water quality

Ever since we moved to South Lake Tahoe thirty eight years ago, we have been proud to call this city our home. Between our community spirit of caring and sharing, excellent schools, and the inspiring nature of the Lake and Mountains, we are truly fortunate to live in such a special place. We recently hosted our foreign exchange student from twenty years ago and we were proud to show him all of the community upgrades such as Heavenly Village, Lakeview Commons, Harrison Avenue, South Tahoe High School, and the new Whole Foods project.

The public has another opportunity to give feedback on the design of the U.S. 50/South Shore Community Revitalization Project on Thursday, October 5, 2017 at the Lake Tahoe Resort Hotel from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Formerly known as the Loop Road Project, this one seeks to divert Highway 50 from its current location near the intersection with Pioneer Trail and move traffic behind Raleys and the casinos, then reuniting with the current location of Highway 50 in Stateline, Nevada with a roundabout.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Tahoe Conservancy Board yesterday awarded up to $3,359,081 in Proposition 1 funds for eight projects to improve the Lake Tahoe Basin’s forests, lake clarity, and water quality.

The Final Draft of the Meyers Area Plan was released today along with the associated joint environmental document. This draft updates 20-year old policies to streamline permitting for small projects, improves consistency between El Dorado County and Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) policies and standards, promotes recreation and bicycle/pedestrian improvements, establishes zoning to better reflect current conditions, conserves land around the Upper Truckee River, formalizes a local citizens advisory council, and integrates design standards and guidelines.

Lake Tahoe’s extraordinary deep water clarity is attributed to its uncommonly clean water which allows sunlight to reach much greater depths than possible in most other water bodies. Fine sediments through stormwater runoff into the lake reduces this clarity.

The city received some good news this week. We were successfully awarded $2.9 million in federal funds to complete all of the funding for the Sierra Blvd. Streetscape project-we are now 100% funded through construction. Kudos to Stan Hill with the City for his excellent grant application. Per Jim Marino, Asst.

An updated plan for the 72 miles of Lake Tahoe shoreline is in the works, one that could enhance recreation while also bringing more piers and buoys to the lake. Stakeholders have been working collaboratively in developing solutions to both manage natural resources while improving access to the lake for recreational purposes.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, (TRPA) is asking for public comment as they go through the process of preparing a draft environmental impact statement for the proposed Lake Tahoe Shoreline Plan.

Jack Johnson is not only an entertainer, but he is also an environmentalist doing what he can to reduce his impact on the earth. When Johnson comes to Lake Tahoe this summer on July 28 and 29, one can not only expect great music, but also a zero waste tour.

His All at One initiative is a social action network where everyone can make a positive change in their local and world community. As he tours, Johnson will connect with non-profit groups, take environmental action, and receive rewards. All At Once promotes Sustainable Local Food Systems and Plastic Free Initiatives.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Caltrans has temporarily turned off the pedestrian hybrid beacon at Camp Richardson after backup in the congested area became a concern to both motorists and other agencies.

The light on State Highway 89 at Camp Richardson was turned off on June 27 and will remain off through the upcoming weekend and July 4th holiday.

Light and sound affect people and wildlife. Find out more when the Tahoe Institute for Natural Science hosts the next TERC talk and movie screening in Lake Tahoe on Thursday, July 13 at 5:30 p.m.

"The Smog of the Sea" will be shown. It is a short film that chronicles a one-week journey through the remote waters of the Sargasso Sea to assess the fate of plastics in the world's oceans. As the crew sieves the water they find a fog of microplastics permeating the world's oceans.

As construction continues on Highway 50 from Winnemucca Avenue to the Y in South Lake Tahoe, drivers need to be aware of some recommended alternative routes since left-hand turns from the road are not available.

A lack of left-hand turns has drivers confused as to where to go. Some people are still making left-hand turns where prohibited, thus jamming up traffic and making navigation dangerous.

Construction season has started in the Tahoe basin and the Tahoe Truckee Unified School District will utilize the warm weather and their student’s summer exit to complete projects that were approved under Measures E and U in 2014.

Auerbach Engineering Corporation was selected through a competitive bid process to provide Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) services for the Tahoe Lake Elementary reconstruction and the Rideout/Tahoe Lake Elementary temporary relocation projects.

With the launch of an revamped TahoeRoads.com, the public now has information needed to navigate the roads around Lake Tahoe on both sides of the state line during a road work season that has major projects planned.

Dogs are currently banned from the Upper Truckee Marsh area due to protection of a critical breeding habitat for special, threatened and endangered species such as the Willow Flycatcher and Yellow Warbler.

The California Tahoe Conservancy announced today its annual seasonal dog closure which will be in place July 31.

Beginning August 1, dogs will again be permitted access to the Upper Truckee Marsh, if they are on leash. The Conservancy-owned Cove East property, west of the river, remains open for year-round, leashed dog access.

Boating season in Lake Tahoe is here, and with it comes the return of roadside stations that will inspect and decontaminate motorized boats and watercraft heading to the lake.

All motorized watercraft require inspection for aquatic invasive species (AIS) prior to launching into Lake Tahoe, Fallen Leaf Lake and Echo Lake. Invasive species, such as quagga mussels, New Zealand mudsnails, and hydrilla, are known to multiply quickly and colonize underwater surfaces, including docks and piers, water supply and filtration systems, buoys, moored boats, and even the beautiful rocky shoreline.

As we celebrate Earth Day this April, let’s remember how important environmental stewardship is to the health of Lake Tahoe, and how important our individual actions are.

Over the last two decades, public, private, and nonprofit partners have made significant progress conserving and restoring Lake Tahoe’s environment through the Environmental Improvement Program.

Learn more about the three-mile long shared-use path being created near Sand Harbor State Park on SR-28 during a public information meeting held by the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) on March 30 from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Chateau in Incline Village.

Get information and updates on the construction which is planned to increase safety, accessibility and add water quality enhancements. NDOT will have schedules for this summer’s construction, and offer virtual reality tours of the future path.

It's been one year since the City of South Lake Tahoe was denied a grant by the California Tahoe Conservancy (CTC) for their Bijou Park Creek Watershed and SEZ Restoration Project, and today, the Conservancy Board did it again.

What is officially known as the Bijou Park Creek Watershed Restoration Project, or unofficially the Knight's Inn Project, will be brought before the South Lake Tahoe City Council to be approved during a special meeting on Tuesday, March 14 at 4:00 p.m.

The three phase, 850-acre project will be both an environmental and economic development project, something the City has been working on for several years.

Stateline, Nevada – The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) is accepting nominations for its annual Best in Basin awards program through Friday, March 31.

TRPA created the awards program to recognize projects that demonstrate exceptional planning and design and compatibility with Lake Tahoe’s environment and communities.

Over the last two decades, the Lake Tahoe Region has become a national leader in fighting the introduction and spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS) that threaten to harm its world-renowned environment and the $5 billion recreation-based economy it supports.

The Lake Tahoe Region is working with other partners throughout the American West to better safeguard waterbodies and improve national invasive species policies. We are also working with the boating industry to help manufacturers design watercraft that are less likely to carry AIS and are easier to inspect and decontaminate.

Twenty-five years ago, I finished my graduate work in Oregon and moved to Northern Nevada for a planning position at TRPA. Having spent a large part of my youth hiking and camping at Tahoe and in the Sierra, the move felt like coming home.

Friday's board meeting of the California Tahoe Conservancy (CTC) was delayed almost two hours due to ice on the road near near Zephyr Cove, causing it to close, and those weren't the only icy conditions on the South Shore that day.

The other ice could be felt during the meeting as conflict of interest, ethics, integrity, suspicious actions and lack of transparency were the theme of the day.

All three items on the agenda Friday were placed there amid a stressed relationship between the City of South Lake Tahoe, El Dorado County and Patrick Wright, the Executive Director of the CTC.

Late Friday night, the U.S. House of Representatives joined the U.S. Senate in passing the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act of 2016, which will bring $415 million in future funding to Lake Tahoe over the next seven years. The decision brought cheers from many local agencies, including the League to Save lake Tahoe and the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.