Judge reaffirms Tahoe pier ruling; TRPA argues environmental groups opposed protections

A federal judge on Monday reaffirmed his September ruling overturning a plan to add thousands of new boat facilities on the lake.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency had requested the judge amend his ruling. The TRPA’s motion was not an appeal. The agency will have another 30 days to appeal the judge’s September ruling to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

In September, Judge Lawrence K. Karlton of the US District Court in Sacramento ruled in favor of the League to Save Lake Tahoe and the Tahoe Area Sierra Club. The groups were represented by the non-profit law firm Earthjustice.

The decision helps clarify the obligations of the TRPA, which is Tahoe’s prime land-use and environmental regulator, argues the League in a news release.

“The case benefits everyone at Lake Tahoe by clarifying the rules that TRPA needs to follow in its planning processes,” said Rochelle Nason, executive director of the League. “This should reduce the amount of disagreement at Lake Tahoe over how planning must proceed. It establishes the basis for a renewed collaborative effort.”

In comments made on Wednesday, the agency said the League and the Sierra Club have opposed environmental improvements it had sought to keep in amendments to the ruling.

“What’s most disappointing with this legal challenge is that the League to Save Lake Tahoe and the Sierra Club opposed our attempt to retain parts of the amendments that represented environmental, scientific and regulatory improvements for Lake Tahoe," said TRPA General Counsel Nicole Rinke.
 
For example, the TRPA hoped to retain the additional protections adopted in 2008 for scenic shoreline areas, enhanced standards for dredging and drinking water source protections and improved design standards for shorezone structures such as piers among other things. The 2008 amendments represented a comprehensive update to what were otherwise 20- plus year old rules and a complete remand of the program is a loss of progress for the environmental improvement of Lake Tahoe, according to Rinke.
 
“When members of the TRPA governing board voted on new shorezone regulations in 2008 they were fully aware of the intractable issues embedded within the new policies,” TRPA spokesperson Jeff Cowen said. “The agency will continue evaluating its options to retain the additional protections to Lake Tahoe which were included in the new shorezone regulations.”

This ruling is not just about piers and buoys, Nason said. The judge’s decision applies to all future development plans at Tahoe.

“TRPA needs to reorient its efforts to assure that its plans achieve and maintain its environmental standards, known as the thresholds.” Nason said. “The agency’s plans must culminate in the achievement of the agency’s adopted conservation goals.”

In the September ruling, Judge Karlton agreed with environmental groups that new boat facilities should not be allowed along the shoreline until the TRPA shows how it will achieve mandatory environmental goals aimed at restoring the Lake to its former clarity and improving the environment of the spectacular Sierra basin in which it lies. He rejected TRPA's position that, even where those environmental goals have not been met, the agency was only required to show that potential harm to the Lake would be mitigated.

The special environmental goals for the Lake Tahoe Basin include values for water quality, air quality, scenic beauty, noise limitation, and healthy communities of native fish, wildlife, vegetation and soils.

The League has called for strengthening the standards adopted many years ago, and adding values needed to meet more recent threats. For example, the League maintains that TRPA should adopt science-based standards mandating the prevention and eradication of invasive species, the reduction of wildfire risk, and the reversal of algae growth along the shores of Lake Tahoe.