Are you watering your lawn at 5 p.m.?

When you water the lawn, do you consequently water the street?

Are you trying to figure out if that tree in your back yard is diseased?

Are you trying to determine how much those darn Best Management Practices are going to cost?

For residents who answered yes to any of those questions, Jason Shackelford wants to meet you.

And he wants to help you.

Shackelford, a South Lake Tahoe resident, is the new coordinator for the Backyard Conservation Program at Lake Tahoe. He started last week and has visited three homes already, has another three planned and has two block parties planned.

As the coordinator, Shackelford visits residences and provides information to people about saving water, erosion control, native vegetation and essentially anything conservation related.

“Really, if they have any questions at all, we’ll help,” Shackelford said. “We’re acting as kind of an informational clearinghouse.”

The Backyard Conservation Program at Lake Tahoe stemmed from the 1997 Lake Tahoe Presidential Forum. Last summer, Phase 1 established the Tahoe program as the leader for similar programs in the country.

In the latter part of the summer, the previous coordinator started holding block parties as a way to reach several people at once. Shackelford hopes to expand on that.

“I think those are going to be one of our strong avenues,” he said. “We give a presentation; we talk to people. We do a question-and-answer. Then we do a general site-visit walk-through. They’re really a lot of fun. It’s just sort of a party. It can be kind of a backyard conservation barbecue.”

Additional information about the Backyard Conservation Program at Lake Tahoe can be obtained by calling (530) 573-2757 or (800) 541-5654. The program’s Web site is being updated and should be up and running within a few weeks: http://www.tahoe.ceres.gov/rcd/index.html