The April 4 National Resource Conservation Service snow survey showed some improvement from the dismal Lake Tahoe and Truckee River snow survey of late February 2014. The 3rd dry winter in a row. It would be extraordinary for the snowpack to gain significantly before the summer is upon us. (As of this writing, the forecast Continue Reading »
For 96 years of the 20th century [1900-1995], the Truckee River flowed an average of 579,000 acre-feet (at Vista near the Truckee Meadows Waste Water Plant). That average number represents a continuous flow of 800 cubic feet per second (CFS). Our measurements of flow during the last century, of course, were made after many changes Continue Reading »
The Truckee River in the high cold Great Basin Desert seems an unlikely place for rare birds to appear. But in the last five years, the River has hosted four birds that made the regional Rare Bird Alert lists. Most recently, Greg Scyphers found two quite rare birds in the riparian forests in the Truckee Continue Reading »
That question was just fielded by the Sacramento Bee in a recent question and answer column. And it’s not for the first time either. Lake Tahoe, because of its immense size and depth, has been a target of water interests in California since the 19th century when tunnels through the Sierra were considered to tap the Continue Reading »
The Nature Conservancy recently completed the construction phase of the Tracy Restoration Project on the lower Truckee River at NV Energy’s Tracy Power Plant property. After several years of planning, design and permitting, and provision of a conservation easement by NV Energy, project construction began mid-August 2013. Crews wrapped up the finish grading in January Continue Reading »