TSC Products Overview
A Symposium on SEZ Restoration Monitoring in the Tahoe Basin took place February 9-10, 2010 at the Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences in Incline Village, NV.
The specific objectives of this symposium were to:
- Consider past and current Tahoe Basin SEZ restoration programs and examine the approaches developed to assess the effectiveness of stream channel and flood plain restoration projects.
- Learn about monitoring and assessment techniques from outside the Tahoe Basin, to understand their strengths and possible weaknesses.
- Consider proposed frameworks for planning and monitoring the effectiveness of stream and flood plain restoration projects.
- Consider tools to quantify stream and flood plain project-level water quality benefits and inform basin-wide progress in meeting Lake Tahoe TMDL targets.
- Identify research needed to develop new tools and addrses uncertainties.
The presentations from the symposium, including Day Two's scientist panel presentation, are available below.
The 2010 Science Conference provides a forum where individuals involved in the science and management of the Lake Tahoe Basin can learn about and discuss the latest relevant scientific information and results. This conference will bring together agency, academic, and stakeholder representatives, and will provide the opportunity for networking, education, and the exchange of new ideas and information. The conference will feature 84 oral presentations and 25 poster presentations covering a variety of topic areas.
Click above to download the conference schedule.
Decision makers and the public in the Tahoe basin are engaged in important debates regarding the tradeoffs between reducing the risk of severe wildfire, protecting and restoring ecological values, and wisely using economic resources. Efforts to reduce fuel hazards and restore natural ecological processes involve risks to resource values, but the alternative of inaction also carries risks associated with the threat of severe wildfire in highly altered forest stands. Scientific investigation has an important role to play in helping to evaluate the tradeoffs involved in fuel treatments. To address this issue, the Pacific Southwest Research Station commissioned literature reviews on the effects of fuels treatments in the Tahoe basin on air quality, water quality, soils, vegetation, and wildlife. The resulting papers and an associated on-line searchable database of publications address previous calls to make scientific information more available to guide decisions. These sources should inform the adaptive decision-making and learning systems that guide fuel reduction efforts while protecting other resource values.
Aquatic Invasive Species documents for Lake Tahoe
This quarterly publication is intended to provide useful scientific information pertaining to the Tahoe Basin. The first issue focuses on the theme of climate change and includes a featured research brief, a Tahoe SNPLMA Science Program update, Tahoe Science Consortium activities, new publications, and upcoming events.
Click here to read the Tahoe Science Newsletter.
An integrated science plan was developed to identify and refine contemporary science information needs for the Lake Tahoe basin ecosystem. The main objectives were to describe a conceptual framework for an integrated science program, and to develop research strategies addressing key uncertainties and information gaps that challenge government agencies in the theme areas of (1) air quality, (2) water quality, (3) soil conservation, (4) ecology and biodiversity, and (5) social sciences. Each strategy concludes with a presentation of near-term research priorities. Several factors (e.g., changing agency priorities, funding levels, and the emergence of new issues, new information, or new technologies) can affect the applicability of near-term research priorities. Thus, this science plan is considered a living document. The research priorities are best reviewed and revised regularly to ensure they reflect the changing information needs and evolving priorities of agencies charged with the welfare of the Lake Tahoe basin.
A web-based survey was conducted between November and December 2008 to obtain input on the perceptions, value, and goals of the TSC. Through its 17 questions, the survey provided an opportunity for individual input on the appropriateness of the TSC's primary objective and to assess the value of TSC efforts as preceived by a variety of individuals working in the Tahoe Basin. The survey also included a question about potential programmatic goals the TSC could pursue in the future. Results from the survey will be used to guide the TSC's efforts to maintain and improve its value. The results also will serve to guide the development of a strategic plan for the TSC.
The effects of climate change have been documented in numerous montane systems throughout the world, including the Sierra Nevada. Scientists are working to refine predictions about the extent of change and the resulting ecosystem impacts, but they are also working to develop strategies to adapt land and resource planning and management to these changes. The Tahoe Science Consortium organized a symposium in March 2009 to provide information relevant to the Lake Tahoe Basin forest and Lake Tahoe itself.
Highlights from the symposium include
- Effects of climate change on Sierra Nevada meteorology and hydrology
- Forest ecosystem management: conservation strategies for adapting to climate change
- Climate change and adaptation strategies for Lake Tahoe and its watershed
- Science/information needs
The measurable effects of climate change have been documented in numerous montane systems throughout the world, including the Sierra Nevada Ecoregion. Although uncertainty remains in predicting how much change will occur and what the ultimate outcomes will be, scientists have begun to move beyond documenting and predicting the effects of climate change. Scientists are now working to develop methods and approaches to incorporate climate into land and resource planning and management. Scientists also have begun to think about the kinds of adaptation strategies land and resource managers could apply in response to the future likely effects of climate change.
This symposium presented information relevant to the Lake Tahoe Basin forest and Lake Tahoe. Symposium objectives were the following:
- Summarize current information abuot the documented and predicted effects of climate change in the Sierra Nevada Ecoregion.
- Explore the strategic and conceptual framework for incorporating climate into land and resource management.
- Present and discuss plausible adaptation strategies to cope with climate change.
Reference materials from presentations can be found here.
The symposium took place on Tuesday & Wednesday, March 17-18, 2009 at the Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences Building in Incline Village, NV.
Abstracts and presentations from the symposium can be found below.
