The nonprofit organization is embarking on a colossal Lake Tahoe cleanup effort, aiming to pull out plastic bottles, tires, fishing equipment and other pieces of trash they find in the water along the alpine lake s entire 72-mile-long shoreline. It s believed to be the largest ever underwater cleanup project at the treasured lake.
Download our NBC 7 mobile app for iOS or Android to get alerts for local breaking news and weather. I want to do something that makes a difference, said Colin West, Clean Up the Lake s founder and executive director.
That mission begins Friday in the Edgewood area, which is located next to South Lake Tahoe on the other side of the California-Nevada border. From there, Clean Up the Lake s growing team of staff and volunteers will move counterclockwise along the shoreline, scooping up trash from the water s edge to depths up to 25 feet.
That mission begins Friday in the Edgewood area, which is located next to South Lake Tahoe on the other side of the California-Nevada border. From there, Clean Up the Lake s growing team of staff and volunteers will move counterclockwise along the shoreline, scooping up trash from the water s edge to depths up to 25 feet. Whether it’s boaters or people on the beaches, trash can tend to be closer to shore, West said. There has been a high density of trash in those areas.
The group plans to collect trash three days a week, with the goal of covering one mile of shoreline per day. Scuba divers will comb the lakebed for trash. They ll put smaller pieces like aluminum cans and clothing in mesh bags. Larger items like tires will be hoisted to the surface with help from vessels above. Debris too heavy to be lifted by humans will be marked with a GPS coordinate and removed later with the proper machinery.
Helping to solve Lake Tahoe’s microplastics problem
INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. - Lake Tahoe has big problems that are in small plastic pieces. To support efforts to reduce plastic waste, students from environmental clubs at four high schools in the region partnered with staff from local nonprofits to learn about plastic reduction programs and how they can help Take Care of Lake Tahoe. On Earth Day 2021 their efforts, which began in the fall of 2019, came to fruition when the CEO of Raley’s agreed to create lasting, sustainable changes at their stores.
When the initiative began in 2019, students from North Tahoe High School, Truckee High School, Incline High School, and South Tahoe High School learned about the prolific microplastics problem impacting Lake Tahoe from UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC) AmeriCorps member Elise Matera and staff members at Sierra Watershed Education Partnerships (SWEP) and the Tahoe Water Suppliers Association