In 2021 Clean Up The Lake launched the 72-mile Lake Tahoe litter cleanup. This effort
removed 16,615 pieces of litter from Nevada’s nearshore lakebed. Total litter weight removed
was 11,821 lbs (dry weight). Taking into account cleanup dives in 2020, the CUTL team has
removed 13,432 lbs. (dry weight) from Nevada’s 28 miles of Lake Tahoe nearshore lakebed.
The most common litter items removed were Aluminum cans and glass bottles/jars. Metal and
rubber litter were the most common litter materials by weight. The removal of 116 tires
accounted for the most litter weight from a single litter type. Litter accumulation trends also
varied by shoreline use and nearshore lakebed substrate. Litter removed from Lake Tahoe
indicate both high and low-frequency littering events associated with land and water-based
recreation.
REFERENCES:
Eerkes-Medrano, D., Thompson, R., Aldridge, D. (2015). Microplastics in freshwater systems: A review of the emerging threats, identification of knowledge gaps and prioritisation of research needs, Water Research, Volume 75.
Dris, R., Gasperi, J., Saad, M., Mirande, C., & Tassin, B. (2016). Synthetic fibers in atmospheric fallout: a source of microplastics in the environment?. Marine pollution bulletin, 104(1-2), 290-293.
Sutton, R., Franz, A., Gilbreath, A., Lin, D., Miller, L., Sedlak, M., Wong, A., Box, C., Holleman, R., Munno, K., Zhu, X., & Rochman, C. (2019). Understanding microplastic levels, pathways, and transport in the San Francisco Bay Region. San Francisco Estuary Institute. SFEI-ASC Publication #950.
No Monitoring Programs are yet associated with this Focus Area.