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Tahoe (USA)
General Information
| Description |
Tahoe is one of only seventeen ancient lakes on earth and is one of the deepest lakes on earth. Lake Tahoe is located in the Sierra Nevada mountains that straddle the state line between California and Nevada, and is a clear, deep alpine lake. The lake is almost 1,900 meters above sea level. |
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| Country |
United States of America
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| Latitude |
39° 0' 0"
(39.0000) |
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| Longitude |
-120° 0'
0" (-120.0000) |
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| State |
California
Nevada
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Maps
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Largest Lakes of the World by Volume (LakeNet Explorer 2004)
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Ancient Lakes of the World |
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Tahoe bathymetry map
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Physical Characteristics
| Description |
Lake Tahoe's clarity is partly due to the fact that the lake takes up most of its watershed (the ratio of basin to surface area is only 1.6). Most of the basin's rain and snow fall directly into the lake. In addition, the granitic and volcanic soils of the area are low in nutrients and erode slowly. As a result of all these factors, nitrogen, phosphorus and other nutrients that usually support algae growth in lakes are scarce. |
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| Volume |
156.00 km3 |
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| Surface Area |
495.00 km2 |
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| Depth |
Mean depth: 305.0 m
Maximum depth: 501.0 m
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| Residence Time |
700.0 years |
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| Age |
1 million - 2 million years before present
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| Origin |
Tectonic
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| Type |
Fresh
Permanent
Natural
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| Catchment |
Catchment size: 841.00
km2
Catchment/surface area ratio: 2:1 |
Socio-Political
| Economic Value |
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| Major Cities |
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Watershed Management
| Description |
According to Dr. Charles Goldman, who has conducted a 43 year study of Tahoe water clarity, a February 2003 report shows a marked improvement that Goldman hopes is evidence of the lake's capacity to recover. He said it is unknown whether several years of drought or the extensive restoration efforts underway in the basin in recent years are more responsible for the improvement. A three year moratorium on development of shoreline property at Lake Tahoe to reduce runoff has created substantial controversy. |
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| Issues |
Erosion and runoff into the lake has reduced Lake Tahoe's famous clarity. Since 1968 Tahoe's waters have lost more than 12 meters of transparency. The algae growth rate has doubled. Increases in human population and urbanization have put a severe strain on the remaining land's ability to filter out nutrients and pollutants. Dissolved oxygen in the deepest waters appears to be declining. |
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| Monitoring |
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Biodiversity Conservation
| Description |
The Lake Tahoe basin provides habitat for more than 290 species of animals and more than one thousand species of plants. |
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| Designations |
LakeNet Biodiversity Priority
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| Species of Concern |
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Organizations
LakeNet Programs
Documents
Resources
News
Additional Data Sources
| • |
Birkett, C., and I. Mason. 1995. A new global lakes database for remote sensing programme studying climatically sensitive large lakes. Journal of Great Lakes Research, 21 (3) 307-318. |
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| • |
California Tahoe Conservancy. Progress Report 1997. |
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| • |
Duker, L. and L. Borre. 2001. Biodiversity conservation of the world's lakes: a preliminary framework for identifying priorities. LakeNet Report Series Number 2. Annapolis, Maryland USA. |
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| • |
Goldman, C. and A. Jassby, T. Powell. 1989. Interannual fluctuations in primary production: Meteroloigical forcing at two supalpine lakes. Limnol. Oceanogr. 34 (2). 310-323. |
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| • |
Herdendorf, C. 1982. Large lakes of the world. Journal of Great Lakes Research 8:379-412. |
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International Lake Environment Committee, the United Nations Environment Program and Environment Agency, Government of Japan. 1997. World Lakes Database. |
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Munawar, M. And R. Hecky. 2001. The Great Lakes of the World (GLOW) Food-web, Health & Integrity. Backhuys Publishers, The Netherlands. |
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