The beauty and peace of Lake Tahoe has drawn people to it for
millennia. It's one of the largest (192 square miles), deepest
(1,645 feet at the deepest point and averaging 1,200 feet deep),
and clearest mountain lakes in the world; a blue gem set in a
setting of High Sierra grandeur. Lake Tahoe is 22 miles long and
12 miles wide, with a surface elevation of 6,223 feet above sea
level. The lake comprises approximately 40 percent of the Basin.
Located between the Carson Range on the east and the Sierra Nevada
Range on the west, the Lake Tahoe Basin is divided lengthwise
by the California and Nevada State line. Approximately 75 percent
of the land area and 70 percent of the lake surface lies within
California, with the remainder in Nevada. American explorer John
C. Fremont put the lake on the map in 1844, and since then the
lake has drawn millions of people to its shores.
Today, people the world over consider the Lake Tahoe Basin a special place. Many levels of government, conservation organizations, and economic interests work together to sustain the environmental and economic health of the Basin.
Humans have been an integral part of the Lake Tahoe Basin ecosystem
for thousands of years. The Washoe (Wa-She-Shu or "the-people-from-here")
have maintained a close relationship with the land for all time.
Lake Tahoe (Da-ow-a-ga) was and continues to be the center of
existence for the Washoe people. The Washoe are the original guardians
of the area, migrating throughout the Basin and surrounding valleys.
For the Washoe, Lake Tahoe is considered a sacred place, imbued
with spiritual significance and full of life-giving qualities.
These traditions are treasure and are carried on today.
Early settlers (EuroAmerican) viewed the Basin as a Godgiven
resource waiting to be tapped. With the discovery of silver and
the resulting Comstock era (1859 through the 1880s), The Basin
was intensively logged to provide large amounts of lumber needed
for the construction and operation of the silver mines in Virginia
City, Nevada. Commercial fishing began in Lake Tahoe with the
opening of the Comstock mines in 1859. Grazing was also a factor
in the early years. Thousands of cattle were driven through the
Basin to Virginia City. In addition, thousands of sheep were grazed
extensively throughout the Basin for 40 years after the Comstock
era.
By the turn of the century, much of the Basin had been completely
logged. Stream courses and flows had been altered, native vegetation
had been overgrazed, and urbanization was beginning. Urbanization
"shortcircuited" the Basin's natural functions,
causing accelerated releases of nutrients from the watersheds
and the decline of its cleansing capacity. While resource extraction
was taking its toll on the Basin around the turn of the century,
the United States was also witnessing the beginnings of the conservation
ethic. Consequently, the late 1800s saw a steady increase in the
public's perception of Lake Tahoe as a recreational resource.
In 1907 the Eldorado, Tahoe, and Toiyabe National Forests were
established, each encompassing a portion of the lake.
Through the first half of the twentieth century the Lake Tahoe
Basin remained a sparsely populated recreational destination.
However, starting in the 1950s growth escalated rapidly. From
1960 to 1990 the population increased fivefold, and the region
became an extremely popular recreation destination. Millions visit
the Basin each year, and the year round population has jumped
to an estimated 60,000. In the 1970s the impacts of such a dramatic
population change raised concerns about impacts on the Basin's
water quality, air quality, and infrastructure concerns which
continue today. The suburban development accompanying the population
increase gave rise to an urban interface problem, compounded by
recent tree losses from the drought of the late 1980s and early
1990s. In 1969, California and Nevada agreed to a joint regional
planning effort, called the Tahoe Regional Planning Compact, to
better manage growth, address the issues and created the Tahoe
Regional Planning Agency. In 1980 the Compact was amended and
strengthened, and through a consensus building process, a new
regional plan was adopted for the Basin in 1987.
Since 1987, cooperation among business, environmental, and government agencies has increased significantly, and although differences of opinions still exist about how to address the issues the Basin faces, many levels of government, conservation organizations, and business interests continue to work closely together to improve the environmental and economic health of the Basin.
Early logging, rapid urbanization, and the current pattern of
mixed ownerships contribute to Lake Tahoe's problems and the complexities
of solving them. Currently, four issues threaten the quality of
life, the environment, and the setting that fuels the recreation
and tourism based economy:
Each of these issues affects recreation and tourism. Lake Tahoe
attracts millions of visitors each year. Recreation is now a multimillion-dollar
industry that has supplanted lumber and other heavy industries
as the engine of the Lake Tahoe economy. As that demand grows,
the challenge is meeting demand without seriously degrading or
destroying the natural resources that provide and support recreation
opportunities.
The USDA - Forest Service now manages 77 percent of the Basin's
lands through the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU). The
Forest Service also provides numerous recreational opportunities
in the Basin, including several worldclass ski resorts,
marinas, historic interpretive sites, 945 campsites, cross-country
skiing trails, and 216 miles of hiking trails. In addition to
recreation, key Forest Service programs include: watershed restoration
to reduce nutrients flowing into the lake and to restore damaged
wildlife and fisheries habitat; erosion control grants to local
and state agencies; forest monitoring to track water quality;
and vegetation management actions, such as fire suppression, prescribed
fire, and commercial and noncommercial thinning, to improve
wildlife habitat, visual quality, vegetative health, and to reduce
the risk of large catastrophic wildfires.
Since the 1980s the Forest Service has acquired 11,000 acres of
environmentally sensitive lands, under the authority of the Santini-Burton
Act (PL 96-586), to protect water quality, provide public access
and recreation, to restore the watershed and wetlands, and to
improve the overall forest health of the Lake Tahoe Basin. These
lands include 3,400 urbanlot parcels.
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, South Lake Tahoe
Field Office, provides ecosystem-based technical assistance, program
coordination and environmental education and information to 55,000
residents within the Lake Tahoe Basin. NRCS programs include stream
and wetland restoration, forest health, storm water runoff conveyance
and treatment and assistance to homeowners. These programs are
implemented on a watershed basis in partnership with the local
Resource Conservation Districts, local, state and federal agencies
and private groups and organizations.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, EPA was involved in assisting
in the development of water and air quality plans that serve as
points of reference for the Tahoe Regional Plan and environmental
threshold carrying capacities that guide the activities of the
Tahoe Regional Planning Agency. Since 1975, EPA has awarded grants
to TRPA and to local governments in the Tahoe Basin for water
quality management planning, sediment and erosion control projects,
wastewater treatment facilities (over $75 million), and wetlands
management. Presently, EPA and the Federal Transit Administration
are supporting the South Shore Tahoe Transportation Project, through
a $2.5 million environmental technology demonstration grant.
The Geological Survey participates in the Lake Tahoe Interagency
Monitoring Program in a cooperative effort with TRPA and the University
of California at Davis. Through that program, the USGS measures
streamflow and water quality at a number of sites on 10 major
streams flowing into the lake. The USGS also monitors ground water
levels and quality in major aquifers in the Basin.
Although the Bureau of Land Management does not manage any land
in the Basin, it is involved in land exchanges and the SantiniBurton
Act of 1980. Receipts from the sale of surplus BLM land in the
Las Vegas area have been used to acquire environmentally sensitive
land in the Lake Tahoe Basin.
The Fish and Wildlife Service is the lead agency for endangered
species listing and recovery in the Tahoe Basin. The USFWS has
been working with the Forest Service on bald eagle management
and the effects of winter recreationists on bald eagle foraging
behavior in the Basin.
The top 6.1 feet of the lake is a Bureau of Reclamation reservoir that supplies water to downstream water users (primarily Nevada) including the Reno metropolitan area, the Newlands Irrigation Project, and Pyramid Lake. The usable storage capacity is 744,600 acrefeet and the Federal Watermaster controls releases.
The Army Corps of Engineers has initiated a Tahoe Basin Study that will focus on water quality, wetlands habitat, and other environmental restoration opportunities in three sub-basins. An expedited reconnaissance study for the Tahoe Basin was initiated in November 1996 and is scheduled for completion in October 1997. The purpose of the study is to outline the resource problems in the Basin and develop a scope, schedule, and federal interest for a subsequent detailed feasibility study. Preliminary recommendations of the reconnaissance study are to initiate a costshared feasibility study for the Upper Truckee River and Trout Creek watersheds, and to conduct additional reconnaissance studies for other sub-basins.
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), which maintains
Division offices in the State capitals of Sacramento and Carson
City, administers the Federal Aid program for highway and multi-modal
transportation investments. The federal program relies on State
and metropolitan planning and priority setting to identify specific
local investments. A FHWA Regional office in San Francisco provides
environmental, technical and administrative support. Transportation
projects in the Tahoe Basin include landscaping, drainage, safety,
pedestrian paths, bike lanes, parking management and historical/archaeological
restoration. A multiple phase erosion control and storm water
management master plan was initiated to design and construct sand-oil
separators, drop inlets, timber structures and rip-rap to reduce
the amount of silt and sediment reaching Lake Tahoe.
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) provides funding
assistance to local transit systems via the same planning and
decision-making processes as FHWA. All administration is provided
by the FTA's Regional office in San Francisco.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) operates the
national air traffic system, including the air traffic control
towers at the Lake Tahoe Airport and Reno International Airport.
The FAA's Airport Division Office in San Francisco administers
the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), through which Federal funds
are invested in capital improvements.
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) oversees rail
safety measures from its Regional office in Sacramento. The US
Coast Guard oversees boating safety from its Station in Tahoe
City.
The private sector is a major partner in local environmental protection
and economic revitalization efforts. Private property and business
owners participate in a number of ways; through payment of air
quality and water quality mitigation fees on new development,
by incorporating threshold attainment components into project
design, and by adjusting to a land use plan which allocates annual
growth. The private sector, through mitigation measures and project
design, is a critical partner in improving the scenic quality
of the built environment to respond to the needs of the touring
public and position itself as a destination resort.
At the local level there are a large number of public and private
agencies and organizations involved in managing, improving, and
developing environmental and economic conditions at Lake Tahoe.
Within California and Nevada, there are five counties, one municipality,
one redevelopment authority, two resource conservation districts,
more than twenty public utility and general improvement districts,
several non profit organizations, and a number of chamber of commerces
and visitors authorities, all addressing environment, recreation,
property rights, economy, and sustainability.
From acquiring important areas near Lake Tahoe, to educating the
public about recreation, water quality, and economic opportunities,
and improving planning, public utilities, and the local economy,
these local public and private agencies and organizations are
working to protect and restore the Lake Tahoe Basin.
The Washoe Tribal Council is the oldest resident government, with
Washoe occupation of the area confirmed at 10,000 years. Water
has always been an integral part of the Washoe Tribe, for both
spiritual and practical reasons. The tribe believes the sacred
waters of Lake Tahoe breathes life into the land, the plants,
the fish, the birds, and the people around it. The tribe has maintained
its involvement in Federal basin policy and has collaborated in
areas of cultural resource protection, shore and stream zone protection,
ethnobotanical inventory, and development of water quality standards,
as well as archive/records management, and public education awareness.
The tribe has created innovative conservation programs, developed
community partnerships, and taken an active stand against any
practices that harm the Lake Tahoe Basin. Some of the conservation
efforts include: Meeks Bay, a resource management program promoting
the cultivation of traditional plants; Eagle Valley Hydrologic
Study in partnership with USGS and Carson City; Jacks Valley Creek
Watershed.
At the joint request of the states of California and Nevada, the
Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) was chartered by federal
law under an interstate compact in 1969 (revised in 1980) as a
bistate planning and regulatory agency to manage growth
and protect the lake and its surrounding environment. The 1980
Public Law establishes that the "maintenance of the social
and economic health of the region depends on maintaining the significant
scenic, recreational, educational, scientific, natural and public
health values provided by the Lake Tahoe Basin." The law
further finds that "the federal government has an interest
in the acquisition of recreational property and the management
of resources in the region to preserve environmental and recreational
values, and the Federal Government should assist the States in
fulfilling their responsibilities."
Under the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts TRPA has enforcement
responsibilities for attaining environmental thresholds for air
and water quality, soil conservation, wildlife habitat, vegetation
management, noise, recreation, and scenic quality. TRPA has also
developed an Environmental Improvement Program and an integrated
set of environmental improvement projects.
The State of Nevada has a strong commitment to Lake Tahoe, as
shown by the many state programs in the Basin. Lake Tahoe Nevada
State Park, managed by the Division of State Parks, provides lake
access and acres of forest and meadowland for picnicking, camping,
hiking and fishing. The Division of Forestry participates in managing
the forest ecosystem, especially on State and private lands, and
in preventing and fighting wildfires.
The Division of State Lands is responsible for the administration
of two state bond programs in the Basin. Under a 1986 Tahoe Bond
Act, the agency has spent more than $26 million to acquire approximately
500 parcels of environmentally sensitive land, and has issued
more than $7 million in erosion control grants to local governments.
In 1996 voters approved a $20 million bond for erosion control
and stream restoration work in the Basin. Special Lake Tahoe license
plates will be issued, with the proceeds directed to the Division
of State Lands to protect the water quality of the lake. The Department
of Transportation maintains its state road network in the Basin.
Through the Nevada Division of Water Planning, $8.5 million in
bond funds have been committed in grants for improvements to community
water systems. The Nevada Division of Environmental Protection
has provided more than $21 million in grants, loans and program
support for environmental planning, resource protection, pollution
control and program support work. The focus of these and other
state agencies is to work cooperatively with local, regional,
and federal agencies to protect and enhance the lake and the environment
of the Basin. The state DEP is the lead agency responsible for
implementing EPA's programs.
The State of California has primary responsibility for implementing
the majority of federal programs on behalf of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency. The California Tahoe Conservancy administers
programs involved in the acquisition, improvement, and management
of land in the Tahoe Basin, either directly or through grants,
to protect the natural environment, to provide public access and
recreation opportunities, and to preserve wildlife habitat areas.
To enhance access, restore wildlife habitat and streams, and acquire
environmentally sensitive areas, the Conservancy has authorized
the expenditure of more than $146 million, acquiring more than
5,250 parcels of land, and completing 320 site improvements.
The California Department of Parks and Recreation operates five
major recreational facilities, creating opportunities for high
quality outdoor recreation, and at the same time protecting the
State's most valued natural and cultural resource. At Lake Tahoe,
the Department of Boating and Waterway's focus is the development
and improvement of boating facilities, and the promotion of boating
safety, education and enforcement.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection maintains
a full-time fire station at Lake Tahoe and is responsible for
protection on certain private and state-owned lands. The agency
provides forestry management services to the Tahoe Conservancy,
and is an active member of the Lake Tahoe Unified Steering Group
and the Forest Health Consensus Group.
Within the Lahontan Region, the State Water Quality Control Board
preserves and enhances the quality of Lake Tahoe, regulating operations
such as stormwater treatment, timber harvest, water quality standards,
dredging, and cattle grazing.
The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) maintains
163 miles of state highways in the Basin. Since 1975, Caltrans
has spent approximately $11.5 million on roadside drainage and
erosion control. Working with the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency
and local agencies, Caltrans continues to identify new projects
that will contribute to the water quality of the Basin.
The California Office of Tourism focused on Lake Tahoe with its
Ski California marketing program, and as part of its statewide
CalTour program. Additionally, the Office of Tourism sponsored
the Western Summit on Tourism and Public Lands, which was held
at Lake Tahoe last year.
Successful management strategies in the past have been on a sound scientific foundation. A cooperative research partnership among federal, state and local entities have provided the basis for such successes.
This Web site has been produced by the Tahoe Center for a
Sustainable Future, a 501(C)(3) organization
dedicated to achieving a sustainable future for the entire Lake Tahoe region.
To comment please contact the Web Site Administrator.
Last updated: July 3, 1997