Conservancy receives $2.98M to help restore Upper Truckee Marsh

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Tahoe Conservancy (CTC) has been awarded a large piece of funding to help its $10.6 million project to restore the 500 acre Upper Truckee River Marsh.

CTC was awarded $2.98M by the California Wildlife Conservation Board (WCB) to help with the project at the marsh, the largest wetland in the Lake Tahoe Basin.

“We’re grateful to the Wildlife Conservation Board for its support,” said Conservancy Board Chair and City of South Lake Tahoe representative Brooke Laine. “This new funding closes a gap for one of the most important environmental restoration projects in Lake Tahoe’s history.”

They will be redirecting the Upper Truckee River flows to a historical network of channels through the current Marsh while creating new channels for the river in the vicinity of the Silverwood neighborhood. These new channels will capture flow during periods of high water to spread the river throughout the Marsh. The main channel will continue to carry all of the flow during low-water periods.

The restored Marsh will act as a natural pollution filter, removing fine sediments from the water before it reaches Lake Tahoe while also improving water quality and enrich native bird and fish habitat, according to the Conservancy. With a wetter Marsh, it will be more resilient to droughts, flooding, and other climate change impacts. The Conservancy also plans to enhance public access and recreation opportunities in the northwest corner of the Marsh.

Originally planned for 2019, work will now begin in Spring 2020.

In addition to WCB, other project funders include the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the U.S.D.A. Forest Service, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the U.S. Geological Survey, and the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board.

Development in the 20th century destroyed much of the Marsh through dredging and filling and channelized the Upper Truckee River as it nears Lake Tahoe. The Conservancy plans to begin construction in 2020 to restore over 250 acres of floodplain by returning a portion of the river flows to the center of the Marsh. The Conservancy will also create wetlands by removing fill material near the Tahoe Keys.

The Marsh project anchors a larger interagency strategy for the Upper Truckee River. The partners’ goals include restoring the ecological integrity of the river and floodplain while improving water quality and recreation access.