The 11th annual Water Quality Snapshot Day will be May 14 throughout Lake Tahoe, Truckee and Reno.

Volunteers are needed to help conduct the water quality sampling and habitat assessments. The event is a citizen-based environmental effort designed to take a “snapshot” at one moment in time, of the water quality throughout the Lake Tahoe and Truckee River watershed. Water quality monitoring will take place from the tributaries flowing into Lake Tahoe all the way to the waters of Pyramid Lake.

It is sponsored by California Trout, Nevada Division of Environmental Protection, University of California Cooperative Extension, Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, Incline Village General Improvement District, and the Truckee River Watershed Council.

Community volunteers will meet at central locations in Lake Tahoe, Truckee and Reno for an overview briefing about water quality measurements. All volunteers will meet at 8:30am to get their team and stream assignments and then proceed to their stream location(s) finishing up at noon with a free group lunch.

• Reno-area volunteers meet at Bartley Ranch Regional Park, 6000 Bartley Ranch Road;

• Truckee-area volunteers meet at the Truckee River Watershed Council office, 10418 Donner Pass Road;

• South Lake Tahoe volunteers meet at Lake Tahoe Community College cafeteria;

• North Lake Tahoe volunteers meet in Incline Village at Patton Landing on Highway 28 in Carnelian Bay.

Volunteer teams, led by trained group leaders, will then fan out to take samples and measurements at various locations at the same time on the same day. The teams will field-test streams for dissolved oxygen, conductivity, pH and temperature; collect water samples for laboratory analysis of nutrients, sediment and bacteria; and conduct visual habitat assessments of the sites. Team leaders will share watershed facts and provide information about how citizens can improve and protect the Truckee River and Lake Tahoe watershed. Team leader training for the South Shore will be from 2-5pm on May 7 at the LTCC portable room G2b.

To sign up as a volunteer or team leader, either register online or call the local site leader Mary Kay Riedl at (775) 687.9454 (Truckee River-Nevada portion), Beth Christman at (530) 550.8760 (Truckee River – California portion), Jenny Francis at (530) 541.3495 (South Shore) or Rebecca Sawyer (North Shore) at (775) 832.1284