TAHOE CITY, Calif. (Dec. 16, 2019) – The nonprofit Tahoe Fund has joined with Boatworks at Lake Tahoe in Tahoe City to raise awareness and encourage environmental stewardship of Lake Tahoe. For the winter season, Boatworks will feature the recycled art installation called “Sledflakes” commissioned by local artist Mark Salinas, and a Take Care Tahoe exhibit within available retail space inside the mall.
Comprised of dozens of broken plastic sleds collected by Salinas from the Spooner Summit sled corral, “Sledflakes” was designed by the artist as a reminder of nature’s beauty and the negative impact plastic waste has on Lake Tahoe. Sled corrals were first introduced at Spooner Summit in 2017. Since that time, thousands of broken, discarded sleds have been collected. The sculpture was unveiled at a public event on Friday evening.
“Discarded plastics are an issue that has an ongoing environmental impact on Lake Tahoe—especially around sled hills throughout the region in the winter,” said Amy Berry, Tahoe Fund CEO and Take Care Tahoe partner. “Our hope is that people visiting the area will be encouraged by this unique art installation and the Tahoe Care Tahoe exhibit to learn more about how to take care of Tahoe.”
The Take Care Tahoe exhibit features a photo booth and opportunity for visitors to learn more about how they can connect with and protect the natural environment. Visitors can make their “pledge” on the wall about how they will take care of Tahoe. The exhibit will be open throughout the winter season during hours of operation of Boatworks at Lake Tahoe.
“Ultimately, we want people to respect the natural environment and take their broken sleds and trash with them for proper disposal rather than leave them behind,” continued Berry. “If you pack it in, you should pack it out.”
“With the new ownership and management at Boatworks at Lake Tahoe, we want to really activate our space and our first step was to bring art and the environment to Boatworks,” said Marie Murphy, owner of Boatworks at Lake Tahoe. “We are looking forward to hosting many more events to come.”
Learn more about Tahoe Fund and the Take Care Tahoe campaign at www.tahoefund.org