lake tahoe basin management

The last day to purchase a fuelwood permit from the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit is Friday, November 14, 2014, and the last day to cut wood is Sunday, November 16, 2014. Fuelwood permits cost $20 per cord, with a two-cord minimum purchase and a limit of 10 cords per household.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit will continue prescribed fire operations in the Pioneer Trail and Slaughterhouse Canyon areas on Tuesday, November 4, and continuing as conditions allow.

A decision to approve the retrofit project to revitalize the Tallac Historic Site was announced today by the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU).

The project, in the works for a few years, will improve recreational facilities, implement water quality BMPs, as well as upgrade paths, restrooms, parking and picnic areas.

It's that time of year when recreation areas start to closed down for the season.

Nevada Beach, Fallen Leaf, Bayview, Meeks Bay, and Kaspian campgrounds, and Nevada, Pope, Baldwin, Meeks Bay, William Kent, and Kaspian beaches all closed for the season on Monday, October 13. The Tallac Historic Site closed at the end of September.

Camp Richardson and Zephyr Cove resorts remain open year-round.

The Taylor Creek Visitor Center will remain open on weekends through the end of October.

Last year, a government shut down caused the annual South Lake Tahoe festival that honors the Kokanee Salmon to be canceled, though nobody told the fish. Highway 89 was lined with cars since people had to walk in to view the fish spawning as well as enjoying fall foliage.

The TRPA, U.S. Forest Service and the California Public Utilities Commission have released a final environmental impact report on the proposed electrical system upgrade in North Lake Tahoe by Liberty Utilities.

The proposed 625 and 650 Electrical Line Upgrade Project would consist primarily of an upgrade of Liberty Energy's existing 625 and 650 electrical power lines and associated substations from 60 kilovolt to 120 kV, to allow the entire North Lake Tahoe Transmission System to operate at 120 kV.

The Lake Valley Fire Department was given a $26,000 grant to clear brush and hazard trees from a 6.5 acre parcel in Meyers. The grant was given by the Forest Service to help reduce the risk of wildfire in Meyers.

The parcel is owned by the California Tahoe Conservancy across from the Tahoe Pine Campground.

An environmental impact report on the Heavenly Epic Discovery Project is ready for public viewing. The new project, located at Heavenly Mountain Resort, will expand their summer activities to include more canopy tours, hiking and biking trails as well as interpretive activities.

Since 2011 the U.S. Forest Service has allowed more summer activities on national forest lands.

The following increase in activities are being proposed:

Due to the rise in human - bear conflicts at Lake Tahoe campgrounds, the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit of the Forest Service (LTBMU) has proposed an order to require visitors to properly store food and refuse in a container designed to prevent access by black bears and other wildlife.

Bears quickly learn to expect to find food at previously successful locations and have altered their behaviors in response to human sources of food. Bears habituated to human food will also forage preferentially on human food, even when wildland food is available.

The chemical treatment of invasive plants by the U.S. Forest Service in Lake Tahoe will continue through the summer at about 70 different locations totaling 12.5 acres. In South Lake Tahoe the treatment will take place at the Angora wildfire area, Baldwin Beach meadow, Burke Creek trail, Luther Pass campground, Heavenly Creek Meadow, Heavenly Ski Area, Rabe Meadow and the Spooner Summit fire station as well as at several urban lots that the Forest Service controls.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit began a mastication project last week on the North Shore of Lake Tahoe off of Fairway Drive near Tahoe City.

The project will eliminate material left behind after thinning for fuels reduction and involves using a masticator, which is a large lawn-mower type of heavy equipment that runs over debris and chops it up into smaller pieces.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit is seeking public input on a proposal to remove the Incline Lake dam and restore the area impacted by it. The Forest Service purchased the 777-acre Incline Lake parcel, located off State Route 431 in Washoe County, Nev., on July 29, 2008, for its recreational, scenic and natural resource values. During the acquisition process, a site investigation and assessment determined that the Incline Lake dam and spillway do not meet federal, state or local standards for a high-hazard dam (designated as such due to downstream development).

A management plan that will guide management of National Forest System lands in the Lake Tahoe Basin over the next 15 years has been worked on over the last decade. The creation of the plan took the concerns and values of many different groups and citizens as to how Forest Service lands in the basin should be managed.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit is proposing to relocate the Zephyr Point Fire Lookout from its current location to a new site on top of White Hill above Spooner Summit in Douglas County, Nev. The lookout, which was determined to be eligible for the National Register of Historic Places in 1997, would be dismantled from its current location and reassembled at the new site.

U.S. Forest Service fuels management crews will begin prescribed fire operations in Slaughterhouse Canyon, north of Spooner Summit tomorrow, Wednesday, October 30, 2013. The total unit size is 30 acres. Fuels management crews may burn as much of the unit as possible, weather and conditions permitting. “Because of the recent snowfall, conditions allow our crews to carry out operations on larger units,” said Kit Bailey, Fire Management Officer with the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit. Operations are likely to continue through the end of the week.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit is closing Forest Service-operated facilities and cancelling Forest-Service staffed events due to the lapse in federal government funding, effective October 1, 2013 until funding is restored. Concession-operated facilities, campgrounds and events will continue as normal for the time being. Most forest roads and gates remain open for the time being. The Forest Supervisor’s Office and Taylor Creek Visitor Center are closed. Forest Service-operated campgrounds are closed.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit has approved a project to improve the recreational experience in the Fallen Leaf Lake area, while protecting the natural, cultural, and historic resources of the area.

"We will never, never forget" were the words spoken by U.S. Rep. Tom McClintock, 4th District of California, as Gold Star Peak was dedicated in South Lake Tahoe today. A bronze memorial plaque commemorating the peak was unveiled during the ceremony held at Lakeview Commons. Mayor Tom Davis told the group gathered, "We're proud to be able to have a memorial we can view every day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year." The plaque is placed near beach level with a clear view of Gold Star Peak.

It has been 17 years since President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore stood on the shores of Lake Tahoe and issued a challenge. They urged the frequently fractious perspectives in the region to come together in support of the restoration of Lake Tahoe.

Forest thinning on public land along the west side of Fallen Leaf Lake will begin Friday, Aug. 16, the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit announced Thursday. Thinning will take place south of the dam and will move closer to the dam in a couple of weeks.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit will host a field trip on Friday, August 2, to observe progress on the Upper Truckee River Reach 5 Restoration Project.

The project will replace the existing stream channel with a new channel that is more stable and is connected to the adjacent floodplain, which will provide a better aquatic habitat, support a healthier meadow ecosystem, and reduce the amount of fine sediment that reaches Lake Tahoe.

Headed to Lake Tahoe for the Independence Day holiday? The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit asks residents and visitors to help protect public safety and the environment, and keep wildfire prevention in mind while celebrating.

Possession of fireworks of any kind, including sparklers, is illegal in the Lake Tahoe Basin and campfires are not permitted on National Forest beaches or in the general forest. For those planning to barbecue on the beach, the Forest Service requires the use of portable gas stoves.

With tinder-dry conditions after one of the driest winters on record, California fire officials will suspend burning permits along the West Slope and Eldorado National Forest beginning June 17. Fire restrictions in the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit will begin July 1.

CAL FIRE’s Amador-El Dorado- Sacramento Unit will suspend door-yard burning permits and the Forest Service will begin fire restrictions in portions of Eldorado National Forest.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit and the Tahoe Institute for Natural Science will host the fourth annual Lake Tahoe Bird Festival on Saturday, June 8, followed by the third annual Native Species Festival on Sunday, June 9.

Residents and visitors are invited to attend these free family events from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Taylor Creek Visitor Center, located three miles north of South Lake Tahoe on Highway 89.

June 8 event: