Lake Tahoe and Lake Baikal Watersheds

At first glance, the distance and physical characteristics that separate Lake Tahoe and Lake Baikal appear more striking than their similarities. In reality the scientific linkage between the two lakes provides ample opportunity for comparison while the impacts of industrialization at Baikal and urban development at Tahoe provide compelling evidence environmental concerns must be balanced with economic and social concerns.

Lake Tahoe is one of the world's largest, clearest, and deepest alpine lakes. More than 260 species of wildlife and 1,000 plant species inhabit the Lake Tahoe Basin. These very qualities have brought millions of visitors annually to the Basin, as well as an ever-increasing number of permanent residents. The resulting development and population growth has taken its toll on the area. Since 1968, Lake Tahoe has lost approximately 30 feet of its clarity.

Lake Baikal is the world's largest (in volume), deepest, and oldest freshwater lake. It contains 20% of the Earth's unfrozen fresh water and is one of the most biologically diverse lake in the world. Owing largely to its age - 20 million years as opposed to the 20,000 years of most freshwater lakes - well over half of the 2,615 plant and animal species found in the Baikal region are endemic. The best-known example is the nerpa-the world's only freshwater seal.

While the region surrounding Lake Tahoe has been developed into a center for recreation and tourism, the regions surrounding Baikal remain mostly industrial or undeveloped. Issues such as ski resort development, hiking trail construction, waste management, and water contamination from mines lie at the heart of environmental concerns and initiatives at both lakes.

Also noteworthy is the political and cultural geography of the two lakes. Whereas the Lake Tahoe basin is made up of lands adjoining California and Nevada, Lake Baikal is surrounded by three distinct territories within Russia; the Irkutsk Region, the Autonomous Republic of Buryatia, and the Chita Region. Baikal's watershed stretches across the border and into Mongolia. Native people such as the Washoe tribe in Nevada and California consider Lake Tahoe to be a sacred place, as do Buryat and Evenk people regarding Lake Baikal. Realizing that both lakes are important in scopes other than the scientific and political, TBI's exchange program incorporates academic, recreational, and cultural activities so that the social, aesthetic, and inherent values of both lakes may be appreciated.

Click here to view TBI's 2004 Tahoe Reader that explores many of the past and present influences on resource management and development in the Tahoe basin. File size: 16.1 MB

Click here to view TBI's 2004 Baikal Reader that introduces influences on resource management and development in the Baikal Region. File size: 7.97 MB

Click here for links to other groups doing work at Lake Tahoe or Lake Baikal, or surrounding areas. Please contact us if you would like to have a link to your organization here.