Scientists now estimate close to 300-million crayfish in Lake Tahoe and they say that is adding up to clarity problems for the lake.
"The crayfish are like cattle on the landscape, moving across the lake bottom," says Dr. Sudeep Chandra who is a lake specialist and a professor of limnology at UNR. "They eat dead algae and fertilize more algae blooms and we think that is impacting the clarity of the lake."
He is also a partner with Fred Jackson who has spent nearly 16 months trying to change laws and regulations and begin a commercial fishing venture to harvest those crayfish and turn them into a family business.
Chandra and Jackson are both collecting data on the migration of the crayfish and are both keeping tabs on clarity.
"It is what we call a win-win ecology," Chandra says. "Partnering private, public and science together is crucial these days. It benefits each one of us in a different way."
The hold up has been permits. But Jackson says he now has the Department of Wildlife in Nevada onboard. He has also heard from the State Lands Risk Management Department that they are ready to approve it. And the TRPA has a public hearing set on it for July 5th.
TRPA Biologist Patrick Stone says he expects Jackson will have some competition on the lake.
"I'm not predicting a boon on the crayfish or a crayfish rush, but I have heard interest from others and I expect we'll be seeing 2 or 3 other boats out there as well," says Stone.
Written by Erin Breen
