Cost-Effective Steps to a Clear Lake Tahoe, Larsen (5)

We now have the tools to understand how to prioritize. We know that doing everything everywhere is not the best strategy and now we have the tools to strategically make prioritization decisions for Lake Tahoe water quality. It doesn’t make sense to put our implementation dollars toward areas that don’t connect hydrologically to the lake. “The prioritization is critical,” says Bob Larsen, Staff Scientist at the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board. “We have the tools to be able to assess where to put our dollars to make the biggest difference—to address the real problems. The actions we are taking under the Total Maximum Daily Load are directly addressing water quality. We can now have a conversation about the relative cost-benefit of taking one action over another,” he says.