Tahoe Keys Marina violating state permit
Tahoe Keys Marina is accused of not maintaining its best management practices for erosion. Photos/Kathryn Reed
By Kathryn Reed
One week after Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board found 12 violations at Tahoe Keys Marina the infractions have not been corrected.
“That is significant,” Eric Taxer, water resource control engineer, told Lake Tahoe News of the ongoing problems.
Failing to maintain a pump so boaters can get rid of their sewage was one of the more serious violations. These pumps are required at all marinas so sewage does not wind up in Lake Tahoe.
“I was there (Monday) and it still was not working. And he assured me it would be by (Tuesday),” Taxer said. It wasn’t.
The “he” Taxer is referencing is Rob Spinnato, general manager of the marina. Spinnato was not available for comment.
Taxer said Spinnato told him the pump had been out for about a month before the inspection. He reportedly told Taxer getting parts could be a problem.
Another of the more serious violations was not having adequate supplies on hand in case there is a spill.
“They did have some oil absorbent booms on site, but an inadequate supply. There should have been more, especially for a marina that size,” Taxer said.
Inspectors found an oil rag wrapped around one of the fuel nozzles to catch drips.
“However, the rag appeared to be completely saturated and of no use,” the report stated.
Spinnato claimed more pads were on order. The order date, though, says July 22 – the same day as the inspection.
Other violations included:
• Failure to clean up anti-freeze and silicon spills in areas close to marina waters.
• Failure to maintain copies on site of all monitoring results.
• Failure to maintain copies on site of the inspection logs.
• Failure to maintain copies on site of the weekly printouts of the National Weather Station prediction reports.
• Failure to maintain copies on site of the daily recordkeeping of the rain gauge readings.
• Failure to maintain a copy of the permit on site.
• Failure to maintain stormwater runoff erosion control measures.
• Failure to perform all maintenance activities under cover, in bermed areas.
• Failure to properly dispose of soiled absorbent pads.
On July 22, Tahoe Keys Marina was told Styrofoam needed to be cleaned up; on July 29 it was still floating by rental boats and near the fuel docks.
“This one had the most amount of violations; some of which were significant,” Taxer said in comparing the Keys inspection to other marinas. “We will look at our enforcement options and consider what is most appropriate for the site.”
The ultimate goal of staff is for the marina to fix the problems. If the marina fails to do so, the Lahontan board could get involved with additional enforcement actions that could include a cleanup and abatement order that imposes specific deadlines and/or fines.
“Pulling a permit to operate does not stop the discharges nor does it assist us in getting reports or achieving compliance. They can continue operating,” Lauri Kemper, Lahontan’s assistant executive officer, told Lake Tahoe News. “Leaving the permit in place allows us to impose penalties on the ongoing violations of the permit. Many of our fines are based on a per day violation of a permit requirement.”
This summer Taxer has conducted inspections at seven marinas in the Lake Tahoe Basin. The Keys in South Lake Tahoe has the most egregious violations. These inspections are routine and are done every few years on a rotating basis throughout the basin. Every marina on the California side operates under a permit issued by Lahontan. They are updated every five years. The current one expires April 12, 2016.
There could be regulations from the state or Environmental Protection Agency that could change, or new technology introduced. New in the 2011 permit is marinas needing to ensure vessels have been inspected for aquatic invasive species.
The other marinas inspected by Lahontan this summer include:
• Sunnyside: No violations.
• Lakeside: Failed to maintain records on site and didn’t have working rain gauge. Those infractions have been corrected.
• Ski Run: Needed updated version of the permit.
• Camp Richardson: There was an area where materials encroached on a stream environmental zone. The metal has since been removed.
• Meeks Bay: Some areas did not have appropriate erosion protections. Follow up still needed.
• Timber Cove: Oil containers were being stored in a box under the docks. This was corrected while inspectors were on site.
Surprise, surprise. The big question is………………. who is in their pocket?
Time will tell………..
Why had it taken so long for agencies that are supposed to be protecting our lake to find all of these blatant violations?! ….especially at one of, if not the most used marinas around the lake?! Not only is this jackass in major violation.. But this story also exposes the ignorance of our local agencies that are obviously not doing what is needed to stop this crap from happening!!
This is an ongoing embarrassment to the agencies responsible for policing the marinas. Put a lock on their gate and only allow them in to fix the problems, that would get some attention I bet.
Let’s start calling it the ‘TaHo’South Keys(toneCops) Marina. Seriously, how long is this guy gonna get away wit’ doin’ noth’in?. They need to lock the gate until the violations are rectified. “Jewel of the Sierra’s’ my ass.
This excessive irresponsibility should have never been allowed to continue this far. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out where the sewage from all the full boat septic tanks will end up.
Shut the entire operation down immediately.
This Felon has zero concern for our lake and environment. I agree, the gates should be locked and his shady operation shut down. Don’t let him continue this activity just so you can fine him more down the road. That is political lip service and all the while he continues to pollute. Shut him down and close the dirty Ketch as well.
Funny marina. Any business school would love to use this as a case study on how not to run a business. Totally mismanaged. Everyone with a boat there has been asking about the pump out since it broke in mid June. Sorry that is more like 7 plus weeks. It will be fixed around the time the dredging of the channel is complete. The big question is what will be the next catastrophe at this marina?
Well Skippy you did it again , like Chuck says “you can’t fix stupid “
Slick Slim Shady (Spinatto) has nothing to lose but his job here. Hes just a Hey-Boy/Fallguy, to the Krilich’s
He’s just doing what he’s told by the Owners.
Ole’ Slick gets to walk away clean while our beautiful Lake is trashed.
I hope somehow he is also held responsible here and that he never works near Tahoe again.
Shut it down.
And this morning’s news is the marina illegally graded state land? The owners and management clearly have no clue about Tahoe and all we constantly do to protect it.
It might be time for the city to take it.
Clearly there are so many of us that want to stop this trashing of our Lake
WHY AREN’T WE STOPPING THIS?
Don’t protests work? Can’t road blocks and signs bring more media attention to this monstrosity?
Maybe we – as a group – could get the gates closed !?!??
We should totally create an agency that’s dedicated to protecting Lake Tahoe from this type of environmental harm. We could call it the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency and task it with enforcing regulations so people don’t ruin the Lake.
Nah… it’ll never happen.
fill it, re-veg it, an run all those corrupt fu<ks outta town
Kae, Thanks for the excellet reporting on Tahoe Keys Marina. I hope this owner is pressured by Lahontan and some of our local enviromental groups like the Sierra Club and The League to save Lake Tahoe to right his wrongs. I would also like to see the city of SLT get involved as well.
Either he fixes the place up or sells it to somebody who actually obeys the law and fix up this eyesore!
He stole property owned by the conservancy and graded their property withot permission or permits.He has leaked sewage into the lake without clean up or a fine.The whole place is a mess! It never should have been built in the first place! It has been the biggest enviromental disaster to ever happen to Tahoe!!!
Thanks again Kae for bringing this to light, OLS
I can’t help but wonder how this series of events doesn’t result in shutting down the TKM?? I can’t put a window in my house without permits.
TKM spills sewage, has multiple work comp violations, has uninspected equipment, grades a lot that we paid to have revegetated, and now this incredible list of infractions. Yes, shut it down!!
Nature bats last and karma can be a slap in the face for someone as stoopid as spinatto. Shut down the marina and let the chips fall where they may…
This story does raise questions about possible corruption and graft — these violations coupled with the recent illegal grading of conservancy land and the sewage spill a few months ago would have lead to immediate fines and repercussions for us minions, but this guy seems to get away with it.
Kae, I think further digging is in order — who do Spinnato and the owners know, who are they playing golf with, who are they making campaign donations to….
First. I have NO love lost for the TKM owners at this point. However, to shut down the Marina completely means unemployment for the workers and limited access or no access for the boaters that have paid dock fees up front. Selling it would take months too. My guess is that Lahontan is trying to get past Labor Day/Boating season.
The reason there is Styrofoam floating around is because of the Muskrats chewing and burrowing inside the black plastic jet docks. Employees are constantly scooping this up and this is a problem not only in TKM but on the home owners side as well. Yes it is potentially a huge problem everywhere that there are floating jet docks and Muskrat populations.
FYI the picture featured is not the boat rental docks nor the fuel docks.
@Ralph Miles, I have a boat in the home owners section and styrofoam hasn’t been a problem since they rebuilt the docks a few years ago. Can’t speak for the condo docks, but styrofoam is just one of the reasons that the marina docks really need rebuilding.
Ray Carreau please come back!!!
Lets not get unreasonably rabid about this situation.The article does not state exactly what permit is being violated. The marina has many permits. Which one is the article talking about.
5 of the listed violations are documents that can be copied and produced. Hardly pollution causing violations.
The pump out is an issue, and it is difficult to believe parts or a new pump cannot be produced within a day or two.
Same with absorbent booms and materials. These are one of the most common things in all industrial operations. Drive to Sac or Reno and pick them up. Someone should define adequate in terms of what they should have on hand for these guys and make them stick to it.
The entire area of the Keys is always ridden with foam ships from floats and other sources, and the Marina may or not be responsible for a significant portion of these. Inspect for specific sources and place responsibility where it belongs.
It does indeed look like the various agencies are taking an almost casual approach to the immediate problems.
This probably means that their position in regulating and/or punishing the marina is not as strong as the public believes it is.
The agencies seem reluctant to be aggressive and this means they are probably afraid of the result of aggressive action. The regulations provide for notice to correct violations, and it would be interesting to know if official, legal notices have been issued.
I do not think the entire situation is being disclosed by any of the involved parties.
I sleep so well every night knowing the redundancy of so many environmental agencies who are so dedicated to genuinely protecting the lake are so vigilant.
I can’t find the actual thread to do my own count, but it seems to me, Kae, that there was more outrage here over your small accidental encroachment than over this guy’s deliberate and arrogant take over and destruction of public land for his own use. I wonder why?
First all of the marina violations. Has anyone checked the health department violations for the Ketch??? If the care about the lake like they do…… Do they care about the restaurant like that too? Fresh my —! More like frozen served by rude servers. I can’t believe that place is still open.
oh those pesky muskrats
The ongoing Tahoe Keys Marina debacle seems never ending. It is my hope that the myriad of agencies tasked with protecting the lake and land of Tahoe, FINALLY do what they are supposed to do! I’m talkin’,the TRPA,CTC, LAHONTAN, THE HEALTH DEPT and a bunch of others.
Those mentioned above, along with a host of others, stated goal is to protect the lake and preserve what’s left of our beautiful area that we call home.
Hell, sometimes it seems we got more regulatory groups, committees and agencies than we have full tme residents!
As far as fill and re-veg? It would be a dream come true to see the Keys in it’s original state as the Truckee Marsh. Highly unlikely that will ever happen.
So fix up what’s there and shop around for a responsible new owner who will run a good operation and not break the law. Thanks for listening, OLS