Pipe’s up

The Bureau of Land Management approved a right-of-way for Southern Nevada Water Authority’s water pipeline, despite the opposition of many organizations and residents from rural towns. The record of decision came shortly after the release of the final environmental impact statement. The approximately 300-mile pipeline will transport 84,000 acre feet of water from White Pine County to Clark County, and is estimated to cost around $15 billion.

“After extensive environmental analysis, consideration of public comments, and application of pertinent federal laws and policies, the Department of the Interior has decided to grant the SNWA a right-of-way for the construction, operation, maintenance, and termination of the mainline water pipeline, main power lines, pump stations, regulating tanks, water treatment facility and other ancillary facilities of the project,” said a statement released by the BLM.

Clark County’s water situation is dire, especially after a foreboding report highlighting the limitations of the Colorado River (“A river runs through it,” Dec. 20) but experts say that strict conservation, rather than water transportation, could help ease the problem. Other large Western cities, including Los Angeles and Phoenix, have been able to meet lower water usage standards through efforts like xeriscaping, which replaces thirsty lawns with desert-thriving plants.

The pipeline was the main topic of conversation at this year’s Great Basin Water Forum (“Trickle down,” Dec. 6), in which participants from Nevada, California and Utah discussed the potential impact of the pipeline on the Great Basin and rural towns in Nevada and Utah. Critics of the pipeline, including many residents of White Pine County, fear that the pipeline will disrupt the region’s water table, resulting in an arid, dusty environment, similar to that of Owens Valley, where a similar phenomenon occurred. Others are concerned about the economic impact on rural towns already facing water struggles.

“The BLM’s own environmental impact statement, in thousands of pages of analysis and disclosures, confirms that, if implemented, the project would result in certain devastation for the environment, ranching families, Native American people and rural communities,” said Great Basin Water Network president Abby Johnson in a statement.

Several organizations, including the Center for Biological Diversity, plan to dispute the decision on the grounds of risk to local species.