Dear HCN,
There is
evidently some lingering confusion regarding the Clark County,
Nev., public-lands bill which was signed into law at the end of the
last Congress. Given the huge, explosive population growth in Las
Vegas and Henderson, and the development which is a consequence of
this growth, the non-wilderness provisions of the bill – including
land acquisitions by both local governments and private interests –
would have gone forward without congressional opposition, whether
or not wilderness was included. However, given the immediacy of the
bill, it was viewed as a likely vehicle to be used to get some
threatened wilderness designated in Clark County, and to protect
some of the wonderful scenic, cultural and natural resources of
this area before rampant growth led to devastation of these wild
lands.
Consequently, after months of careful negotiation
and consultation with all stakeholder groups, both Sen. Reid and
Sen. Ensign agreed on designation of 452,000 acres of wilderness
and the establishment of the Sloan Canyon National Conservation
Area.
Shaaron Netherton, executive director
Friends of Nevada Wilderness
Reno, Nevada
Roger
Scholl, Wilderness Committee chair
Toiyabe Chapter of the
Sierra Club
Reno, Nevada
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Nevada development was inevitable.
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