171
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Volume 171 • Issue 92 | $1.00
mtdemocrat.com
Monday, August 8, 2022
State of the Lake
Courtesy photo
Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians Chairwoman Regina Cuellar and El Dorado County Fire Protection District Chief Tim Cordero got together Aug. 4 to help bring a new ladder truck to the county. Cordero presented Cuellar with a challenge coin in appreciation of their partnership.
Funds for new ladder truck get a lift Mountain Democrat staff El Dorado County Fire Protection District got a funding boost last week in its effort to purchase a new ladder truck. The Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians presented a $600,000 check to Chief Tim Cordero Aug. 4 at Red Hawk Casino. Fire district officials say their current ladder truck is more than 30 years old and has outlived its useful service life. Ladder truck purchases are a significant n
See Ladder truck, page 7
Planners at work on trail through Emerald Bay Laney Griffo Tahoe Daily Tribune TAHOMA — Following several informational workshops this summer, members of the community were given the opportunity to weigh in on the proposed Cascade to Meeks Trail. The Cascade to Meeks Trail was highlighted as a top priority in the 2020 State Route 89 Corridor Management Plan and would create a walking and biking trail from the area of Cascade Lake to Meeks Bay through Emerald Bay. The trail is being explored through a partnership between the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency and California State Department of Parks & Recreation, n
See Trail, page 6
Photo by Susan Vineyard/Getty Images
FAMOUSLY BLUE — Numbers are down for native Daphne zooplankton, which are an important part of Lake Tahoe’s food web and help regulate algae concentrations and water clarity.
Record highs, lows and opportunities at Tahoe Kat Kerlin UC Davis
T
he University of California, Davis, Tahoe Environmental Research Center recently released its annual Tahoe: State of the Lake Report. The report describes the collapse of the zooplankton and mysis shrimp populations, an abrupt change in the phytoplankton community and the extent of algal growth impacting large sections of the Tahoe shoreline. “Any one of these changes would be a big deal in a single year,” said TERC Director Geoffrey Schladow, professor of civil and environmental engineering at UC Davis. “All three occurring at once is particularly alarming and a huge opportunity to learn lessons that can be used to inform future management.” The report informs nonscientists about important
factors affecting the health of the lake and provides the scientific underpinnings for restoration and management decisions within the Tahoe Basin. The report summarizes data collected during 2021 in the context of the long-term record of research at Lake Tahoe. UC Davis researchers have continuously monitored the lake since 1968.
Plummeting plankton a clear opportunity
Zooplankton numbers plummeted in the past year. These tiny aquatic organisms are an important part of the lake’s food web and help regulate algae concentrations. The decline of a nonnative zooplankton, the mysis shrimp, marks an opportunity to better understand lake clarity (the Tahoe clarity report was released last month). Mysis shrimp were introduced to the lake about 50 years ago, feasting on native Daphnia and other zooplankton that help
clean the water. After mysis abundance declined in Emerald Bay between 2011 and 2014, Daphnia — and water clarity — dramatically increased, resulting in larger kokanee salmon. Mysis later returned to the bay, and the process reversed itself. TERC researchers expect a similar episode to play out in Lake Tahoe itself over the next one to four years, with mysis numbers already at extremely low levels. To leverage this natural experiment underway, the report calls for more complete monitoring to understand the interplay among zooplankton, phytoplankton and clarity. “Eventually, mysis will return,” the report states. “The real question is whether the absence of mysis from Lake Tahoe will help restore clarity and, if so, is the deliberate removal of mysis in the future warranted.” Meanwhile, phytoplankton forming the base of the food n
See Tahoe report, page 7
More stop signs in the pipeline for EDH parkway Sel Richard Staff writer All-way stop signs were tentatively approved for the Greenview Drive and Serrano Parkway PLACE ADDRESS LABEL HERE
intersection in El Dorado Hills at last month’s El Dorado County Traffic Advisory Committee meeting, pending finalization of fresh traffic studies and the cooperation of the Serrano HOA in mitigation of sight line issues. The intersection has been discussed for several years since a request was submitted by the HOA in 2018. According to El Dorado County Traffic Superintendent Darryl Brown, a previous study showed that traffic volume did meet warrants for an all-way stop. No collisions were logged, though several near misses have been observed by residents. Brown said he has since discovered that the Sangiovese Drive
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gate off Appian Way was under construction at the time of the original study, routing additional traffic to Greenview Drive. An updated count was conducted in April 2022, which subsequently returned traffic volume numbers too low to warrant an all-way stop. Although Serrano Parkway volume more than met the criteria, the Greenview Drive side street volume did not. However, two accidents have occurred this year and the threshold for an all-way stop is three accidents within a year. “We have two with six to seven months to go,” cautioned Brown, also noting that side street volume is relatively close to hitting volume thresholds. “From eastbound
Mountain Democrat photo by Sel Richard
Left turns from eastbound Serrano Parkway onto Greenview Drive can prove tricky for drivers. All-way stop signs might mitigate the problems. Serrano taking a left into Greenview, this is where the problem lies.” Though the community has been asking for stop signs
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that no action has been taken by the HOA. “It’s discouraging that we’ve recommended n See Serrano Parkway, page 3
for over four years, Department Of Transportation Deputy Director of Maintenance and Operations Brian Mullens pointed out
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