October 2024 Conservancy Newsletter
We joined our partners last week in celebrating reauthorization of the federal Lake Tahoe Restoration Act, a critical element of how Tahoe projects—including many California Tahoe Conservancy projects—get funded. As co-host, we are excited to join our state, federal, tribal, and local partners at the Sierra Nevada Regional Meeting of the California Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force.
Conservancy field operations continue as we get closer to the return of winter. Our thanks to our crew and staff who have stayed busy overseeing and implementing projects to improve forest resilience and maintain Conservancy lands.
Jason Vasques, Executive Director
California Tahoe Conservancy
Lake Tahoe Restoration Act Reauthorized, Extending Key Federal Funding for Tahoe
Congress has reauthorized the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act (LTRA), and President Biden signed the act into law last week. This approval extends existing funding authorizations through 2034 for about $300 million for projects in the Lake Tahoe Basin.
Funds from the LTRA have played a consequential role in helping to fund Conservancy projects, including the Upper Truckee Marsh Restoration Project, along with hundreds of other projects under the Lake Tahoe Environmental Improvement Program (EIP). Under the EIP, Basin partners leverage funding from the LTRA to help secure support from state, local, and private funding sources.
Forestry Crew Improving Forest Health on Conservancy Land
Big thanks to the Tahoe Resource Conservation District crew this field season. For many years, we have partnered with Tahoe RCD crews to help manage forest health on Conservancy land.
Here the crew is thinning overly dense trees on a lakefront Conservancy property in South Lake Tahoe. The crew bucks logs into rounds that become available as free fuelwood to community members. Branches and smaller trees get chipped, with the mulch also made available for free pickup. The crew’s work helps improve forest health on these public lands and reduces wildfire risk to the community.
New Tri-Lingual Informational Signs at Knox Johnson and Motel Property
Including the Washoe Language in Interpretive Signage
New informational signs at the Knox Johnson and Motel Property, written in English, Spanish, and the Washoe language, share the news that the Conservancy, supported by partners, has acquired this environmentally sensitive land and is removing the development. The Conservancy is also engaging the community about future environmental and public access improvements at this site.
The Conservancy is grateful to the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California for translating the project signage text into the Washoe language. The translation is not word for word, as the Washoe language reflects the world view of the waší∙šiw (Washoe people – the people from here). But as Tribal staff noted, the translation captures the essence of the message perhaps even more so. Here is the signage text in Washoe, with the original accompanying English text.
gó∙laš wé∙wɨs – Coming Soon
mí∙leɁ hutí∙weɁ deḱéšeɁguwa mášašé∙setigábigi – More Nature (More nature/ everything that lives and how they live you will get to know in the future.)
ťáŋlelši dáɁawágaɁa hutí∙weɁ Ɂíwi dewesuḱá∙ḱɨm tékewšigiháka Ɂitŋáwa Ɂí∙sáŋaɁa hutí∙weɁ géyeɁí∙yaluŋ Ɂíške báɁyaɁ – The California Tahoe Conservancy, supported by partners, has acquired this environmentally sensitive land and is removing the development.
ťáŋlelši dáɁawágaɁa hutí∙weɁ Ɂíwi dewesuḱá∙ḱɨm gádaɁéšibetiɁa Ɂúdi datánuɁeyišgešigi mugá∙gɨmaɁ wát tánu Ɂí∙yeɁgápɨlaɁ dahutí∙weɁ dewémi Ɂida deḱéšeɁášašé∙šetiaɁ heligi. – The Conservancy is also engaging the community about the future of this site for Lake Tahoe’s environmental and public access.
The sign text is also available in Spanish. Nearly a third of South Lake Tahoe households speak Spanish, as do millions of Californians.
Conservancy Receives “Best in Basin” Award for Upper Truckee Marsh Restoration
The Conservancy is honored to have received a “Best in Basin” award from the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency for the Upper Truckee River and Marsh Restoration Project in South Lake Tahoe.
The Conservancy shares the award with its project partners: Calif. Dept. of General Services, Northwest Hydraulics Consultants Inc., Meyers Earthwork Inc., U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Calif. Dept. of Fish and Wildlife, Calif. Wildlife Conservation Board, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, and USDA Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit.
In the project, completed in 2022, the Conservancy restored and enhanced over 250 acres of floodplain by returning river flows to the center of the Marsh, with benefits for wildlife habitat, Lake Tahoe’s water quality, and resilience to climate change impacts.
Conservancy Receives Grant to Improve Adaptive Paddling Access at Lake Tahoe
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife has awarded the Conservancy an $844,000 grant to improve nonmotorized boating access for people with disabilities at Patton Landing Beach on the north shore of Lake Tahoe. Improvements will include an accessible route to the beach and shoreline, an accessible lakeside picnic area, and refurbished facilities and restrooms.
Patton Landing Beach, located on Conservancy land, is a popular water sport recreation hub in Carnelian Bay. Tahoe Waterman, a Conservancy concessionaire, operates a nonmotorized watercraft rental and café business at the beach. Supported in part by a Conservancy grant, the Tahoe Waterman Foundation, a nonprofit associated with the concessionaire, organizes paddling programs at Patton Landing for people with physical and mental disabilities and underserved youth.
Partner Agencies Seek Public Input on Proposed Permanent Location for South Shore Watercraft Inspection Station
Partner agencies are working to find a permanent home for the aquatic invasive species watercraft inspection station in Meyers, where approximately 2,000 boats are inspected every year to protect Lake Tahoe from aquatic invaders.
The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, El Dorado County, Conservancy, and Tahoe Resource Conservation District will host a public meeting on Monday, October 14 at 5:30 pm at the Lake Valley Fire Protection District station in Meyers to discuss the proposed site. Learn more.
The North Tahoe Public Utility District, Conservancy, and Placer County are collaborating to understand community needs for Secline Beach in Kings Beach. Join the community open house on Tuesday, October 15, from 4:30-6:30 p.m. at the North Tahoe Event Center in Kings Beach to help partners understand how you use Secline Beach and what improvements could be made to improve your experience. Learn more.
Staff Updates
Meet the Conservancy: Alan Castner
Next up in our video series in which we periodically highlight a Conservancy employee: Alan Castner, an environmental scientist with the Conservancy’s Forestry Program. Alan is responsible for preparing the Conservancy’s fuel reduction and forest health projects. Meet the Conservancy is our series where we introduce Conservancy employees to the public we serve. Watch to find out who we are and what we do toward our mission to lead California’s efforts to restore and enhance the extraordinary natural resources and recreation opportunities of the Basin.
New Employees
Kristin Anderson
Recreation Planner
Kristin Anderson joined the Conservancy in August as a Recreation Planner. Kristin is working on the Conservancy’s Land Management Strategy, managing a grant program to increase access for all to Lake Tahoe, and working on various recreation and access projects around the Basin. Prior to joining the Conservancy, Kristin worked as a recreation planner for the state of Maine and started her career in recreation management and environmental planning in Yosemite National Park. Kristin earned a master’s degree in environmental management from Western Colorado University, where she focused on recreation ecology–studying environmental and social impacts of recreational activities—and a Bachelor of Arts in social and behavioral sciences from the University of Southern Maine.
David Coats
Staff Attorney
David Coats joined the Conservancy in July as a Staff Attorney. As part of the legal team, he provides legal advice and services to Conservancy staff to help manage Conservancy land, provide grants, and restore the Basin’s watershed and landscape. David comes to the Conservancy from a law firm in Carson City, where he practiced law in water rights, real property, and land use. David is licensed to practice law in California and Nevada. He earned his bachelor’s degree in environmental economics from the University of California, Berkeley, and his law degree from the University of California, Davis.
Jen Miller
Forest Management Specialist
Jen Miller joined the Conservancy in October as a Forest Management Specialist. Jen will be helping increase the pace and scale of Conservancy forestry operations. She manages implementation contracts and grants, and will be involved with community engagement. Jen comes to the Conservancy with 15 years of experience working in the Basin with the USDA Forest Service – Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, where she worked in urban land management, vegetation management, and special uses.
Upcoming California Tahoe Conservancy Board Meetings
The Board will meet on March 20, 2025. An agenda will be available on the Conservancy website ten days prior to the meeting.
Lake Tahoe in the News
Wildlife corridors: A new camera study paves the way for wildlife connectivity in Tahoe – Sierra Sun, August 30, 2024
California Tahoe Conservancy celebrates 40 years at its board meeting – Tahoe Daily Tribune, September 20, 2024
Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team releases new tool showing fire restrictions – Sierra Sun, October 1, 2024
Bottom barriers successfully kill 17 acres of aquatic invasive plants – Tahoe Daily Tribune, October 1, 2024
Tahoe Restoration Act reauthorization brings $300 million for basin – Reno Gazette Journal, October 4, 2024
Congress approved $300M for Lake Tahoe. Here’s where it all goes. – SFGATE, October 6, 2024
Understory burning resumes at Sugar Pine Point | South Lake Tahoe – South Tahoe Now, October 7, 2024
Show Your Love for Tahoe While Protecting It
When you order a California Lake Tahoe license plate, you help build biking and hiking trails, restore fish and wildlife habitat, and protect Lake Tahoe’s famous beaches and blue waters. 96 percent of all funds from Tahoe plate sales come back to Lake Tahoe.
Show Your Love for Tahoe While Protecting It
When you order a California Lake Tahoe license plate, you help build biking and hiking trails, restore fish and wildlife habitat, and protect Lake Tahoe’s famous beaches and blue waters. 96 percent of all funds from Tahoe plate sales come back to Lake Tahoe.