The Natural Resources at Lake Tahoe program seeks to provide the latest research-based information from the University of California to residents, non-profits, and staff of local, state, and federal agencies. A Needs Assessment was completed in January 2007 in conjunction with the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension. We identified opportunities for outreach and education in the areas of wildland fire, water quality, science communication, invasive weeds, air quality, and youth environmental education in Lake Tahoe.
Susie Kocher is the Natural Resources Advisor for the Lake Tahoe Basin. Susie is a Registered Professional Forester with a background in forestry, stream restoration, monitoring and sociology and has worked for Cooperative Extension for 12 years, in South Lake Tahoe since September 2006.
Susie currently has projects in the following areas:
• Collaborating with the Fire Safe Council, local fire districts, and the Living with Fire program to provide education and demonstrations on defensible space and fire safe construction to basin homeowners
• Monitoring of the recovery of the Angora fire area in collaboration with the California Tahoe Conservancy
• Evaluating landscape recovery after salvage logging in the Angora fire
• Leading a planning process with homeowners burned out by the Angora fire to develop voluntary revegetation guidelines in the burn area
• Facilitating public involvement in the Sierra Nevada Adaptive Management Project
Check this page for upcoming workshops:
Recent workshops include:
• Living Green at Tahoe. A zerowaste event Living Green at Tahoe - July 1, 2008 also a picture of the lattice igniting demonstration
• On May 10, 2008 The 8th Annual Snapshot Day is a citizen-based water quality monitoring event for the Tahoe and Truckee River watershed
• Board of Forestry and Fire Protection - Monitoring Study Group meeting minutes - June 24th held in South lake Tahoe
• Vegetation Management in Sensitive Areas of the Tahoe Basin , February 20-22, 2008, Incline Village Materials from the 2/20-22/2008 Vegetation Management Workshop
• The Angora Fire: What will the Future Forest Be? , November 3, 2007 in South Lake Tahoe Materials from the workshop
• Wildland-Urban Interface Building Code Training Workshop , 2nd Training Workshop added October 19, 2007 in Truckee
• Wildland-Urban Interface Building Standards (WUIBS) Workshop , October 5, 2007 in South Lake Tahoe
• Lake Tahoe Water Quality & Best Management Practices , July 11th, 18th, 25th, 2007 in South Lake Tahoe
• Burn demonstration at the Living Green Tahoe , July 1, 2007 in Incline Village, NV
• Burn demonstration at the Conservation Block Party in Homewood , June 23, 2007 in Tahoma
• Burn demonstration at the Conservation Block Party in Angora Creek , June 2, 2007 in South Lake Tahoe
• Tahoe Aquatic Invasive Species Workshop , May 3rd and 4th, 2007 in Incline Village, NV.photo of event
Ideas for collaboration or educational programming are welcome. Please contact:
Susie Kocher
Natural Resources Advisor
University of California Cooperative Extension-El Dorado County
1061 3rd Street
South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
530-542-2571
E-mail: skocher@nature.berkeley.edu