Pacific Southwest Research Station

Implications of climate change for design of best management practices

This research is examining how climate change will affect the future clarity of Lake Tahoe and best management practices (BMP) effectiveness by applying a climate change model, a watershed hydrologic model, a project-scale BMP model, and a lake hydrodynamic-water quality model.

Full Title: The effects of climate change on Lake Tahoe, and implications for design of best management practices

Proposal [pdf]

Lead Researchers: John Reuter, University of California, Davis; Robert Coats, Hydroikos

Goals

1. Determine how climate change will affect the future clarity of Lake Tahoe
2. Determine how climate change will affect BMP effectiveness

Models (see diagram at right)

1. Two Global Climate Change models: Parallel Climate Model and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory Model (Princeton)
2. Tahoe watershed hydrology model (LSPC)
3. Pollutant Load Reduction model
4. Lake Clarity model

Timeframe: August 2008 through March 2010 (1.5 years)

Products

1. Detailed work plan, showing the flow of information in the modeling effort
2. Quarterly progress reports, describing the climate change and development scenarios chosen for analysis, and preliminary results
3. Final report describing the methods and results in detail
4. Public presentation, by poster or talk, in an appropriate conference
5. Press release for the UC Davis News Service to distribute, highlighting the results of the study