Catskill Science Collaborative

Two soil pits were excavated in each of 25 small catchments in the Catskills region in the summer of 2011. One pit was located near the watershed outlet, while the other was located at an elevation approximately half way between the watershed outlet and the watershed crest. Samples were collected from the combined Oi and Oe horizons, the combined Oa and A horizons, the 0-10 cm mineral soil layer, the 10-20 cm mineral soil layer, the layer from 20 cm to bedrock or C horizon, and the C horizon where present. A “quantitive pit” approach was used to determine the mass of soil in each layer per square meter of land surface area. This allowed for the computation of element pools in the soils. Chemical analyses included total C and N, pH, exchangeable cations, organically bound Al and H, and total contents of 26 elements using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry. The methods and a summary of the results may be found in Johnson (2013, Annals of the New York Academy of Science, vol. 1298, pp. 30-42). These results are expected to be useful in future monitoring efforts through resampling of the study sites.

Delineation data of forest stands in watershed lands located to the east and west of the Hudson River, NY. Stand delineation data are updated routinely as new lands are acquired and as stand boundaries change due to a shift in forest structure (e.g., management activities, disturbance). Variables collected for each forest stand are land cover (Anderson 1979 methodology) and area.

Routine, regularly updated hydrology data to monitor the drinking water supply. Variables include many standard water quality analytes.

Routine, ongoing, and regularly updated limnology assessments to monitor the drinking water supply in NYCDEP reservoirs.

Monthly sampling by NYCDEP at wastewater treatment plants for surveillance, modeling, and compliance.

Forest inventory plots collected by NYCDEP contractors on NYC watershed lands. Data includes plot locations (shapefile) and access database with forest inventory variables. Data is summarized at the stand level.

Forest plot sampling of 13 watersheds across the Catskill Mountains, New York. Data for this project was collected as part of a larger-scale effort to document the distribution of forest types within the Catskills using three similar methods of determining relative basal area for all canopy species.

Collection of baseline water quality, water level, vegetation, and soils data from reference wetlands in the West of Hudson watershed.

This project is a common suite of meteorological data for NYCDEP that is regularly updated in one minute time increments spanning from 1996 to present. Variables include: temperature, solar radiation, wind direction and speed, snow depth, pressure and precipitation.

Regularly updated, real-time snow depth, snow water equivalence, and snow temperature data collected at bi-weekly or hourly intervals depending on the dataset.

Routine limnological monitoring to check for the presence of Zebra Mussels and Spiny Water Fleas, both invasive species, in NYCDEP reservoirs.

Collection of data on breeding amphibian populations and their wetland use and apparent health. Water levels and the contributing influences to the hydrologic cycle within small systems. Baseline water quality sampling (Temperature, pH, Dissolved O2, and specific conductivity). and topographic settings of the pools. Kinimetric surveying for horizontal profile analysis of pool basins. Calculations of water budget.

Single-species plots of five different tree species were fertilized with nitrogen to determine the impacts of atmospheric deposition on trees and soils.

Vegetation cover maps produced for the Catskill Mountains in New York using remotely-sensed Landsat imagery.

USGS Stream Gages

"The MDN is the only network providing a longterm record of total mercury (Hg) concentration and deposition in precipitation in the United States and Canada. All MDN sites follow standard procedures and have uniform precipitation chemistry collectors and gages." (From Mercury Deposition Network website - see link to left)

"Data were collected to assess fish communities and estimate population size and biomass for each species at each sampling site." (From USGS website -see dataset links)

"CASTNET is a national monitoring network established to assess trends in pollutant concentrations, atmospheric deposition, and ecological effects due to changes in air pollutant emissions." (from CASTNET website, see link to left)

"Land-based observations are collected from instruments sited at locations on every continent. They include temperature, dew point, relative humidity, precipitation, wind speed and direction, visibility, atmospheric pressure, and types of weather occurrences such as hail, fog, and thunder. " https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/data-access/land-based-station-data (From Land-Based Station Data website to left)

A visitor survey conducted at 12 different trailhead locations within the Catskill Park with the goal of better understanding the factors that encourage visitors to use trail registries in the Catskill Park.

Using the River Erosion Model (REM) and Dynamic Linear Models (DLMs) to evaluate turbidity reductions from stream restoration projects

The purpose of this study is to determine if hydrocarbons related to unconventional oil and gas activities are present in upland groundwater. Water samples from 50 domestic wells located <1 kilometer (km) (proximal) and >1 km (distal) from shale-gas wells in upland areas of the Marcellus Shale region were analyzed for chemical, isotopic and groundwater-age tracers. Uplands were targeted because natural mixing with brine and hydrocarbons from deep formations is less common in those areas compared to valleys. This data release contains isotopic tracer, noble gas, and groundwater-age tracer concentration data collected by the U.S. Geological Survey and data for pH, specific conductance, major ions, and methane collected by Chesapeake Energy Corporation.

Previous studies have shown that clearcutting of northern hardwood forests mobilizes base cations, inorganic monomeric aluminum (Alim), and nitrate (NO3−-N) from soils to surface waters, but the effects of partial harvests on NO3−-N have been less frequently studied. In this study we describe the effects of a series of partial harvests of varying proportions of basal area removal (22%, 28% and 68%) on Alim, calcium (Ca2+), and NO3−-N concentrations in soil extracts, soil water, and surface water in the Catskill Mountains of New York, USA. Increases in NO3−-N concentrations relative to pre-harvest values were observed within a few months after harvest in soils, soil water, and stream water for all three harvests. Increases in Alim and Ca2+ concentrations were also evident in soil water and stream water over the same time period for all three harvests. The increases in Alim, Ca2+, and NO3−-N concentrations in the 68% harvest were statistically significant as measured by comparing the 18-month pre-harvest period with the 18-month post-harvest period, with fewer significant responses in the two harvests of lowest intensity. All three solutes returned to pre-harvest concentrations in soil water and stream water in the two lowest intensity harvests in 2–3 years compared to a full 3 years in the 68% harvest.

A collection of lichen specimens including those in the Catskill area.

A Database that reports on invasive Species in Catskills Area. IMapInvasives is an online, collaborative GIS-based invasive species database and mapping tool used in several jurisdictions across North America. In New York State, iMapInvasives is the official state invasive species database used for reporting invasive species, recording treatment efforts and tracking success, mapping invasive species distributions, data analysis in the web interface and GIS, and creating data summaries and reports.