Truckee River Project

Why the Conservancy Selected This Site
Flowing east from Lake Tahoe in the Sierra Nevada to mythic Pyramid Lake, the Truckee River is the lifeblood of arid Northern Nevada. It is also a seriously impaired remnant of its natural self due to historically poor management of mountain reservoirs, and the unintended effects of a widening and straightening project from the 1960s.

The Nature Conservancy's vision is a picture from the past: a meandering river with a robust, mixed-age forest and complex understory, teeming with birds and native fishes, flowing into a healthy Pyramid Lake.

Truckee River © Jim Stimson

What the Conservancy Has Done/Is Doing
The tide is finally turning in the Truckee's favor, as flows are becoming better managed to account for habitat and water quality needs, and stakeholders have come to recognize the multiple and compatible benefits of restoring the lower river to a more natural state.

The Conservancy is leading a coalition of stakeholders to achieve four major goals:

1. Enhanced Wildlife Habitat: Improved flows and channel restoration will benefit habitat for numerous imperiled species, including Lahontan cutthroat trout, cui-ui, northern leopard frog, western pond turtle, and many bird species.
2. Improved Water Quality: Restoring the lower Truckee's lost riparian forest will allow the river to naturally cleanse itself as new tree roots and trunks absorb nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus.
3. Flood Damage Reduction: Restoring the river to a more natural system will improve the ability of the lower river to handle increased flood flows from the Truckee Meadows by reducing flow velocity and reinforcing the river's banks.
4. Recreational Opportunities and Open-Space Protection: With the Conservancy's purchase of McCarran Ranch and the BLM's purchase of the adjacent Mustang Ranch, Northern Nevada residents will have access to new recreational opportunities along 7 miles of protected river corridor located only 15 minutes from downtown Reno.

A  $7 million channel and wetland restoration project is nearly completed at McCarran Ranch. The project served as a template for restoration on other lower river properties including the 102 Ranch and the Lockwood property where restoration construction is underway

In the News:

McCarran Ranch Dedication Ceremony

Truckee River © Jim Stimson

Truckee River Facts

• Length: 110 miles
• Species: Lahontan cutthroat trout, cui-ui, northern leopard frog, western pond turtle, and many birds
• In the past 75 years:
  • The Truckee's riparian forest has declined by 60%.
  • The number of neotropical songbirds nesting along its shores has plummeted by 70%. 
  • Native fish and amphibians are at risk of being completely wiped out. 
  • Fields of invasive weeds occupy the floodplain. 
  • Poor water quality could force a cap on discharges of treated effluent, which would jeopardize continued growth in Reno and Sparks.

Partners
A coalition of public and private partners have come together to make the Conservancy's vision of a healthy Truckee a reality.

State and Local Governments/Agencies:

• City of Reno
• City of Sparks
• Washoe County
• Storey County
• Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe
• Nevada Division of Environmental Protection
• University of Nevada, Reno

Federal Agencies:

• Bureau of Land Management
• Fish and Wildlife Service
• Bureau of Reclamation
• Partners for Fish and Wildlife
• Army Corps of Engineers

Private Partners:

• The Bretzlaff Foundation
• Krump Construction
• Tahoe Reno Industrial Center
• National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
• The Arthur B. Schultz Foundation
• Union Pacific Foundation

Pyramid Lake © Alan D. St. John