Nicole Fernandez, assistant professor of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, and her students have been monitoring Cascadilla Creek on a daily basis. When wildfire smoke blanketed New York State earlier this summer, it caused spikes in phosphorus concentrations in the creek water. According to their data, as the phosphorus-rich water flowed into Cayuga Lake, it triggered a lake-wide harmful algal bloom (HAB).

Source: Alumni News | Smoke in the water