The PSW Station established a competitive grant award program with a rigorous peer review process coordinated by the Tahoe Science Consortium, a collection of universities and agencies with active research programs at Lake Tahoe. The PSW program coordinator and the Tahoe Science Consortium worked each year with the resource management agencies in the Tahoe Basin to identify research priorities and solicit proposals.
Specific research areas varied from year to year within the eight science themes listed below. These eight priority research issues spanned the research needs identified and prioritized by management agencies in the Tahoe Basin.
Priority Research Issues and projects designed to address them
Air Quality Air pollutants pose threats to health of humans and forests at Lake Tahoe, as well as to the clarity of the lake itself. This research evaluates these impacts to develop appropriate treatments.
Climate Change A look toward new and expanding tools to inform policymakers about how future climate change will specifically affect the Lake Tahoe basin and provide information that can lead to proactive policy alternatives.
Forest Fuels and Vegetation Management Forest treatments, including prescribed burning, help to reduce wildfire hazards. Research evaluates how both treatments and wildfires can affect values such as air quality, water quality, and wildlife habitat.
Habitat Improvement Research is helping to better understand the special management needs of species and ecological communities that are particularly rare or vulnerable in the Tahoe basin.
Lake Quality The desire to "Keep Tahoe Blue" is important in the Tahoe basin, with efforts toward reversing the long-term decline in open-water clarity. Lake quality is also threatened by the spread of attached algae (periphyton) and non-native organisms.
Stormwater Management Fine sediments, nutrients, and other pollutants, particularly from urban areas and roads, pose major threats to the clarity of Lake Tahoe. Research is helping to design best management practices (BMPs) to prevent these pollutants from entering downstream waterways.
Stream Restoration Research is helping to design projects to restore stream geomorphic and ecological functions, including retention of fine sediments and enhancement of habitat for plants and animals.
Science Integration The Tahoe Science Consortium has conducted workshops and provided technical assistance to apply current research to challenges facing management agencies within the Tahoe Basin.
The Tahoe Science Consortium convened a panel of scientists along with representatives of management agencies who collaboratively generated annual lists of science themes based on research priorities.
