Online Documents and Reports
This page lists various reports and technical documents on the Truckee River watershed. They have been classified into the following resource categories: water quality, hydrology, biota, modeling and regulatory. Please click on the title for a summary (abstract) and download link. Some of the papers include data which may be usable to the viewer, and there is an info tag on the summary page, indicating "contains data". This data must be extracted by the user, as they are not available through the query interface.
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The objective of this project is two-fold; to develop a benthic macroinvertebrate multimetric index using existing data to apply to the main stems of the rivers of west central Nevada (the Truckee River, the Carson River, and the Walker River) and to evaluate physical habitat measurements for the main stem of the Truckee River as a potential assessment tool
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This document describes a fish assemblage IBI for western Nevada rivers, and how it is applied it to the Truckee River.
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The objectives of the current activities were to determine if sufficient data was available to derive preliminary periphyton-based metrics that could be used in a periphyton-based indices of ecological condition for the Lower Truckee River, which could in turn be used to derive more comprehensive indices of biological integrity (IBI) based on fish, macroinvertebrates and periphyton populations. Derivation of metrics and indices was made possible through the use of relatively recent (2000 to 2004) seasonal periphyton data that was collected from 11 to 15 locations from California-Nevada border to Pyramid Lake. Although, the levels of taxonomic information from the different data sets were not always comparable, several candidate metrics and indices encompassing information from both the species level and the genera level were identified, calculated and evaluated.
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The objective of our analysis was to develop a biological index for benthic macroinvertebrates for the Nevada portion of the mainstem of the Truckee River using preexisting data. We analyzed data collected by four separate entities, Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP), Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe (PLPT), Truckee Meadows Water Reclamation Facility (TMWRF), and Desert Research Institute (DRI).
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The scope of the current study involved collecting another set of aquatic food web samples in March 2004 on the Truckee River for carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis. This report presents the methods and results of this sampling.
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US EPA Method for determining physical habitat conditions using method for assessments. This method is being used by PLPT in tandem with benthic macroinvertebrate sampling, to further describe the watershed and potential causes for impaired results in bmi populations.
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This project is in progress through DRI, with Alan McKay as one of the PIs. This project was described as an exploration of watershed-specific nuances in algal growth/uptake that may differ significantly from previously held scientific beliefs based on growth in other river systems. Better science will make for more accurate modeling on these systems.
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The factors controlling nitrogen availability, and hence algal productivity, in Pyramid Lake differ from those in the Truckee River, and therefore, an assessment of the impacts of water management strategies must reflect those differences. As a lake, algal production in Pyramid is affected by total available nitrogen from external sources, internal sources, and the nitrogen concentration of lake waters.
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A hydrogeologic investigation was undertaken to characterize the groundwater system in the Fernley Basin and to determine the total dissolved solids (TDS) loading to the Truckee River between the towns of Wadsworth and Nixon. A groundwater flow and transport model was constructed to integrate all of the available data and to predict the potential loadings under various management alternatives.
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Numerical models that simulate river temperature have come into common use by managers concerned with water quality (pollutant loading) as well as biological communities.
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The major streams in Nevada have had TMDLs (Total Maximum Daily Loads) established for several years. While these TMDLs seem to satisfy the requirements of the Clean Water Act, they have contributed little to any watershed/waterbody assessment and restoration plans.
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This document provides a description of data available to support water quality modeling in the Truckee River Basin (DSAMMt model). Conditions within the Truckee Basin have changed considerably throughout the 19th century (beaver importation, riparian tree removal, channelization, flow diversion for agriculture, flood control, Marble Bluff Dam, grazing, flow augmentation, riparian restoration, etc.). Future changes are expected associated with river operations, flood control, and channel restoration. Although it is one of the better studied rivers in the world, there are significant gaps in our knowledge of the system.
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Nevada State Question 1 Truckee River Funding Project Book
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Previous investigations by U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and others reported elevated concentrations of a variety of metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in Truckee River sediment collected in and downstream of the Reno-Sparks metropolitan area in Nevada in 1998.
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Pyramid Lake Paiute Indian Tribe Nonpoint Source Assessment and Management Plan
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As part of its Natural Urban Systems Group, TreePeople has been involved in the implementation of several retrofits designed to restore the natural functions of urban sites.
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Reach Y Restoration Feasibility Assessment
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Reach Y Restoration Feasibility Assessment
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Reach Y Restoration Feasibility Assessment
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The demand for all uses of water in the Truckee River Basin, California and Nevada, commonly is greater than can be supplied. Storage reservoirs in the system have a maximum effective total capacity equivalent to less than two years of average river flows, so longer-term droughts can result in substantial water-supply shortages for irrigation and municipal users and may stress fish and wildlife ecosystems.
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This report on erosion, sedimentation, and flooding on the Trout Creek and Upper Truckee River Watershed is based on field work carried out by the Division of Soil Conservation.
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This document presents the data collection and monitoring efforts that occur along the Truckee River by various organizations. This document is maintained by Jim Brock and Alan McKay of the Desert Research Institute.
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This document summarizes the analytical methods used by TMWRF over the past 20 years.
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Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act requires states to identify waters that do not or are not expected to meet applicable water quality standards with technology-based controls alone. Once these waters are identified, states are to develop total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) at a level necessary to achieve the applicable water quality standards. The Truckee River at Lockwood is listed on Nevada's 303(d) List for total nitrogen, total phosphorus and total dissolved solids. NDEP has chosen to use the chemical specific approach for the establishing TMDLs.
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The Truckee River Biomass Monitoring (TRBM) program has collected data regarding algal biomass in the lower Truckee River [expressed as plant pigments (chlorophyll a), carbon, nitrogen and phosphorous] that can be used for independent analysis of ecosystem health and nutrient budgets. Furthermore, the biomass sampling program has been implemented in such a manner that the results will be used to validate water quality models and, hence, to make model formulations more scientifically defensible as management tools.
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This document lists the TMWRF River collection sites and river miles from Mogul to Nixon.
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This Draft TROA is the result of negotiations among representatives of the United States Departments of the Interior and Justice, the State of California, the State of Nevada, the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe of Indians, Sierra Pacific Power Company, and other entities in the State of California and the State of Nevada.
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The action considered is implementation of the Truckee River Operating Agreement (TROA) in accordance with Public Law 101-618, Truckee-Carson-Pyramid Lake Water Rights Settlement Act of 1990.
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The U.S. Army Engineer Sacramento District (CESPK) is formulating a local flood protection project along the Truckee River at Reno, Nevada. The District is completing a Sediment Engineering Investigation (SEI) in conjunction with the project design to assess existing and project condition sedimentation processes of the Truckee River. This report is part of the SEI and provides an assessment of the existing sedimentation conditions of the study reach.
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EPA TMDL Case Study, EPA 841-F-94-006, August 1994, Number 13.
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Truckee River TMDL Stakeholder Feasibility Assessment Report
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The purposes of this report are to present the objectives of this study, summarize sampling protocols and laboratory procedures, present the data collected, and provide a brief discussion on the results and recommendations for future synoptic studies.
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The Truckee River’s natural flow pattern has been severely modified, with negative repercussions for native fish and plant communities in the floodplain. Water quality problems were exacerbated in the 1980s as high nutrient loading and low flow during an extended drought resulted in the proliferation of aquatic macrophytes and benthic algae.
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This documents the Quality Assurance Project plan for the Truckee River Watershed Council.
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This document lists the accredited fields of testing for the Tahoe-Truckee Sanitation Agency, issues by the California Department of Public Health.
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Results of this investigation revealed that trout in the Truckee River are being exposed to significant levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) within the urban area of Reno and Sparks. Trout downstream of the urban area of Reno and Sparks also have elevated concentrations of arsenic, mercury, and selenium.
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The purpose of this study is to provide the technical analysis and review necessary to begin developing a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for sediment for the California portions of the Truckee River watershed.