Editorial: Nice start in looking far ahead

Monday, June 4, 2001 | 9:14 a.m.

It is promising that Nevada's U.S. senators, Democrat Harry Reid and Republican John Ensign, are working together on ways to develop -- and preserve -- federal land located in Southern Nevada. The Reid-Ensign plan still is sketchy, but in essence their idea would be to set aside a significant amount of federal land that now rings the growing valley. In a recognition of the importance of the environment, some of these lands would be permanently protected as wilderness. In addition, some land would allow for commercial and residential development. It also is encouraging that their proposal would designate land for the development of power plants, which are essential for the continued growth of our economy.

It is important that the senators suggested this opening would be the start of a dialogue between developers, environmentalists, federal agencies and local governments in determining how the land might be used. Too often in the West, with its large tracts of federal lands, there can be a chasm of differences, especially between business interests and environmentalists. Sometimes the disagreements are so stark that they can't be bridged, but if these antagonists can all get together in the same room, over time they might even acknowledge that they share more common ground than they realize.

The devil, as always, is in the details, and the Reid-Ensign plan likely will take months -- if not longer -- before more specifics emerge. Still, this is the kind of forward-minded thinking that is needed if this valley wants to both economically prosper and protect its environment.