Environmental Change in the Lake Tahoe Basin: A Synthesis of Science and Public Policy

The Lake Tahoe Basin is both a natural treasure and a complex case study in environmental management. Environmental Change in the Lake Tahoe Basin offers a comprehensive assessment of the region’s environmental history, current conditions, and future challenges, providing lessons in how science-based policies can drive effective stewardship in high-value, high-conflict landscapes.

For over a century, scientific research and management efforts have aimed to mitigate the impacts of logging, mining, pollution, and invasive species while balancing urban development, tourism, and ecological preservation on the Lake. The book explores these challenges through a multidisciplinary lens, integrating environmental science, policy analysis, and case studies of both successful and failed management strategies. Written by experts who have played direct roles in key scientific discoveries and policy decisions, the book also examines the influence of environmental organizations and litigation in shaping conservation efforts.

At its core, the authors argue that the Tahoe Basin serves as a model for science-driven land and water stewardship. The book evaluates long-term monitoring programs, offering actionable recommendations for improving environmental oversight and resource management. Combining scientific analysis with accessible language, Environmental Change in the Lake Tahoe Basin serves as an up-to-date review of the region’s environmental challenges, providing an essential guide for scientists, resource managers, and policymakers.
 
The authors will donate all royalties from the sale of this volume to the Union of Concerned Scientist, www.ucsusa.org.
 

Charles R. Goldman is emeritus professor of limnology in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy at the University of California, Davis, and adjunct professor at the University of Nevada, Reno. He has served as chair of the Division of Environmental Studies and as founding director of the Institute of Ecology at UC Davis, and director of the Tahoe Research Group (now the Tahoe Environmental Research Center). He has published 4 books and over 400 research articles and has frequently translated his research findings to state, national, and international policy decisions, including the conservation and judicious use of aquatic resources on all continents. His leadership of the research program at Tahoe has been instrumental in the development of policies to protect the Lake. See: https://www.charlesrgoldman.com/.

Robert N. Coats is a hydrologist with over 50 years of experience working on issues of water quality and climate change in the Tahoe basin. His peer-reviewed journal articles have been published in Water Resources Research, Ecology, Journal of the American Water Resources Association, Environmental Management, Environment, Applied Geochemistry, Climatic Change, and the Journal of Soil and Water Conservation. He was the primary guest editor for the 2013 special issue of Climatic Change focused on “Climate Change and Water Resources in the Sierra Nevada.” He is a research associate in the UC Davis Agricultural Experiment Station, with a PhD in wildland resource science from the University of California, Berkeley, 1975. See: https://www.hydroikos.com/resumes.htm.

Sudeep Chandra is a professor of limnology in the Biology department at the University of Nevada, Reno. He currently is engaged in limnological studies related to the restoration or conservation of aquatic ecosystems. His projects include recovering native species, managing nonnative species, understanding the effects of land use change (mining, urbanization, etc) on water quality, and developing natural resource management and conservation plans for the world’s largest, freshwater fishes. His PhD (2003) in ecology is from the University of California, Davis. See: https://www.unr.edu/biology/people/sudeep-chandra.

Alan C. Heyvaert is a research professor at the Desert Research Institute with professional experience in a variety of aquatic ecosystems. His fields of interest include biogeochemistry, paleolimnology and watershed management. He has worked for many years on water quality issues in the Lake Tahoe Basin, with an applied research focus on the effective design of stormwater monitoring systems and performance evaluation of Best Management Practices (BMPs). During this time, Dr. Heyvaert has also contributed to the continuing efforts of resource management agencies at Lake Tahoe to coordinate their research and monitoring programs. He is an active member of the Lake Tahoe Interagency Monitoring Program and has been a principal investigator for the Tahoe Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program. His PhD in Ecology (1998) is from UC Davis. See: https://www.dri.edu/directory/alan-heyvaert.

S. Geoffrey Schladow’s research spans over 40 years, focusing on the interactions between the complex fluid motions found in nature and their impacts on water quality, ecosystem health and watershed processes. He has published over 170 research papers and technical reports, and has guided over 70 graduate students. Dr. Schladow is an expert on both field data collection and numerical modeling, and frequently brings together teams of researchers to work on large, interdisciplinary projects. He is emeritus professor of water resources and environmental engineering at UC Davis, and is the founding director of the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center. His PhD is in civil engineering from the University of Western Australia. See: https://cee.engineering.ucdavis.edu/directory/geoffrey-schladow.