BMPs and LANDSCAPING
Tahoe Resource Conservation District - (TRCD) is one of nearly 3000 conservation districts across the country helping people protect land, water, forests, wildlife and related natural resources. Current programs focus on erosion control, runoff infiltration, invasive species control, and native landscaping. TRCD staff is also available for assistance with fire defensible space, water conservation, fertilizer management and wildlife habitat enhancement.
University of Nevada Cooperative Extension - UNCE provides technical expertise, outreach and education on maintaining water quality in the Lake Tahoe basin. Please consult the Home Landscaping Guide for Lake Tahoe and Vicinity
FIRE and DEFENSIBLE SPACE
Living With Fire in the Lake Tahoe Basin - The Living With Fire program helps inform residents of the Lake Tahoe Basin on how they can live more safely in high fire hazard environments. The purpose website provides information on what to do before (create defensible space), during (procedures for evacuation) and how to cope after a wildfire does occur and help your landscape recover.
The Nevada Fire Safe Council - Serves as a bridge between fire services and public agencies, and communities threatened by wildfire on both the California and Nevada side of the Tahoe Basin. The goal is to create a network of local community support, and provide assistance to threatened communities to 1. Improve resident's understanding of the fire threat and accept personal responsibility for some level of community protection, 2. Identify and rate the risks and hazards, 3. Develop and prioritize mitigation projects, and 4. Procure funding assistance to implement mitigation measures.
UC Homeowner Wildfire Assessment - This online assessment form will guide you through a series of questions about your home and yard, and then provide you with a customized report about its vulnerability to wildfire. You will also receive guidance for possible home improvements and routine maintenance steps that you can take that may reduce your vulnerability to wildfire.
Firesafe Construction Materials and Building Code - New building codes for residents living in the Wildland-Urban Interface were adopted July 1, 2008 to establish minimum standards for construction materials and provide a reasonable level of exterior wildfire exposure protection. Building codes apply to all new construction in areas of mapped hazard. Homeowners can gain a lot of useful information on fire resistance of building products from the new products handbook available at the Office of the State Fire Marshall.
FORESTRY
The mission of the California Tahoe Conservancy is to develop and implement programs through acquisitions and site improvements to improve water quality in Lake Tahoe, preserve the scenic beauty and recreational opportunities of the region, provide public access, preserve wildlife habitat areas, and manage and restore lands to protect the natural environment.
U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit - The purpose of the LTBMU is to protect Lake Tahoe and its famed water quality by specially managing a diverse range of resources, particularly the complex watershed systems that form the basin surrounding the lake. Conservation, restoration and protection programs also include forest health and hazard fuels management, habitat, and wilderness management to name a few.
OTHER WEBSITES
Lake Tahoe Angora Fire Fund - Helping the Victims of the Angora Fire, South Lake Tahoe, CA
Keep Tahoe Safe with Defensible Space is a charity fund established to benefit the education of residents in the South Lake Tahoe basin about defensible space.
Tahoe Fire Commission - Follow the activities of the Lake Tahoe Basin Fire Commission established in July 2007 to consider various approaches to reducing the threat of wildfire in the Lake Tahoe Basin. The Commission will evaluate fuel management practices used in the basin, recommend changes to reduce vulnerability to wildfire, and recommend ways to effectively educate homeowners on fuel reduction and fire protection methods.