Sustainability
Lake Mead to benefit from $99M grant for water recycling project
Federal resource managers announced $99 million in funding for a large-scale water recycling project that will save enough water in Lake Mead to serve nearly 500,000 households in Southern California and Southern Nevada annually. The Department of the Interior announced Tuesday that the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California will receive millions in funding for […]
New solar will help keep power on during scorching summer, report says
With some parts of the country already facing heat waves, the organization in charge of setting reliability standards for the American electric grid is warning that a scorching summer could lead to a shortage of power generation in some regions. The warning comes as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says there’s a 99% chance […]
Walker River Tribe gets final $2.4M needed for clean water infrastructure project
For years, members of the Walker River Paiute Tribe who depend on well water have been plagued by water scarcity, brought on by a lack of infrastructure and funding. Between aging pipes, pollutants and regional drought, the tribe’s existing water infrastructure has been stretched to its limits — compromising both public health and economic development. […]
New federal rule will overhaul transmission planning as electric grid strains
A divided Federal Energy Regulatory Commission this week issued a long-awaited overhaul of how regional electric transmission lines are planned and paid for, a move cheered by clean power groups but blasted by a conservative commissioner who said it was driven by “special interests” and exceeds the commission’s authority. The commission’s final rule on transmission […]
Suspected wolf pack sighting in NV turns out to be coyotes
Wildlife managers in Nevada confirmed Monday that a possible wolf pack sighting north of Elko months earlier was, in fact, a pack of coyotes. The Nevada Department of Wildlife reported the possible wolf pack sighting in March, prompting state biologists to collect DNA from two scats and hair samples nearby to confirm whether or not […]
NV water right holders have little choice but to sell, say water regulators
After two decades of dwindling aquifers, landowners in northern and central Nevada are choosing to surrender their groundwater rights to the state in exchange for cash payments, and more are waiting in line. Everyone from family farmers to residents in mid-sized towns depend on groundwater in Nevada, but over-pumping and persistent drought means there is […]
3 out of 5 NV congressional Democrats want to let the mining industry party like it’s 1872
Three-fifths of the Democrats in Nevada’s congressional delegation agree with the state’s only Republican in Congress, Rep. Mark Amodei: If there’s one thing the federal government should do, that thing is whatever mining wants. Amodei got a bill passed on the floor of your United States House of Representatives this week. First, congratulations, Congressman. A […]
Most Nevada reservoirs at 80% capacity or more – except Lake Mead
Nevada can expect a healthy water year — with some caveats — thanks to a hardy winter snowpack and generous spring showers. As snow melts through the summer, most key reservoirs in northern Nevada and the Sierra are expected to reach full volume this spring, according to the Natural Resource Conservation Services’ May water supply […]
On second try, House approves Amodei’s bill to ease mining on federal lands
Nevada’s mining industry may soon get a reprieve after the Republican-controlled U.S. House passed industry-friendly legislation Wednesday, undoing a consequential court decision that restricted mining companies’ use of federal lands. The Mining Regulatory Clarity Act of 2024 — introduced by Nevada Republican Rep. Mark Amodei — passed on a 216-195 vote, reversing a vote last […]
On the anniversary of 1863 massacre, Great Basin tribes call for Bahsahwahbee national monument
Monday marked the anniversary of a violent massacre in Nevada’s Spring Valley by federal soldiers, who in 1863 targeted Native men, women, and children gathered for a religious ceremony in a sacred stand of Rocky Mountain junipers. For decades, tribal members have fought to protect the unique grove of Rocky Mountain junipers growing on the […]
Regulators approve killing twice as many bears as originally allowed in Nevada hunt
The Nevada Wildlife Commission voted Saturday to allow hunters to kill 42 bears a year, more than twice the number permitted to be slaughtered in the first decade of the hunt, which began in 2011. The move is the latest in a series of decisions that have prompted criticism of the commission for failing to […]
Amodei’s mining bill fails to pass Republican-controlled House
Nevada’s lone congressional Republican suffered a blow this week after six members of his own party joined Democrats to block a bill he authored to address a court ruling adopting a stricter interpretation of the 150-year-old General Mining Law. Mining developers looking to extract minerals in Nevada are grappling with the aftermath of a 2022 […]