Property owners fighting weeds in the Tahoe Keys

In an effort to prevent the growth and spread of invasive weeds in the Tahoe Keys, residents are being proactive in the fight to keep their lagoons clean. The Tahoe Keys Property Owners Association (TKPOA) has submitted an updated Integrated Management Plan to the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board for approval.

TKPOA's plan is an adaptive, holistic one to greatly reduce aquatic invasive weeds in its lagoons.

As they wait for approval, members have already implemented new measures to improve water quality and gain control over the weeds, mostly Eurasian watermilfoil and curlyleaf pondweed. Besides the new measure, the association will also research alternative methods to take care of the weeds both on the land and in the water.

“As a property owner’s association based at the edge of Lake Tahoe, we’re dedicated to taking care of these weeds the right way,” said John Larson, President of the association’s board of directors. “We’ve already made a lot of positive steps, and we’ve got a lot more planned.”

Actions planned for this summer include improved harvesting and fragment collection (the mechanical cutting of weeds and methods to stop their spread), increased bottom barrier use with more than 130 property owners volunteering to place mats, a possible field trial of UV light as a control method, and a boat backup station designed to help prevent the spread of weeds.

The Association has also begun Rhodamine WT dye studies to evaluate water movement, using a colorless, harmless dye both at the west channel and at the ends of two lagoons where it will be used to evaluate barriers in containing water movement.

Already, the association has enacted water conservation measures aimed at reducing runoff into the lagoons and lake that carries sediment and nutrients, banned phosphorous-containing fertilizers that act as a nutrient in the water, hired a water-quality focused Aquatic Invasive Species Coordinator, labeled 100 percent of storm drains with “No Dumping, Keep Tahoe Blue” logos, improved landscaping in common areas, started a comprehensive education campaign for residents, renters and property owners, and placed dog waste stations throughout the Keys to help reduce nutrients from dog waste entering the lake and lagoons.

Funding for the 2016 $520,000 program was approved earlier this year by the TKPOA Board of Directors, with funding assistance from the Tahoe Keys Beach and Harbor Association.

The group was recently notified by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency that they have received a federal grant for approximately $48,000 from US Fish & Wildlife, to complement the dollars committed by TKPOA to help fund the project.

Based on input from the public, local agencies and stakeholder groups, TKPOA will also study a number of other weed control options this year, including rotovating, weed rollers, sterile grass carp and other methods. While they aren't proposing herbicides in their current plan, they will be evaluating and further studying their use with an in-tank trial of herbicides and will be applying for a permit to do a small trial in the lagoons in 2017.

To find out more about what the Tahoe Keys Property Owners Association is doing to improve water quality and gain control over aquatic weeds, and to look at the Integrated Management Plan, go to keysweedsmanagement.org.

Content and information provided by the Tahoe Keys Property Owners Association