April 17, 2013
“I am inspired by the collaborative spirit at Lake Tahoe,” says Patty Kouyoumdjian, Executive Officer of the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board. “I am very optimistic that if there are challenges I think that we are going to meet those,” she says. And there are challenges to executing on the plan to restore Lake Tahoe clarity. In this interview Kouyoumdjian reflects on the challenge of “being able to financially pay for some of these measures, not just in the short term but in outgoing years.” She also notes that while collaborative culture is an asset, the mechanics of coordinating across local, state and federal agencies can be a challenge unto itself but is essential to success. “We can’t solve our problems in the Basin with the work of just one or two agencies, there are other decisions and other actions that need to occur,” she says. “There are mechanical challenges to getting local governments and other leaders together and solving problems as a group,” notes Kouyoumdjian, but her outlook overall on restoring Lake Tahoe clarity is optimistic.
