Boating compromise at Independence Lake doesn’t appease all
By Jeff Delong, Reno Gazette-Journal
A conservation group that last year purchased the land around a scenic Sierra lake developed a recreation strategy designed to allow for limited boating while protecting the lake from aquatic invaders.
The plan for Independence Lake, released Thursday, is seen as a compromise after critics decried last summer’s closure of the lake to all motorboats, representatives of the Nature Conservancy said.
“This is probably the best approach. I think it’s a reasonable compromise,” said Chris Fichtel, the conservancy’s Independence Lake project director.
While the plan represents an improvement over an outright closure to all motorboats, it’s still unfair to many who have boated on the lake for generations, said Kenny Osburn, an organizer of the group Friends of Independence Lake.
“It’s very frustrating, and it angers me,” Osburn said. “We strongly suggest they open the lake to all user groups all summer long.”
In May 2010, the conservancy purchased 2,325 acres of land around the lake owned by NV Energy for $15 million. The lake bottom is owned by California while the Truckee Meadows Water Authority owns up to 17,000 acre-feet of the lake’s waters as drought storage.
