Lake Tahoe, CA is now just a foot from the legal limit.

Lake Tahoe’s water level is controlled at the Tahoe City Dam, its only outlet.  

The legal limit for water above the natural rim at that dam is 6,229.1′.

Tahoe’s current water level is at 6,228.07′, only 1.03′ below the maximum legal limit.

By The Numbers:

• Maximum Legal Limit: 6,229.1 ft
• Natural Rim of Lake: 6,223 ft
• Gage Datum: 6,220 ft
• Current Lake Elevation: 6,228.07 ft

If the lake reaches its legal limit, flooding would begin to impact the area along with damage from erosion.

Lake Tahoe, CA Info:

Tahoe Fund | Thursday March 7th, 2019:

Today’s Fun Fact: Lake Tahoe has risen so much from recent storms, it is now less than 1 foot from the legal limit. What is this legal limit and who sets it? The top six feet of the Lake is legally a reservoir with a maximum legal limit of 6,229.1′. Email info@tahoefund.org with your guess on what agency is tasked with trying to keep it below this limit and you could win some Tahoe Fund swag!

LAKE TAHOE FUN FACTS:

• The water is 99.994% pure, making it one of the purest large lakes in the world. For comparison, commercially distilled water is 99.998% pure.

• Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake in North America, and at 122,160,280 acre·ft (150,682,490 dam³) trails only the five Great Lakes as the largest by volume in the United States.

• Its depth is 1,645 ft , making it the second deepest in the United States after Crater Lake in Oregon (1,945 ft).

• Lake Tahoe is over 2 million years old. Tahoe is considered an ancient lake and is counted among the 20 oldest lakes in the world.

• The amount of water that evaporates from the Lake each day (330 million gallons) could supply a city the size of Los Angeles for 5 years.

•  If you were to pour Lake Tahoe out onto an area the size of California, the water would still be 14 inches (36 cm) deep.