New LTCC Class Will Provide Job Skills to Help Protect Lake Tahoe

The League to Save Lake Tahoe and Lake Tahoe Community College are offering a course, “Water Quality Monitoring of Streams and Lakes (GEG 107),” to provide students skills applicable for entry level field, environment and science technician job duties with Tahoe resource agencies.

“We are excited for the potential for this class to prepare students to become the skilled staff the region’s agencies need to accomplish their goals to protect Lake Tahoe,” said Jesse Patterson, the League’s deputy director. “At the same time, by participating in the class, students get an opportunity to make an immediate difference by enhancing our understanding of the Lake’s pollution and invasive species problems.”

The course, which takes place during LTCC's upcoming spring semester, will provide an introduction to proper field sampling methods for streams and lakes that address a multitude of issues relevant to Lake Tahoe as well as how to use the data collected to guide natural resource management decisions. Students will practice these methods while monitoring Trout Creek and Lake Tahoe and then apply them as team leaders during a volunteer monitoring event with the community, Snapshot Day. Students will develop a sampling and reporting program for an environmental issue of their choice that demonstrates skills learned during the class.

LTCC's Spring Semester begins April 6, and this class begins on April 10. Visit www.ltcc.edu to register.

“This class provides excellent opportunities for students who want to get more involved in protection efforts for the Lake,” said Patterson. “As part of the class students will not only take lead roles in Snapshot Day, they’ll be trained for the League’s ongoing volunteer monitoring programs, Eyes on the Lake and Pipe Keepers.”

Trained Eyes on the Lake volunteers provide critical eyewitness reports that identify the location of infestations of the aquatic invasive species threatening the Lake’s clarity, while Pipe Keepers provide vital monitoring of stormwater pollution — the most significant impact to Lake Tahoe’s famous clarity.

At the conclusion of the class, studeNew LTCC Class Will Provide
Job Skills to Help Protect Lake Tahoents may continue building their skills by applying for special internship placements with Tahoe organizations, including the League to Save Lake Tahoe.