Where I Stand — John Wallin: Region worth saving

Thursday, Aug. 3, 2000 | 9:48 a.m.

Editor's note: In August Where I Stand is written by guest columnists. Today's guest, John Wallin, is the director of the Nevada Wilderness Project, which works to inventory potential wilderness in the state and to educate Nevadans about their wilderness resources.

For more than 30 years Nevadans have been seeking protection for the Black Rock Desert-High Rock Canyon region of northwestern Nevada. Finally Congress is poised to act on this critical issue. However, the window of opportunity to protect the Black Rock is small. Sen. Richard Bryan, with the strong support of Sen. Harry Reid, has taken a leadership role by introducing Senate Bill 2273, the Black Rock Emigrant Trail National Conservation Area. Now is the time for some of Nevada's other leaders to get on board in support of this balanced approach to conserving this unique area.

America's largest playa acts as a gateway to the Black Rock-High Rock country, one of the most spectacular and unique landscapes in the United States. It is home to huge playas (ancient dry lake beds), rugged mountains and inspiring canyons. This incomparable place has helped shape Nevada's rich history. Early pioneers passed through this region during the gold rush on the historic Applegate-Lassen Emigrant Trail, leaving behind wagon ruts and their stories etched on canyon walls. The trail and the surrounding landscape look much the same as they did more than 150 years ago. A wealth of prehistoric remains, including bones from saber-toothed tigers and woolly mammoths, have also been found in the region.

This wild mosaic is under threat from unregulated off-road vehicle use, vandalism of natural and prehistoric resources, and gold mine exploration in the multihued Calico Mountains. Bryan has re-drafted a balanced bill to protect the Black Rock-High Rock region. While his compromise legislation is not all that we wanted, if passed by Congress, it will grant well-deserved and meaningful protection to the region. Bryan is retiring at the end of this session of Congress. With only a few months remaining in the session, it is important that Congress act quickly to pass this legislation.

Recent polls have shown that an overwhelming majority of Nevadans want to permanently protect the Applegate-Lassen Emigrant Trail and ensure that wild areas throughout the Black Rock Desert and High Rock Canyon region are protected as wilderness. A poll conducted in early March by Mason-Dixon Polling and Research Inc. found that 75 percent of Nevadans support the efforts of Bryan and Reid to protect the Black Rock and High Rock Canyon region. In addition, over 50 businesses statewide have signed on to support the bill, including casinos, restaurants and outfitters.

Curiously, Gov. Kenny Guinn has come out in opposition to protecting the Black Rock Desert. As the bill was scheduled for consideration by an Energy and Natural Resources subcommittee, he sent a letter to Sen. Frank Murkowski (Nevadans may recognize the name of the sponsor of Yucca Mountain legislation) asking that Bryan's bill be killed. All of the misinformation and myths contained in the governor's letter are too numerous to list here, but even a casual reading of the bill shows that the governor's concerns have been addressed by the re-drafted Bryan-Reid bill.

Rep. Jim Gibbons has not taken a public position on the bill yet. His support will be key if this legislation is to pass. I believe that Gibbons has made a good faith effort to analyze this legislation. I am hopeful that he will listen to the 75 percent of Nevadans who want to see this legislation passed without delay.

Conservation efforts in the West have always been controversial. Rarely, though, do we have an opportunity like this to pass a fair bill to protect historical and wilderness resources while still guaranteeing reasonable multiple uses of the land. Congress can send a strong message that Nevada is truly not a wasteland by passing this Black Rock National Conservation Area legislation.