Owasco Lake

Owasco Lake is the sixth largest of the Finger Lakes. It is located on the south edge of the City of Auburn and contained entirely within Cayuga County. Compared to the other Finger Lakes, Owasco Lake is an intermediate-sized lake. It has a large drainage basin to surface ratio (the larger the basin, the larger the surface inflow, including nutrients), which may account for the high nutrient-loading of Owasco Lake.

Owasco Lake provides drinking water to over 44,000 residents in Cayuga County, including residents within the City of Auburn. Click here to view the Owasco Lake Watershed map.

Owasco Lake Physical Features

Elevation: 712 feet
Area: 10.65 square miles
Shoreline Length: 27 miles
Length: 10.7 miles
Average Width: 1.2 miles
Maximum Depth: 177 feet
Mean Depth: 97 feet
Towns adjacent to the Lake: Fleming, Moravia, Niles, Owasco, Scipio, Venice

Owasco Lake Watershed Features

Area: 205 square miles
Counties: Cayuga (81.5%), Onondaga (2.3%) and Tompkins (16.2%)
Towns within the watershed: Towns of Fleming, Genoa, Locke, Moravia, Niles, Owasco, Scipio, Sempronius, Sennett, Summerhill and Venice in Cayuga County. Towns of Dryden, Groton and Lansing in Tompkins County. Skaneateles in Onondaga County.
Villages within the watershed: Village of Moravia in Cayuga County and Village of Groton in Tompkins County.

Owasco Lake Watershed Plans and Guiding Documents

Owasco Lake Watershed Nine Element Plan for Phosphorus Reduction
Cayuga County received a grant to incorporate the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Nine Key Elements into the Owasco Lake Watershed Management and Waterfront Revitalization Plan. The Owasco Lake Watershed Nine Element Plan for Phosphorus Reduction was approved in 2022 by the New York State Department of State and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. This Clean Water Plan advances efforts to restore and protect the water quality of Owasco Lake and its watershed.

Owasco Lake Harmful Algal Bloom Action Plan
This Watershed Plan was prepared by NYS DEC in 2018 to guide efforts to reduce harmful algae blooms in Owasco Lake.

Owasco Lake Watershed Management and Waterfront Revitalization Plan
This plan was completed in 2016. The Owasco Lake Watershed Management and Waterfront Revitalization Plan examines the present state of Owasco Lake and its watershed, how water quality and habitat conditions are changing, and the challenges of meeting community goals for continued use and enjoyment of this valued resource. In light of this assessment, the Plan recommends specific actions needed to restore and protect Owasco Lake and its watershed for future generations. A high priority recommendation in this plan was to was to incorporate the EPA’s Nine Key Elements into this plan to create the Owasco Lake Watershed Nine Element Plan for Phosphorus Reduction.

Owasco Lake Watershed Management and Waterfront Revitalization Plan Watershed and Waterbody Inventory Report
This May 2015 document provided the data and information needed to develop the Owasco Lake Watershed Management and Waterfront Revitalization Plan.

Owasco Lake Watershed: Institutional Framework and Assessment of Local Laws, Programs, and Practices Affecting Water Quality
This September 2015 document is a companion document to the Owasco Lake Watershed Management and Waterfront Revitalization Plan: Watershed and Waterbody Inventory Report.

Groups involved with protecting Owasco Lake

Owasco Lake Watershed Management Council

Owasco Lake Watershed Inspection and Protection Division

Owasco Watershed Lake Association

Save Owasco Now

Research and Data on Owasco Lake and its Tributaries

Citizens Statewide Lake Assessment Program (CSLAP) Reports
CSLAP reports are created from data collected by sampling volunteers from member lake associations. Reports from 2019-present are available here. Reports from 1997 through 2020 can be found on the NYS Federation of Lake Associations (NYSFOLA) website here.

Owasco Lake Data Portal
Includes data from the Finger Lakes Institute’s buoy in Owasco Lake and water quality data.

John Halfman’s Research of Owasco Lake

Data and information can be found on the NYSDEC’s Division of Water Monitoring Data Portal. Go to the portal and search for Owasco Lake.

Owasco Watershed Lake Association Citizen Science

City of Auburn Annual Water Quality Report

Town of Owasco Annual Water Quality Report