The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency has said it will appeal a federal judge's ruling that struck down rules guiding new pier construction and other shoreline activity on Lake Tahoe.
The agency hopes to overturn a September decision by U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence K. Karlton that found TRPA failed to ensure protection of the lake's environment with new regulations on shoreline development, according to the Reno Gazette-Journal.
"We feel there is substantial case law that supports the analysis TRPA used" in preparing the regulations, said Nicole Rinke, the agency's general counsel. "The amendments were the result of a 20-plus-year stakeholder process and represent a reasonable approach to regulation of the shoreline."
While the appeal is pending, a freeze will remain in effect on new piers, buoys and moorings around the Tahoe Basin. After Jan. 17, TRPA will begin accepting applications for shore zone projects under rules in effect before the October 2008 adoption of the regulations now being litigated.
The League to Save Lake Tahoe and the Sierra Club sued over those regulations, which would have allowed 138 new piers, 1,862 new buoys and six new boat ramps.
Wendy Park, an Earthjustice attorney representing the two environmental groups, described Karlton's ruling at the time as a "very significant ruling for Lake Tahoe."
The new shoreline facilities, Park said, would have caused additional boating pollution and further diminished clarity of the landmark alpine lake.
