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II. The Cause for Concern A Unique Resource is Threatened Renowned for its beauty and remarkable transparency, Lake Tahoe is a natural jewel in the Sierra Nevada mountains. It is of statewide, national and international significance by virtue of its size, volume, depth, and transparency, coupled with its magnificent scenic setting. With its deep cobalt-blue waters this California-Nevada resource is one of the world's remarkable waterbodies. Serving as the focus for over 20 million visitors annually, the preservation of Lake Tahoe, its watershed and air quality is a priority concern of legislators, community leaders, scientists, and the public alike. Lake Tahoe is the world's tenth-deepest lake at 505 meters (1,657 feet). The watershed geology, large volume, and limited drainage area are largely responsible for the lake's sparse algal population and clear waters. Few nutrients are naturally available to fertilize its waters. However, human development in the Tahoe Basin over the last five decades has been damaging. The lake has responded to increased nutrient loading from the streams, atmosphere and groundwater with steadily increasing algal growth (eutrophication) and a progressive reduction of clarity. The lake has lost approximately 33 feet of transparency during the last 27 years. Thick growths of attached algae now coat the shoreline rocks in the spring. Urbanization has already eliminated or damaged a large portion of the wetlands, wet meadows and stream-zone habitat, all crucial for a lake to cleanse and restore itself. If current levels of pollution continue, the lake will lose its famous clarity in about 30 years. New watershed management issues such as integrated erosion control, habitat restoration, and transportation are emerging as crucial to the lake's future. |
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