natural

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit and the Tahoe Institute for Natural Science (TINS) invite residents and visitors to attend the third annual Lake Tahoe Bird Festival on Saturday, June 2, 2012, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. The event is free and takes place at the Taylor Creek Visitor Center, located three miles north of South Lake Tahoe on Highway 89.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency has scheduled a series of open houses and public hearings to give the public an opportunity to provide input on the draft Regional Plan Update and Regional Transportation Plan, as well as the environmental documents that were released at last month’s Governing Board meetings.

The State Water Resources Control Board is confronting a major controversy Tuesday: whether to allow pesticide use in Lake Tahoe. Some believe it will save the lake from being choked to death by invasive species, while others say it could destroy an environmental treasure.
Lake Tahoe supports a $5 billion economy and a stunning natural eco-system. But all the beauty is facing a growing underwater threat — plants and animals that are not supposed to be there.

Bill Boosman and Paul Sciuto, both Lake Tahoe residents with backgrounds in conservation issues, were sworn in as Tahoe Resource Conservation District (Tahoe RCD) Board members at a public meeting on Tuesday in South Lake Tahoe. They join 3 existing members to complete a five-person Board of Directors.

Leadership Lake Tahoe produced a new kind of fundraiser on Ski Run Boulevard April 28 called the Unforgettable Supper Stroll and Storytellers’ Night. Event organizers Kalia Knutson, Jeff Sterns and Jeff Cowen aimed to combine three goals into an innovative event: raise funds for the Friends of the Library, promote local businesses during the shoulder season and highlight South Tahoe’s local history to promote pride in the community.

Roadside stations for inspections and decontaminations of motorized boats and watercraft are officially open for the 2012 boating season at 5 locations entering the Lake Tahoe Basin.
“Boat inspections are critical to maintaining the health of Lake Tahoe and our local recreation-based economy,” said Ted Thayer, TRPA’s Aquatic Invasive Species Coordinator. “Through the efforts of the Tahoe Resource Conservation District’s well-trained inspectors and other private and public partners committed to the Lake, we expect to have another successful season.”

Policy and science “link up all the time” says Leo Drozdoff, Nevada secretary of conservation and natural resources. Drozdoff, along with John Laird, California secretary of natural resources, discussed issues on environmental policies of Lake Tahoe at a recent UNR seminar. The men spoke mostly on the logistics of protecting Lake Tahoe between two states, to which Nevada contributes one-third of the budget, with the other two-thirds the responsibility of California.

Genoa gave rise to Nevada, and Nevada gave rise to Mark Twain, so as a natural thing I gravitate toward Genoa in the springtime for the Cowboy Poetry & Music Festival, and this year's fandango topp...

Public input is sought by the U.S. Forest Service on a proposed one-time event at Heavenly Mountain Resort, called the MojoMan Challenge. This is an adventure race competition that covers approximately 10.5 miles and incorporates 25 to 30 challenge obstacles along the course that participants will negotiate.

Here is the fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California, Lake Tahoe and the Sierra. This report is for the week of April 18-25. The opening day for all California fishing is on April 28.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency announced the schedule of public meetings and workshops for public input on the Regional Plan Update draft and environmental documents for Lake Tahoe being released later this month.

Dance into Spring with Bison and the Smugglin Hooch Jug Band on Saturday, March 31 beginning at 7:30 at the American Legion in South Lake Tahoe. This is a benefit for the Sierra Nevada Alliance. Suggested donation of $10 is appreciated! For more information please contact: Carissa@sierranevadaalliance.org.

OK, so it hasn't been the best snowsport season so far, but hold on, more snow is coming with storms over this weekend and we'll be able to ski off-piste without worrying about slightly hidden rock and logs. And on top of that, it's spring skiing, always the best of the year. Forget those crowds of December and January, don't recall those icy January days when the wind howled. It's spring skiing, lightly clad with plenty of sun for sitting on the lodge deck.

H2O at Home will present its innovative line of natural and chemical-free organic products designed for living a safer, simpler life from 4 to 7 p.m. on March 13 at Blue Angel Cafe, 1132 Ski Run Blvd., South Lake Tahoe. Damien Douchet, CEO of H2O at Home, will be present the benefits of organic product lines at this free event. Enjoy light refreshments and go home with a free sample. The H20 at Home advisors are Tiara Wasner, Tifney Spoelstra, Machele Alviso and Linda Benson of South Lake Tahoe.

CARSON CITY – A regulation requiring thousands of home-based businesses to pay a $200 annual fee won approval today from a legislative panel.
Secretary of State Ross Miller has been trying to get the regulation approved for several months, but has seen the regulation stymied by strong opposition from some Nevada residents and Republican lawmakers who argued the regulation exceeded his authority.

U.S. Forest Service officers cited four local men for riding snowmobiles at night in the Freel Peak/High Meadows closure area on the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit.
While on patrol, officers observed fresh snowmobile tracks passing directly underneath closure signs and subsequently encountered the riders. One rider fled the scene, abandoning his snowmobile, which was towed and impounded.

New Lake Tahoe license plates are appearing on the vehicle fleets of major ski resorts and businesses in the Tahoe Basin, as support for the Tahoe plate program in California and Nevada continues this winter.

Heavenly Ski Resort helped launch the program in 1996 and has 140 vehicles plated for Tahoe. Northstar Resort, Squaw Valley, Alpine Meadows, and Tahoe Dave’s Skis and Boards have ordered new Tahoe plates.

Recognized for stewardship and care taken in the building and construction of developments around Lake Tahoe, the 22nd annual Best in the Basin awards were announced Tuesday by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.
The TRPA, which sets policy for development around Lake Tahoe, will recognize the winners, listed below, during the 2011 Best in the Basin awards presentation during the meeting of its Governing Board on Wednesday, Feb. 22 in Stateline. Go here for the agenda.

Tahoe Regional Planning Agency employee Jeff Cowen was honored as the recipient of the North Lake Tahoe Chamber and Resort Association’s Employee of the Year Award for his outstanding work as TRPA’s Community Liaison.
“I was shocked and truly honored to receive this recognition,” Cowen said about the award. “I am lucky in my job because I get to inform the community about all the great work being done by TRPA staff. I know I share this award with them,” he said.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency received a positive ruling in the opening stages of the lawsuit challenging the Homewood Mountain Ski Area Master Plan that was filed by the Sierra Club and the Friends of the West Shore.

The snowfall in January gave the Sierra snowpack a boost, but it is still well below average, according to the National Weather Service in Reno. The graph above shows the Snow Water Equivalent from the current water year through Feb. 1, the average water year (1971-2000), and the 2010-2011 water year.
The Snow Water Equivalent for this water year through Feb. 1 is around 5 inches, compared to more than 20 inches this time last year, according to the weather service.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Executive Director, Joanne S. Marchetta, will host a “fireside chat” at Lake Tahoe Community College on Wednesday, February 8 from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m. on “21st Century Environmentalism and the Regional Plan Update.”

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency’s Governing Board approved a new fee structure for the Aquatic Invasive Species Watercraft Inspection Program in an attempt to make it more equitable and sustainable, according to Agency officials.