EPA Administrator Christie Whitman recently declared that EPA and President Bush are committed to protecting Lake Tahoe from pollution. Whitman stated EPA will continue to pursue the goals of the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act by providing the technical expertise, monitoring and research that are critical to preservation. Whitman said the EPA has provided more than $17 million for water quality projects and has assigned a person to work full time on Tahoe issues.

While attending the annual Lake Tahoe summit, Whitman toured the lake with Nevada Sens. Harry Reid and John Ensign, Rep. Jim Gibbons and Gov. Kenny Guinn and other federal, state, local and tribal officals. Sen. Reid drew national attention to the lake's plight in 1997 when President Clinton and Vice President Al Gore accepted his invitation to attend the first summit. That resulted in the restoration act, and Clinton signed authorizing $30 million over the next 10 years for environmental projects to stem the lake's decline.