Washoe County panel to mull protection of streams from growth boom

Sunday, Sept. 7, 1997 | 10:49 a.m.

The county Water Planning Commission accepted a recommendation by the Mt. Rose/Geiger Grade Citizen Advisory Board to create the citizens' panel.

The county needs to address the issue because a growth boom will increase pressure to develop along streams and use their water for new homes, county officials said.

"I'm proud of the community, this is quite proactive," county water management planner Steve Walker told the Reno Gazette-Journal. "This will deal with the environmental issues up front."

Lyn Mundt, who lives with her husband along Whites Creek south of Reno and often hikes along it, agreed with the need for the committee.

"These streams are important for our quality of life," she said. "I can walk to them and follow them like a roadway all over the area. To my mind, they maintain our open space and our rural lifestyle."

The creeks originating in the Carson Range just west of Reno also provide important wildlife habitat and recharge local ground water, she added.

County officials expect creeks in the Reno area to somebody be used for drinking water.

Mundt, who's applying for a seat on the panel, said a possible way to protect streams is to buy water rights to maintain flows.

"I haven't found anybody who wants all the water out of the creeks," she said. "They'd rather have a solution that works for everybody. What we're going to do is try to find that solution."