Snapshot Day: Helping the Lake

Today, I was one of the 125 volunteers who mobilized across the Tahoe-Truckee watershed to collect and test water samples from 37 different creeks, streams, smaller lakes, and Lake Tahoe itself. Our goal was to take a “snapshot” of water quality at a single moment in time for this important source of drinking water and outdoor recreation.

Since 2001, Snapshot Day partners have sampled sites from Meyers to Tahoe’s North Shore, continuing on to Truckee and through Reno, ending at Pyramid Lake. By collecting water quality data from the same sites each year, Keep Tahoe Blue and event partners can track changes in the health of Lake Tahoe and the Truckee River watershed. Snapshot Day also provides a unique opportunity for the community to connect with the environment in their own backyards through hands-on, scientific fieldwork.
I was assigned to the 'I' Team with Alyssa as our leader. What fun to have friends, Mimi and Karen, as fellow citizen scientist volunteers.
We went out to two monitoring sites and performed a stream walk (visual assessment), collected field data, grabbed samples, and took photos. Streams were field tested for dissolved oxygen, conductivity, pH, and temperature.  Water samples were taken back to the central meeting location and measured for turbidity, nutrients and fecal coliform bacteria. All very scientific and surprisingly fun.






Each year, Snapshot Day volunteers generate thousands of data points about the Tahoe-Truckee watershed. How wonderful to be a part of this important snapshot. I 💙 Lake Tahoe!

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