After about a year of filming, the nonprofit organization 'Clean Up the Lake' announced that they will be releasing a documentary series called 'What Lies Unseen' in early March.
The series focuses on environmental conservation and underwater exploration.
The group is taking a unique approach to taking care of lakes in the Sierra region as well as other areas.
They have spent time diving in various lakes, and they want to bring attention to what goes on beneath the surface, to show people what we don't get to see every day.
"When you look out at this beautiful lake you just see something gorgeous right, you don't see what is out of sight and it is out of mind for everyone. And that is the problems that are perpetuating under the surface of this lake and other lakes like it around the world and so this show works to really bring that to light," said Colin West, Founder/CEO of Clean Up The Lake.
This series has taken them through Lake Tahoe, Donner Lake, Mammoth and other areas, and their main goal is simple.
"What we try and do, first and foremost, is we try and get the litter out of there; we want to reduce the possible toxic metals that are leaching into the lake or micro plastics breaking down into our drinking water sources right," said Colin West.
In the past year, West and his team have removed over 10,000 pounds of litter; and over the last five years, they have removed over 80,000 pounds of litter, with roughly half of it coming from Lake Tahoe.
During their dives, they find cans, tires, plastic, boats, and in some cases, artifacts that they flag and report to the state.
During each dive, West says they have a process, and they are very transparent about what they find.
"Sure, we clean it up, but we want to study that data and share that data with agencies and the public so we can better understand those issues and begin to find solutions in order to fix that," said Colin West.
The team also documents invasive species as well as harmful algal blooms and reports them to local agencies so they can try to control it in the future.
During their dives, members with the team are going anywhere from 50 to 70 feet below the surface, as going down any further could cause some safety concerns.
However, they hope to use technology to further explore the depths of these lakes and uncover more about what lies unseen.
Colin West says there will be two premieres of the documentary: One on March 6th in Truckee at Alibi Ale Works, and one on March 8th at the south end of the lake at South Lake Brewing.
On March 9th, West says they plan to release the series on YouTube and other social media platforms.
To learn more information, you can click here.
