Environmental Improvement Program

With President Barack Obama visiting Lake Tahoe for a landmark 20th annual Lake Tahoe Summit this month, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency has published a special summit edition of Tahoe in Depth.

This special edition of the award-winning newspaper tells the story of 20 years of summits at Lake Tahoe—from the organization and importance of the first-ever summit and the successful work it sparked, to major issues such as climate change that will confront the Tahoe Region in the decades to come.

Tickets to the 20th annual Lake Tahoe Summit quickly sold out on Monday once the White House announced President Obama would attend the event on the South Shore of Lake Tahoe.

The national spotlight will be on South Lake Tahoe, giving local agencies the opportunity to show the local efforts on keeping Tahoe Blue have worked by highlighting the progress that has been made to combat pollution, promote restoration, tackle invasive species and protect Lake Tahoe's shoreline.

Now that the 4th of July holiday has passed, construction on the Caltrans Hwy 89 project along the West Shore of Lake Tahoe is now on an overnight schedule and will remain so for the next several weeks during the peak summer season, the department announced today.

Contractor Road and Highway Builders now works a 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. shift during the week and 10:00 p.m. Sunday to 6:00 a.m. Monday. That schedule is expected to continue until August 15. Completion of the project was originally targeted for the end of this season, but some work now will extend into 2017.

To prepare for the $57 million Caltrans project that will start in South Lake Tahoe in 2017, Southwest Gas is continuing their gas-line relocation work along Highway 50 from the "Y" to Al Tahoe Blvd this spring and summer.

The construction work will be completed during both daytime and nighttime hours and Southwest Gas officials told South Tahoe Now there will be no major bottlenecks that were prevalent last summer.

"There will be less lane restrictions and improved traffic flow," said Stephen Miller, of Southwest Gas Corporate Communications.

At Lake Tahoe, we know our natural resources are one of our most valuable assets, and that’s why we have worked for decades to conserve and restore them. The natural wonders of the Jewel of the Sierra and the opportunities they afford are why we live here, and why millions of visitors travel here to enjoy the Tahoe Basin each year.

The latest round of funding through the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act (SNPLMA) includes more than $3 million for projects to help reduce wildfire risk in Lake Tahoe communities.

The funding award for Lake Tahoe is part of nearly $40 million going to projects around Nevada to reduce wildfire risk, conserve landscapes, restore wildlife habitat, and improve public recreation. U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announced the funding awards this January.

A new website puts comprehensive information about the Lake Tahoe Environmental Improvement Program at everyone’s fingertips, allowing people to easily learn more about “Lake-Saving Projects” completed in their own neighborhoods and all around Lake Tahoe.

The new Environmental Improvement Program Project Tracker is online at www.conservationclearly.org/tracker.

A Caltrans water-quality improvement project on U.S. Highway 50 in South Lake Tahoe was honored last week during the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency’s 25th annual “Best of the Basin” awards.

Decisions made in Congress over the next few months may well determine the extent to which Lake Tahoe remains blue and clear, with healthy forests, resilient watersheds, and its ecology protected from the threat of new aquatic invasive species.

For two decades, the Lake Tahoe Environmental Improvement Program (EIP) has provided guidance for the shared investments made by our federal, state and local governments, homeowners, and businesses to restore and protect Tahoe’s unique environmental qualities and enhance its diverse public recreation opportunities.

This week, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency voiced its strong support for legislation to reauthorize the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act that has been introduced in Congress by Tahoe’s Senate delegation.

Sponsored by U.S. Senator Dean Heller (R-Nevada) along with Harry Reid (D-Nevada), Dianne Feinstein (D-California), and Barbara Boxer (D-California), the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act would authorize up to $415 million in federal funding over 10 years to help continue critical environmental restoration work at Lake Tahoe.

It’s Wildfire Awareness Month at Tahoe, and with the summer tourist season around the corner, we must all remember that drought has left our Region with severely dry forest conditions and an extreme risk of wildfire. This summer we need to think about “when” not “if” another fire will happen. All of us have important roles to play in preventing the next wildfire, and in making sure our homes, families, and communities are prepared for it.

Clarity levels at Lake Tahoe in 2014 showed the biggest improvements in more than a decade, according to researchers at the University of California, Davis, who have studied the lake for the last half century.

The improvements are in part due to continuous work from the Lake Tahoe community to lower pollutants to the lake. They were also influenced by the drought, as reduced precipitation meant fewer contaminants flowed into Lake Tahoe, particularly during the summer, when clarity levels were the highest recorded since 2002.

The California Tahoe Conservancy Board unanimously voted today to award Sierra Business Council (SBC) $50,000 to expand and enhance the Lake Tahoe Water Trail.

The Lake Tahoe Water Trail is the 72-mile scenic paddling route around the shore of Lake Tahoe. SBC plans to improve trail maps; increase wayfinding, trailhead signage, and outreach and education; launch a Lodge-to-Lodge Network; and establish a new Oversight Committee to develop a business plan to create a more sustainable program.

Draft environmental documents are available for public review and comment for the State Route 89/Fanny Bridge Community Revitalization Project in Tahoe City, California. Public comments will be accepted through Tuesday, February 17, 2015.

Clarity levels within the iconic blue waters of Lake Tahoe continued a decadelong trend of stabilization in 2013, according to University of California, Davis, scientists who study the lake.

Data released today by the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC)and the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency reported the average annual clarity level for 2013 at 70.1 feet. While the reading represents a 5 foot decrease over the previous year, it is still well above the lowest value recorded in 1997 of 64.1 feet and above recent years' averages.

The reauthorization of the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act was introduced yesterday in the U.S. House of Representatives, following the Senate’s introduction of the bill in August.

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.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency is marking this year’s Lake Tahoe Summit by highlighting the Environmental Improvement Program’s 15 years of achievement restoring and protecting Lake Tahoe’s fragile ecosystem.

Launched at the 1997 Presidential Forum at Lake Tahoe by then President Bill Clinton, and Vice President Al Gore, the Environmental Improvement Program (EIP) is a partnership of more than 50 federal, state, and local agencies, private interests, and the Washoe Tribe.

Restoring the Upper Truckee River and the 2013 home building season allocations both received the green light Wednesday from the Governing Board of the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.

On the question of whether the Homewood Mountain Ski Area Resort, a ski area on Lake Tahoe’s West Shore, can be revitalized, the U.S. District Court validated all of the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency’s environmental findings in the decision on the Sierra Club’s lawsuit challenging the project. The court remanded the case back to TRPA on one very limited issue concerning the adequacy of the economic analysis related to one of the alternatives studied, TRPA officials said.

The Nevada Division of State Lands has funding available to implement Environmental Improvement Program projects on the Nevada side of the Lake Tahoe Basin.In order to be eligible, projects must be...

The environmental non-profit Tahoe Fund presented a $10,000 check today to the Nevada interagency team responsible for implementing thestate’s highest priority Lake Tahoe restoration project, the Third Creek and Incline Creek watershed project. The grant finances a pedestrian bridge over Incline Creek to provide a recreational amenity in the heart of Incline Village and support the Environmental Improvement Program to improve lake clarity and recreational opportunities in the Tahoe Basin.

Applications for persons to serve on the Lake Tahoe Basin Federal Advisory Committee are being accepted now through July 20 by the U.S. Forest Service. The committee provides a critical role in advising the Secretary of Agriculture and Lake Tahoe's Federal Interagency Partnership on programs and funds to achieve the goals of the Lake Tahoe Environmental Improvement Program.

Several environmental gains over the last five years have been made at the Lake Tahoe Basin, according to the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency’s “Threshold Evaluation Report” released Wednesday, which highlights water quality as a continued area of concern.

The comprehensive report offers a snapshot of the health of the ecosystem in the Tahoe Basin by documenting the status and trends of more than 100 environmental standards ranging from air and water quality to fish and wildlife. The biggest improvements were documented in air and water quality, and scenic resources.