Water Pipeline to Drain Rural Nevada Dry, to Feed Metro (LasVegasCityLife)

Feb.10, 2009 in Water Rights

(Feb. 9, 2009, Las Vegas City Life)

Reader Dean Baker, president of Baker ranches, writes:

Pipelines built to take the water and the future of rural Nevada to grow the metropolitan cites of Nevada will be the biggest disaster the people of Nevada have ever faced. It will affect every single person. Some in Nevada believe cities should get the water. Las Vegas Water Authority filed on Oct. 17, 1989, about 20 years ago, for the underground water of rural Nevada.

Those of us who look at this project from rural Nevada view it as greed, money, and power, simply versus what is right; right for the environment, right for the future and growth of rural Nevada, right for the state of Nevada, right for food from agricultural production, and right for wildlife.

SNWA and its “Harry Reid Legacy Pipeline” effort to take water from eastern rural Nevada shows a belief only in the growth of the metropolitan areas.

It is clear that the ranching industry is an obstacle to taking water from rural Nevada. This is shown by SNWA buying the ranches in Spring Valley. It was for water ONLY. There is a problem that a less expensive way to kill the ranching industry in Nevada is to stop public land grazing. The pipeline projects are pushed forward by political power. This power is pushed by greed and money, with little care for the environment. This “Harry Reid Legacy Pipeline” of SNWA is the example of the day.

Joe Guild, a lawyer and lobbyists, has worked for SNWA in the Nevada Cattle Industry, getting $126,000 per year plus expenses. This simply is one example of the use of money to establish control and influence. There have been many highly paid people to show only positive positions and shade any negative information. It appears federal agencies have had influence from above to make agreements and will have no power to shut off the pumps. The Las Vegas Sun quoted the head of SNWA, saying that if the state engineer didn’t give them the water they wanted, the state engineer would be replaced. This creates the real question of who is not being influenced by power and money for the amount of water in the pipeline.

There has been a lack of knowledge coupled with a lack of caring about the impacts of this pumping and pipeline project. SNWA did not know a large spring existed that has long been used for agricultural production. This sight has a grave yard, 130 years old, at its side.

Just after SNWA brought the ranches, the head of the ranching operation of SNWA said they were going to show other ranches how ranches should be ran. He believed what he was saying. There are real questions if they knew what they were getting into buying and trying to run the sheep and cattle ranches. SNWA lost about a million dollars cash, trying to ranch, last year.

SNWA’s lack of knowledge is that in the end the largest potential loser is Las Vegas itself. Billions will have to be spent on the pipeline. The biggest question is, “Will there be enough water to justify the billion dollar pipeline or will there have to be more billion dollar pipelines reaching farther into the deserts and meadows of northern Nevada?”

From the top down SNWA has often said they can take the water without impacting the area. Any knowledgeable person looking at their applications knows there will be significant environmental impacts. The only reason that SNWA bought ranches in Spring Valley is because of the impacts they know will come with the pumping of water.

There was a discussion with a significant person working to achieve the SNWA water grab, when the expression of “What was Right” was used. He strongly said that “Right” had nothing to do with this project, only the “Legal Rights” established on October 17, 1989 counted. Quit talking about what is “right,” it has no relevance to this project.

Is it right that the sending of an October 17, 1989 application to the Nevada State Engineer has more power of what is right than all of the impacts on the environment, wildlife, agriculture food production, and the future of rural Nevada, than an October 17, 1989 piece of paper? Nevada should look at what is right and work hard to get southern Nevada another source of water, with controlling growth and conservation as other options.

What is right should be the goal, not just greed, power, and money.