)

• NYS DEC Navigating Grant Funding – Municipal Success Stories Webinar – March 1, 2023 Recording
• Esri Academy has several online courses that are free if you are looking to expand your GIS knowledge. 
• Cornell Cooperative Extension’s Shoreline Landscaping (Shorescaping) Workshop (presentation slides), November 5, 2019 at Skaneateles Library
• Scenic Resource Protection in the Hudson River Valley (June 15, 2021, webinar recording) | Scenic Resource Protection Guide
• Model Local Laws to Increase Resilience (April 20, 2021) – webinar recording Part 1 (Intro to the Community Risk and Resiliency Act) | webinar recording Part 2 (Model Local Laws) | Model Local Laws Guidance
• Natural Heritage Important Areas Tool, Hudson Valley as an example (April 15, 2020 ,webinar recording) | Important Areas data and resources
• Cayuga Lake Levels–Past, Present, and Future Lake Level Management with flooding and seasonal changes. 12/16/22 Bill Kappel, USGS Emeritus Hydrogeologist and David Wolfe, Chair of CLWN Board of Directors. 

• Cayuga Lake Watershed Map – municipalities 
• Maps – land use, wetlands, topography, subwatersheds, etc – on the CLWN website.
• Community Science Institute Data Page.
• Cayuga Lake Characterization – maps and watershed data.
• DEC data portal
• NYS DECinfo Locator (Priority Waterbodies List (PWL), permitted facilities, etc.)

• Bob Brower Symposium 2022 –  Human factors affecting water quality in Owasco Lake
• 2022 – Harmful Algal Blooms and Invasive Species
• NYS DEC Harmful Algal Bloom Research Guide 2021

The following organizations help to monitor the health of the lake. Feel free to reach out to them directly for seasonal information.

• The Community Science Institute’s Monitoring Partnerships
• The Cayuga Lake Watershed Network
• NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
  Priority Waterbodies List
• Cayuga Lake Environmental Action Now

• Watershed Plans – Protecting and Restoring Water Quality
  A NYS DOS guidebook. Watershed plans are State recognized documents that guide protecting efforts in the watershed and can be used in support of funding requests for such actions. Cayuga Lake has two State recognized Watershed Plans, listed below, and a third under review.
  • CWIO Focus Areas 2022.
  • CWIO Recommendations for State action
  • Cayuga Lake Watershed Characterization outlines the physical characteristics and data of our watershed, the many uses of the land within the watershed, protective actions taken, threats, and gaps in data.  It provided the foundation for our Watershed Plan.
  • Cayuga Lake Watershed Restoration and Protection Plan This Watershed Plan for Cayuga Lake was first published in 2001 and updated in 2017.  It guides CWIO work to protect the Cayuga Lake Watershed.
  • Cayuga Lake Harmful Algae Bloom Action Plan  This Watershed Plan was prepared by NYS DEC in 2018 to guide efforts to reduce harmful algae blooms in Cayuga Lake.
  • Total Maximum Daily Load Regulations – is a type of clean water plan that targets a specific pollutant and sets daily limits for its introduction into the water body of concern.  A TMDL focused on phosphorus has been prepared for Cayuga Lake. The TMDL was finalized in July of 2024. See the final document here.
  • Nine Element Watershed Management Plan – an introduction. A Nine Element Watershed Management (9E) Plan is a type of clean water plan that details a community’s water quality concerns and a strategy to address these concerns.  No 9E Plan is currently planned for Cayuga Lake, however, the Seneca-Keuka Watershed Nine Element Plan for Phosphorus and the Owasco Lake Watershed Nine Element Plan for Phosphorus Reduction were approved in Fall 2022.
• Local Waterfront Revitalization Program 
  NYS DOS Program for working in partnership with waterfront communities. In the Cayuga Lake watershed, the Village of Union Springs has an approved LWRP and the Village of Cayuga has a draft LWRP. There is also the Cayuga Lake Waterfront Plan which was finalized in December 2004, which is inclusive of Tompkins County, Town of Lansing, Village of Lansing, Village of Cayuga Heights, Town of Ithaca, City of Ithaca, and the Town of Ulysses.
• Drinking Water Source Protection Planning (DWSP2)
  • Summary of DWSP2 Process
  • DWSP2 Framework for Creating Plan – This framework will help NYS communities that oversee or own public drinking water systems build a tailored protection plan, or DWSP2 plan to protect sources of drinking water from potential contamination. 
  • City of Ithaca Drinking Water Source Protection Program (DWSP2) Plan
  • Cornell University Water Resources
  • Town of Dryden Drinking Water Source Protection Program (DWSP2) Plan
• County Hazard Mitigation Plans (Note: Plans must be updated every 5 years)
  • Cayuga County All Hazard Mitigation Plan (2021)
  • Seneca County Multi-Jurisdiction Hazard Mitigation Plan (2018)
  • Tompkins County Hazard Mitigation Plan (2021)
    • Volume II
  • Cortland County Multi-Jurisdictional All Hazard Mitigation Plan (2021)
  • Schuyler County Hazard Mitigation Plan (2022, Draft)
  • Ontario County All Hazard Mitigation Plan (2018)
  • Tioga County Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan (2018)
• Water Quality Plans
  • Tompkins County Water Quality Strategy (2022-2024)
  • Schuyler County Water Quality Strategies (2007)
  • Cayuga County Water Quality Management Agency (WQMA) Work Plans

Having an educated public is an important component to protecting water. The following are resources to share with your residents.

• Lakeside Living in a Changing Climate (Cayuga Lake Watershed Network):  An informational booklet to guide Cayuga lakeside homeowners through climate-smart and environmentally friendly home and living practices.
• Cayuga Lake Friendly Living Homeowners Guide (Cayuga Lake Watershed Network).
• Watershed Living in a Changing Climate (Cayuga Lake Watershed Network): An informational booklet to guide Cayuga Lake watershed residents through climate-smart and environmentally friendly home and living practices.
• Cayuga Lake Watershed Network Newsletter.
• Landscaping for Water Quality in the Finger Lakes – a guide from Cornell Cooperative Extension
• US EPA’s Stormwater Smart Outreach Toolbox
• Homeowner’s Guide to Stormwater and more home stormwater management documents. 
• Homeowner brochure (from Owasco) – good educational materials to give to new homeowners to make them aware of how they can protect water quality.
• Understanding Stormwater (from Owasco) – this brochure explains what stormwater is, why it’s a problem, and actions individual landowners can do to help.
• Rain Garden Brochure (from Owasco) – how a rain garden can help slow water from reaching waterways.
• Green Infrastructure (from Owasco) demonstrates ways to reduce the amount of water going into the stormwater systems during large rain events.
• Drinking Water Source Protection Program – August Newsletter

Hydrilla information – See the Cayuga Lake Watershed Network’s Hydrilla page