Community Science Institute

09/04/2026

CSI will be closed on Monday in observation of Labor Day. Have a safe and happy summer weekend!

PS- harmful algal bloom (HAB) observations can be reported here: https://survey123.arcgis.com/share/87b399ce2af4454e8b5f83da2852768a

PPS- August Updates from CSI: https://mailchi.mp/681d16751455/august2026?e=5444554c40

Banner photo provided by Harry Durgin

08/28/2026

🏆 Celebrating Our Volunteers! 🏆

Last weekend at CSI’s annual Volunteer Recognition Event at Stewart Park, we were proud to honor two outstanding members of our volunteer community!

New Volunteer of the Year: Kurt Jirka

Since joining CSI in 2025, Kurt has jumped in with both feet! From bringing his expertise to our Biomonitoring program to spending Fridays washing bottles and assembling sampling kits, Kurt has quickly become an essential part of the CSI community. We’re so grateful for the energy, enthusiasm, and experience he brings to everything he does!

This award celebrates a new volunteer who jumped headfirst into their role at CSI. This person is a self-starter; someone who hit the ground running and has made an outsized impact in the program or programs in which they volunteer, despite having joined the organization a relatively short time ago. We recognize this volunteer for their hard work and enthusiasm. We look forward to seeing how this awardee will continue to grow as a CSI volunteer!

Dr. Stephen Penningroth Volunteer of the Year: Andrew “Andy” Yale

For more than a decade, Andy has dedicated his time to monitoring local water quality. From leading E. coli sampling for the West Shore Neighborhood Association to serving as a HABs Harrier, volunteer leader, and youth mentor, his long-standing commitment has made a lasting impact on CSI and our community.

This award celebrates a volunteer who goes above and beyond. Following the ethos of Dr. Stephen Penningroth, CSI’s founder, this volunteer exhibits determination and dedication in their commitment to supporting water quality in the Finger Lakes Region. They express their optimism for the future of this beautiful landscape through persistently educating their community about data-driven science, speaking out against unsustainable practices, and galvanizing their neighbors to join in the grassroots environmental movement.

👏 Please join us in congratulating Kurt and Andy—and thanking them for all they do to help protect and understand our local waters!

A special thank-you to The Plantsmen Nursery in Groton for generously donating a $25 gift certificate for each of this year’s award recipients! 🌱

08/22/2026

Today’s the day we celebrate our incredible volunteers! 💙 If you can’t join us in person, know that you’re with us in spirit.

Over the last 26 years, CSI volunteers have:

💧 Collected more than 150,000 water quality measurements, including nearly 91,000 from the Cayuga Lake watershed.

🧪 Spent hundreds of hours washing glassware, preparing sample kits, and entering data into our water quality database.

💦 Supported dozens of community outreach events, from Reggae Fest to our Journey of Water youth education programs.

🩵 Supported CSI through generous donations that, even in a challenging economy, continue to grow each year—allowing us to do more with, and for, our communities.

There simply aren’t enough accolades to express our gratitude for the countless hours, talents, ideas, and generosity our volunteers have shared with CSI over the past 26 years.

Thank you for being such an important part of CSI’s story—and our future! We can’t wait to celebrate YOU at Stewart Park later today and eat some delicious food from Catering By Luna and Purity Ice Cream! 🎉🎈🥳

08/18/2026

🚨 HAB activity is ramping up on Cayuga Lake. ⚠

Unfortunately, harmful algal bloom (HAB) activity is increasing this week. On Monday, 8/17, we received 14 HAB reports, and as of 2 PM today (Tuesday, 8/18), we’ve received another 7—for a total of 21 reports in just two days.

While this isn’t the highest number of reports we’ve received over a two-day period, it’s a notable increase: during the entire previous week, we received 15 reports total.

📍 13 of the 21 reports are from the western shoreline, stretching from Canoga to Taughannock Falls State Park.

If you’re out on Cayuga Lake, please keep an eye out for HABs and report what you see! Your observations help us track bloom activity and provide important information to the community.

👉 Report a HAB: https://arcg.is/08nfyP1

👉 Visit the Cayuga Lake HABs Tracker on our water quality database to view confirmed HAB reports: https://www.database.communityscience.org/hab

A big thank-you to all of our HAB monitoring volunteers and community members who are keeping an eye on the lake! 💙

This form is to be used by anyone who observes a suspected harmful algal bloom during the monitoring season (June 1 - October 31) on Cayuga Lake. Please fill the form out as completely as possible. If you experience any issues with the form, please contact the HABs Monitoring Program Coordinator, Al...

08/14/2026

🌻🪷🌾🌿Next week on Friday 8/21: free workshop hosted by Cayuga Lake Watershed Network in Seneca Falls! You’ll learn about how we can care for Cayuga Lake by choosing native plants and best practices for healthy, resilient yards and shorelines. Additional details and registration link can be found in the original post!

08/14/2026

Volunteers, friends and partners! Monday is the deadline to register for next weekend's Annual Volunteer Recognition Event on 8/22/26 at Stewart Park.

If you'd like to come, please register here before Monday:

https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/csis-annual-volunteer-recognition-event?

We’re excited to invite all current and former CSI volunteers —and your families— to our Annual Volunteer Recognition Event! We’re honoring the dedication,…

08/08/2026

Enjoy ~10 seconds of creek after the storms passed by this afternoon 🌦️🌿💦

08/07/2026

July was a busy month of monitoring, learning, and community connection at CSI! We continued planning for our upcoming Annual Volunteer Recognition Event, officially kicked off the 2026 biomonitoring season, and stayed busy tracking harmful algal bloom activity across Cayuga Lake—with blooms observed on 19 of 31 days throughout the month. Despite challenging conditions, including Canadian wildfire smoke and extreme heat, our Synoptic Monitoring volunteers continued collecting valuable water quality data from local streams. We also welcomed families and young learners to four Journey of Water programs, exploring the connections between our communities and the water resources we all share.

Read more here: https://mailchi.mp/368ccf017d2a/july2026

July 31 was this year’s popular “lake flu” day — and the weather was perfect for enjoying Cayuga Lake! Photo by Kurt Schaffer

08/02/2026

Last week, 8 confirmed harmful algal bloom (HAB) reports were documented on Cayuga Lake, and 6 of those were observed on Friday July 31, 2026.. Most reports were concentrated in the northeast portion of the lake, particularly between the Northern Marshes, Harris Park, Frontenac Park, and Ellis Point, with an additional localized bloom reported near Long Point State Park.

READ THE FULL NEWSLETTERy HERE -->
mailchi.mp/cayugalake/2026_habs_6

07/31/2026

Several harmful algal bloom (HAB) reports have been submitted today, 7/31/26, from the northeast quadrant of Cayuga Lake.

Reports have come in from:
📍 North of the train trestle that crosses the lake
📍 Frontenac Park in Union Springs
📍 Farley's Point
📍 Hibiscus Harbor

If you’re enjoying a “sick day” (aka the "lake flu") today, please be cautious about recreating in areas where a HAB may be present. Exposure to HABs can pose health risks for people and pets — especially dogs, who may be more likely to ingest lake water while swimming or playing. If you suspect your dog has been exposed, contact your veterinarian immediately. If you suspect you, friends, or family have been exposed, contact your local health department for further guidance: Cayuga County Health Department, Tompkins County Whole Health Department, Seneca County Health Department.

📲Before heading into the water, check CSI's HABs Tracker (https://www.database.communityscience.org/hab) for current HAB reports.

❌avoid water that looks like spilled paint, pea soup, mats, scum, or has unusual discoloration. When in doubt, stay out!

Help us keep track of HABs on Cayuga Lake by reporting suspected blooms through our HAB reporting form (https://arcg.is/1aD5zq3). Your observations help protect our community and our water resources. 💧