U.S. Senate Approves $20.4 Million
for Lake Tahoe Restoration Projects
July 12, 2001

- Bill also includes $26 million for Quincy Library Group project, $1 million for the Headwaters Forest Reserve, $1.75 million for the California Condor Recovery Project -

Washington, DC - The U.S. Senate approved the fiscal year 2002 Interior Appropriations legislation which includes roughly $20.4 million for restoration and preservation efforts in and around the Lake Tahoe Basin.

The legislation also includes $26 million for continued implementation of the Quincy Library Group project, $1 million for the Headwaters Forest Reserve, and $1.75 million for the California Condor recovery project. Senator Feinstein is a member of the Interior Subcommittee on the Appropriations panel.

"These funds demonstrate the ongoing commitment of Congress to protect the natural treasure that is Lake Tahoe," Senator Feinstein said. "This $20.4 million is part of an ongoing federal-state-local partnership that is the 10-year Lake Tahoe Restoration Act enacted last year."

The legislation also calls for $9.6 million in funding for land acquisition projects including:

•$3.5 million for the Otay Mesa Habitat Conservation Plan;
•$4.6 million for the San Diego National Wildlife Reserve;
•$1.5 million for the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monuments.

Specifically, for Lake Tahoe, the Senate approved:

•$6.6 million for environmentally sensitive land acquisition in the Lake Tahoe basin, an increase in $2.6 million from last year's bill.
•$5 million for erosion control initiatives.
•$3 million for road improvement and decommissioning efforts to improve safety and further reducing damaging erosion caused by runoff from old roads.
•$5.85 million for vegetation and watershed management activities.

Included in this funding are:

•$600,000 for reducing the risk of wildfires in the basin.
•$250,000 for wetlands restoration and riparian zones which act as a filtering system for the Lake Tahoe ecosystem.
•$500,000 for adaptive management activities techniques.
•$600,000 for urban lots management.