In the News

Best Management Practices Workshop Trains Contractors
date posted: December 27 2005

Lake Tahoe Report #118
May 23, 2005
By John Cobourn and Heather Segale


This year’s Best Management Practices (BMPs) Workshop for contractors is 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., June 1 at the Donald W. Reynolds Community Center in Incline Village.

BMPs are land management techniques that help control erosion and prevent water pollution. BMP retrofit is the process of implementing best management practices on all developed properties where they don’t already exist. There are still close to 34,000 properties at Lake Tahoe that need these practices installed within the next three years to meet the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency’s (TRPA) requirements that are aimed at protecting the lake’s famed water clarity.

Area contractors play a vital role in ensuring these practices are installed correctly. The Best Management Practices Workshop will provide the latest information on BMPs to contractors in a morning indoor session, and then hands-on experience during the afternoon at the North Lake Tahoe Demonstration Garden. Participants will install new BMPs at the garden that will enhance their learning experience, while creating a demonstration area where property owners can visit to see BMP designs and consider which are best for their properties.

The sponsors of the workshop are the Nevada Tahoe Conservation District, the Tahoe Resource Conservation District, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, the TRPA Erosion Control Team, and University of Nevada Cooperative Extension. Both Conservation Districts and the TRPA Erosion Control Team offer free BMP site evaluations to business and property owners who call to request one.

In economic terms, there is considerable demand for BMPs because they are required on all properties. The purpose of the workshop is to increase the supply of trained installers. This is good for business and can lower the cost for property owners. It is also good for the future of the lake.

The content of the workshop includes an introduction to the big picture of how BMPs should fit into an integrated landscape. Best management practices must be designed for the specific type of soil, the slope of the land, the type of vegetation, and the degree of wildfire risk on the property, among other factors. Homeowners are encouraged to have their contractors install both BMPs and defensible space practices at the same time. With careful planning, the finished product will improve the appearance and value of the property.

The four main classes of water quality BMPs are:
• mulching and vegetation of bare soils,
• stabilization of eroding slopes using structures such as terraces and retaining walls,
• paving of eroding, unpaved driveways, and
• conveyance of runoff from roofs and pavement to systems that will infiltrate the water into the soil on site.
A fifth class of BMPs is known as the temporary BMPs. These are required anytime soil is disturbed during construction or grading activity.

The North Lake Tahoe Demonstration Garden is a nonprofit public amenity that exhibits plants from the TRPA recommended plant list, beautiful undisturbed native vegetation, raised beds for herbs and flowers, and model BMP demonstrations. It is on the shaded college green of the Lake Campus of Sierra Nevada College, 999 Tahoe Blvd., Incline Village. The contractors attending the workshop will give a big boost to the readiness of this free garden for summer visitors. While this workshop is designed specifically for professional BMP installers, future BMP classes for other audiences will be held at the Demonstration Garden this summer. Call (530) 546-4429 or (775) 831-8437 for information.

Because practices are often upgraded from year to year, someone from a firm must attend every year if the firm wishes to remain on the BMP Resource List. The cost for the class is $75 and covers the full day of instruction, including the outdoor hands-on session, a copy of the Contractor’s BMP Manual (“How to Implement BMPs at Lake Tahoe”), and lunch and refreshments. Builders, paving and landscape contractors, landscape designers and engineers are encouraged to sign up immediately, as space is quickly filling up. To register or for more information, call University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, (775) 832-4138.

The Lake Tahoe Report is a collaborative effort of the Lake Tahoe Environmental Education Coalition, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center and the California State Water Resource Control Board. For more information, contact Heather Segale, UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center, (530) 583-3279, or logon to www.lteec.org.