Tahoe Integrated Information Management System

[Photo]: Hazy view of Lake Tahoe shoreline

Mobile sources of air pollution, mainly motor vehicles, are one of the most significant sources of pollution in the Tahoe Basin. They emit carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NO_x), hydrocarbons (HCs), particulate matter (PM), and other pollutants.

Stationary sources of air pollution, mainly older wood stoves, emit more particulate matter (PM) and aerosols by using more wood than cleaner Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved wood stoves. Residents of the Tahoe Basin can help reduce the amount of toxins released from wood stoves by burning only dry, seasoned wood and avoiding fresh wood, pine needles, pine cones and paper treated with dyes or metals. Popular, clean alternatives to wood heaters are pellet and gas stoves.

Pollutants from both mobile and stationary sources have the potential to deposit into the lake by the force of gravity, and affect lake clarity. The rate of deposition is greater when a warm layer of air traps pollutants close to the surface of the lake, called a thermal inversion, because the pollutants are concentrated and have time during the inversion to settle out of the air. Air quality stations are currently measuring the concentrations of pollutants at many locations in the Lake Tahoe Basin. Many projects and studies are being conducted and implemented in the Lake Tahoe Basin designed to reduce air pollution concentrations.

Related topics:
Meteorology
Visibility