Tahoe Conservancy grants $1.2 million to expand 'Outdoors for All'

The conservancy board recently authorized the grants to improve equitable access by investing in programs and projects that serve people of all races, ethnicities, physical abilities and backgrounds. The grants include:

• $150,000 to Environmental Traveling Companions for two programs: an outdoor adventure and education course for under-resourced youth that will include backpacking at Lake Tahoe and a program to teach safe paddling skills to people with disabilities while kayaking at Emerald Bay. 
• $84,000 to the Lake Tahoe Waterman Foundation to provide transformative paddling experiences — based at a lakefront conservancy property in Carnelian Bay — for under-resourced youth, people confronting physical disabilities and those facing mental health challenges.
• $60,000 to the Tahoe Cross Country Ski Education Association for a year-round program to provide Latina girls with instruction and equipment for cross-country skiing, mountain biking and other outdoor activities.
• $115,000 to the Tahoe Rim Trail Association to upgrade trailhead kiosks along the California side of the Tahoe Rim Trail. The new kiosks will include improved trail and accessibility information and maps and an acknowledgment of Tahoe as the homeland of the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California, all in both English and Spanish.

Although Lake Tahoe is a world-class outdoor recreation destination, many people face barriers to accessing and enjoying its opportunities. As in the rest of California and across the country, outdoor access and its benefits are not equitably distributed to all communities.

Barriers to accessing outdoor spaces and recreational activities include limited facilities for people with disabilities and high costs for transportation, outdoor gear, and instruction for outdoor activities. The state of California’s “Outdoors for All Strategy” is prioritizing policies and funding for efforts toward a future where everyone can experience and benefit from California’s incredible outdoor spaces.

At the same meeting, the board authorized an $800,000 planning grant to the city of South Lake Tahoe for feasibility analysis planning, and environmental review of the next section of the Dennis T. Machida Memorial Greenway. The city will study how to extend the greenway, a Class 1 paved shared-use trail, from its current end at Herbert Avenue east toward Ski Run Boulevard and Van Sickle Bi-State Park.

Named for the conservancy’s first executive officer, the Dennis T. Machida Memorial Greenway provides the backbone of the south shore’s shared-use trail network. By filling key missing links in the local trail network, the greenway provides access for all to the area’s outstanding natural resources while making it easier to get around South Lake Tahoe without a car. 

The board also continued discussions to develop the conservancy’s 2024-29 Strategic Plan. The conservancy will incorporate the board’s input and feedback as it develops a full draft plan for consideration at a future meeting.

Directors also heard updates on efforts to address climate change impacts in the Basin, including a joint study by the conservancy and the University of Nevada, Reno on how wetlands capture and store greenhouse gases, and conservancy-funded work by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency to develop an online tool to track metrics relating to climate resilience.