2 Lake Tahoe, CA Residents to Swim the 72-Mile Shoreline Picking Up Garbage

SnowBrains |
lake tahoe, cleanup, swim, shore,
The biggest cleanup in Tahoe’s history. Credit: GoFundMe

Two Lake Tahoe residents are taking the lake’s long-time trash problem into their own hands by swimming the 72 miles circumference of Tahoe and picking up garbage on the way.

Tahoe Dive Center owner Matt Meunier and Clean Up the Lake founder Colin West plan to spend nearly four months scuba diving around the lake, an undertaking they are hoping will be the biggest cleanup in Tahoe’s history, reports the Tahoe Daily Tribune.

lake tahoe, cleanup, swim, shore,
SO much trash beneath the crystal clear water’s surface. Credit: GoFundMe

The two men plan to get in the water three to four times a week starting June 1, 2020. Each session, they will use three air tanks which will take them about a mile and a half all while picking up trash.

“With tourism increasing, so many jurisdictions working hard to manage the trash problem across two states, no one is able to pay attention to the trash under the surface of the lake that dates back all the way to the ’70s in areas,” West said in a press release. “I decided it was time to make a difference in our own backyard. Tahoe appears to be pristine and beautiful, but under the surface, there are quite a few issues going on with pollution.”

Volunteer organization Keep Tahoe Blue regularly conduct beach cleanups around the shores of Lake Tahoe, usually after holiday dates, to clear up the garbage left on the shores by revelers. These cleanups focus on the beach areas, whereas Matt and Colin intend to cleanup what can’t be seen, beneath the surface.

lake tahoe, cleanup, swim, shore,
Try turning it off and on again… Credit: GoFundMe

There is a GoFundMe set up if you’d like to help finance their 72-mile swim clean-up operation and contribute to a documentary on the efforts.


Related Articles

Got an opinion? Let us know...