💬 How to Make a Public Comment to TRPA regarding Tahoe Glyphosate Spraying

Why Oppose Glyphosate & Synthetic Herbicides in the Tahoe Basin?

Below are some reasons people are opposed to the USFS herbicide plan. These are just examples. The most important reasons to include in your email are those that matter to YOU. Stay focused on what matters to you rather than trying to cover too much in your email, as super long emails are unlikely to be fully read.

Here are some common arguments against the USFS herbicide plan. Pick the reasons that matter most to you — those are the ones to include in your email. Why? Elected officials are far more likely to read and remember a focused, personal message than a lengthy one covering every concern. A strong email focused on 1–3 issues you genuinely care about will often have more impact.

• Soil health is harmed by glyphosate
• Wildlife health concerns, plus loss of habitat and food sources
• Community health concerns, such as dust blowing toward Meyers and Christmas Valley on dry/windy days
• Glyphosate is carcinogenic per the State of California / CalEPA, and a probable carcinogen per the World Health Organization
• Hiking and mountain biking: concerns about breathing dust
• Dog walking concerns: exposure via paws and sniffing
• Foraging concerns
• Risk to tourist perception of Tahoe as clean and healthy, and resulting risk to Tahoe economy
• Waterway and lake risk from runoff. Promises of "water monitoring" will be too late (can't reverse spraying)
• Exposing workers to a probable carcinogen with no legal recourse if they get sick
• Chaparral is valuable: erosion prevention, nutrient renewal, wildlife habitat
• Chaparral is helping space out the abundant conifer seedlings in Caldor
• Chaparral is a natural phase of reforestation
• Removing native chaparral can increase invasive grasses and fire risk
• What happens near Meyers could become a Basin-wide precedent
• Unhealthy forest, unhealthy lake
• More reasons at TahoeSprayAlert.org, ProtectTahoe.com, and TahoeGlypho.com

Comment In Person or Via Zoom

The best way to be heard by TRPA is to comment in person at TRPA's monthly Governing Board meeting. Upcoming meetings are 9/23, 10/28, 11/18, and 12/16 (every 4th Wednesday). The challenge is that they schedule the public comment period near the end of the meeting, and there's no way to know exactly when that will be. Yes, this clearly discourages public participation. But if you have a flexible schedule, spoken comment is great. The next best alternative is to attend via Zoom, keep Zoom running in the background, and jump in when you hear the comment period start.

Meetings are usually held at TRPA Headquarters in Stateline at 128 Market Street (just off Kingsbury), but check the next agenda to confirm. The agenda will also have a Zoom link if you can't attend in person.

Make a Video or Audio Comment

NEW! Because TRPA's meeting schedule is unpredictable, which makes it hard for most people to participate, we're offering the following to those who are unable to attend:

You can instead make a video (or audio) of your comment, upload it anywhere, and then send the link to mail@HealthyTahoe.org. We'll add your audio/video to a web page of comments, and periodically notify TRPA to check the page. While not as direct as an in-person or Zoom comment, this may be even more valuable to the effort over time.

You can upload your video almost anywhere (e.g. Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Youtube, etc). Just avoid Facebook or Instagram, because those two platforms don't allow embedding or downloading. And please don't attach the video file directly to your email because large attachments probably won't get through.

*By sending us a link to your video/audio, you are granting us permission to use/share it for purposes of speaking up against the Forest Service's herbicide plan. That's the only thing we'll use it for.

Call TRPA

You can also call TRPA to let them know how you feel. However, there won't be a record of your call, so phone calls are recommended IN ADDITION TO email, in-person, and/or Zoom commenting.