T S A C

TAHOE SCIENCE

ADVISORY COUNCIL

PROJECTS

Examination of Natural Resource Evaluation System

The challenge of setting, evaluating, and reporting on benchmarks for environmental quality and resource condition is not unique to the Basin. Across the country and around the world, government agencies and stakeholder groups are engaged in similar activities. The aim of this project is to identify best practices for natural resources evaluation systems that have emerged since the TRPA system was adopted in 1982, and identify those worthy of further consideration or adaptation in the threshold update initiative.

This evaluation will address two overarching questions:

(1) What are the current “best practices” that may have application to Lake Tahoe?

(2) What pitfalls should be avoided in designing a natural resource evaluation system?

More specific questions include: How are the evaluation systems organized? What scientific practices and principles are used? What are the data requirements for each system? How are results communicated, and how are those results used to make changes? Areas of system commonalities and differences also will be noted.

Contact for further information: Alison Toy, natoy@ucdavis.edu