Here are some of the projects, plans, and issues we're working on now.

Science in Action: Discovery and Community Impact

Read this eNewsletter online

What do laundry and Lake Tahoe’s clarity have in common? More than you might think. Keep Tahoe Blue and the Desert Research Institute recently partnered on a groundbreaking study revealing that household clothes dryers release microplastics into Tahoe’s air and watershed.

With the help of our volunteers and staff, the research uncovered new insights and opportunities to stop pollution at its source. It shows that science does not only happen in labs. It happens through community action.

Our work continues beyond the data. Keep Tahoe Blue connects science and advocacy, turning discoveries like this into policy change that protects the Lake's health and clarity. This approach helped drive South Lake Tahoe’s historic single-use plastic water bottle ban and is now guiding similar efforts in other Tahoe counties to prevent microplastic pollution at the source.

How Dryer Vents Shed Light on Airborne Pollution Blog

Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry Article

Keep Tahoe Blue x The Visioneers

Lights, Camera, Action!

This weekend, our Chief Strategy Officer, Jesse Patterson, and a crew of young volunteers will appear on the national television series The Visioneers with Zay Harding on CBS.

Jesse takes viewers beneath Tahoe’s surface (literally) to explain how native and invasive species shape the Lake’s ecosystem — and how Keep Tahoe Blue provides education on Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) through our Eyes on the Lake program so anyone can help protect those blue waters. He also spotlights the Citizen Science Tahoe web app, empowering the public to report harmful threats before they spread.

Hosted by international explorer Zay Harding, The Visioneers features the scientists, engineers, and everyday people creating real-world environmental solutions. Tahoe’s inclusion highlights that our model of community-powered science is setting a global example. Check your local CBS listing for airtimes or stream the show anytime on Paramount+.

Watch Preview

Late Summer — Tahoe in Full Swing

A Busy Season with Keep Tahoe Blue

From beaches to classrooms, Keep Tahoe Blue’s programs were in full swing at the tail end of summer. Our Community Programs team and volunteers led cleanups, trainings, and education events across the Basin, connecting thousands of Tahoe stewards through hands-on impact.

Here’s what your support powered:

Cleanups & Restorations: From Labor Day and ‘I Love Kings Beach Day’ to Tahoe Forest Stewardship Day, hundreds joined to remove litter, plant wetland vegetation, and restore a meadow that keeps Tahoe’s waters clear.
AIS Defense Teams & Eyes on the Lake: Volunteers and staff trained dozens of people to detect and report invasive species before they spread, including the recent Golden Mussel threat.
Tahoe Blue Schools & Next Generation Stewards: From fifth graders to high schoolers, students explored how science protects Tahoe through hands-on learning and in-the-field lessons hosted by our staff of experts and partners.
Community-Centered Events: A recent Speaker Series talk by Dr. Goldman and a fall gardening workshop mixed interactive learning at our Spurlock/Evers Environment & Education Center.

These events show that Tahoe stays blue because people like you take action to protect it through community events and education.

Keep Tahoe Blue Speaker Series Rewind: Dr. Charles Goldman

Last week, the new Spurlock/Evers Environment & Education Center hosted its first-ever Keep Tahoe Blue Speaker Series event, featuring Dr. Charles Goldman, Tahoe's godfather of lake science, whose research since the 1960s has shaped how we protect Tahoe’s clarity.

Dr. Goldman shared stories of discovery, collaboration, and run-ins with wildlife, entertaining and inspiring a packed audience to continue the work he began. His life’s research proved that science can save a lake, and his talk reaffirmed why we must protect that legacy for future generations.

Couldn’t make it? Watch highlights from the evening and read the full recap in the Tahoe Daily Tribune.

Watch on YouTube

Who is Dr. Charles Goldman?

Cozy Up, Keep Tahoe Blue

Fall has arrived in Tahoe, and the mountains are calling for something warm, soft, and sustainable. Our limited-edition Stio Waffle Knits are here and designed for comfort, built for the elements, and made to support the Lake.

Men's KTB x Stio Waffle Long Sleeve

These premium waffle-knit layers come in men’s and women’s styles, each featuring Keep Tahoe Blue embroidery — a symbol of clarity and conservation you can wear year-round.

Your purchase helps fund cleanups, restoration, and education that protect the Lake’s future.