A Q&A with environmental lawyer Simeon Herskovits (GBWN) (tags)
Environmental lawyer Simeon Herskovits discusses the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) and their proposed water pipeline from the rural aquifers of Snake Valley to Las Vegas as being primarily for the interests of developers (Whittemore) on cheap land (purchased from Aerojet) much further north of the urban region. Indigenous tribes, ratepayers, ranchers and the ecosystem will all pay the price for Whittemore's wealth from the latest water heist.
SNWA Whistleblower Shows Ratepayers Bilked for Spring Valley Ranches (tags)
The Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) has used rate hikes and government subsidies to purchase ranches at six times above market value to appear as landholders for water rights for their proposed pipeline. An employee of the SNWA turned whistleblower has come forward with evidence of bribery of local officials and yearly losses of money on the SNWA ranches. In related news Sen. Mike Roberson introduced SB 232 with bipartisan support to require greater transparency by the SNWA and would require the water authority to obtain approval from the PUC before increasing water rates.
Water Theft from Aquifers Benefit Developers at Expense of Ecosystems (tags)
Water theft from rural aquifers for the short term benefit of Las Vegas developers is a crime against the ecosystems and human communities that depend upon their water for survival. The theft of the aquifer water by SNWA is a sequel of the Owens Valley water grab by LADWP nearly a century ago. Any ELF actvists looking for training sites have over 200 miles of practice targets if this pipeline goes through. Maybe someone should send LADWP a message that water theft can be stopped by preventing transport. When the pipeline is ruptured in numerous places this water theft will become a more costly endeavor! The LADWP and SNWA needs to stop stealing water from aquifers and desert lakes!
BLM Support of SNWA Pipeline is "Pure Folly" (tags)
The decision last week by the BLM to support the SNWA pipeline shows their disregard for science and inability to protect species that are under their watch. The developers who plan projects like Coyote Springs 50 miles north of Las Vegas are dependent upon this pipeline, NOT Las Vegas. Just more hype so that some developers (Whittemore/Seeno/etc...) can profit at the expense of the desert spring ecosystems in Snake and Spring Valleys. There isn't enough water in these aquifers to support the suburban sprawl of Coyote Springs 100,000 homes, golf courses, etc...
Spring Snails Survival Threatened by SNWA Pipeline (tags)
The spring snails of the Great Basin region are threatened by construction of the SNWA pipeline to Las Vegas. Spring snails are vital as primary consumer herbivores to reduce algae and thereby prevent eutrophication, also being the base of the trophic food web pyramid that supports trout, eagles and humans. Spring snails should be protected under ESA and are more valuable than golf courses and sprawl development north of Las Vegas.
Goshute Tribes Fight SNWA Pipeline to Vegas (tags)
The clock is ticking on the 60-day review period for the environmental assessment report on a controversial water pipeline along the Nevada-Utah border that the Goshute Confederated Tribes say would draw down their own water supplies and impede economic development as well as compromise sacred sites. The eight-foot-diameter pipeline would carry water 300 miles from eastern Nevada to Las Vegas, pumping about 84,000 acre-feet of water annually from Goshute and other tribal lands.
BLM’s new “alternative” on Vegas pipe (tags)
Ever heard of the Council on Environmental Quality? Chaired by former LA Deputy Mayor Nancy Sutley, it’s a White House office that according to its website ”coordinates Federal environmental efforts.” To judge by a recent update from the Bureau of Land Management, Sutley’s office may just hold the key for a compromise in a long-running battle over rural groundwater between Utah and Nevada. Using powers supposedly afforded by the Council, the Bureau is adding a new alternative to an environmental impact statement that may allow Vegas to pump and Utah to keep its water too. The only clear loser is the environment.
Goshutes battle to save their sacred water from SNWA pipeline (tags)
Elders of the Goshute Nation and many scientists agree that removal of aquifer water from eastern Nevada with the SNWA proposed pipeline for Las Vegas suburban development will destroy the spring fed ecosystems that the goshute have depended upon for their cultural and physical survival. Preparations for spiritual and mental battle to protect sacred Goshute water are beginning.
NV State Engineer Rules Against Goshute Tribe and in Favor of SNWA Pipeline (tags)
The Nevada State Engineer's decision last week supports the SNWA proposed pipeline despite numerous objections from the indigenous Goshute Nation and many other scientists who warn that the finite aquifers of the Snake and Spring Valley targeted by the SNWA pipeline would not sustain this amount of extraction without causing ecosystem collapse as springs dry and species become extinct. It could be said that removal of water from the sovereign Goshute Nation by the SNWA is a form of cultural genocide.
Response 2 SNWA; NO Water Theft 4 Developers! (tags)
This report is one of many public comments given throughout several locations in Nevada in opposition to the proposed SNWA 300 mile pipeline from the Snake and Spring Valley aquifer system to provide water for developers like Harvey Whittemore (Coyote Springs, U.S. 93 & NV 189), KB Homes and other developers interested in furthering the suburban sprawl outside of Las Vegas despite many homes remaining unoccupied and in foreclosure. The developers revealed their true motives as the only comments in favor of the SNWA pipeline were from homebuilders associations and other construction related industries.
Rainwater Harvesting; Alternatives to SNWA Pipeline Project (tags)
Another option for Las Vegas is to outfit roofs with rainwater harvesting systems, both for collecting water and to reduce runoff that creates flash floods. This would create jobs and result in permanant solutions to increasing water supplies, unlike the SNWA's proposed pipeline from the Snake Valley aquifer that would cost billions and most likely overdraft the aquifer in less than 10 years time. Though the pipeline's promise of indefinite future supplies (real or imagined) could make some developers like Harvey Whittemore happy in the short term!!
NV; New Cave Species at Risk from SNWA Pipeline (tags)
Two new cave species were discovered near Great Basin Natn'l Park's Lehman Caves, part of the same cave aquifer system that SNWA plans to pump billions of gallons away from with their proposed pipeline. The species found were a shrimp called an ostracod and a cave millipede. Both depend on groundwater in caves that would be taken to Whittemore's suburban sprawl developments outside of Vegas city limits.
SNWA's 300 Mile Pipeline to Las Vegas Faces Growing Opposition (tags)
At a recent SNWA board meeting, the SNWA's proposed 300 mile pipeline from Snake Valley aquifer to Las Vegas has met with a few bumps in the road, mainly strong public opposition and increasing hesitancy on the part of SNWA board members to jump into this plan without a safety net. Though the SNWA board voted to continue seeking an EIS for the pipeline, the reality of future costs and risks of an overdrawn aquifer made several board members question their previous zealotry in following Gen. Manager Pat Mulroy down her pipeline's path for much longer.
Gambling with Extinction; Snails, Dace, Chub & Trout Threatened by SNWA Pipeline to Vegas (tags)
Petition for endangered species status and a lawsuit by conservation groups to protect spring snails could delay or even stop the destructive aquifer draining pipeline to Las Vegas proposed by SNWA.
Help Las Vegas Conserve Water! No Aquifer Drawdown! (tags)
We need your help to protect the Snake and Spring Valley aquifers from being drawn down by Las Vegas water demands. One way people can help is to encourage a diversity of water conservation measures that Las Vegas and Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) could try as alternatives to pumping and draining distant aquifers yet intact. People are given the chance to send SNWA their ideas for abstracts for an upcoming Water Innovations Conference later in '09, abstracts due by 1/30/09. Even if you cannot go there, send them your ideas for water conservation anyway!!
Snake & Spring Valley Aquifer Water Conservation (NV) (tags)
There are several reasons to avoid the proposed pipeline project diverting water from the Snake and Spring Valley aquifers to the Las Vegas region as planned by Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA). This report will provide background information as to the physical and geological characteristics of the two aquifers mentioned above, including ecological components most likely affected by potential overdraft from the SNWA pipeline.