Lincoln County moves to keep its water

Thursday, Sept. 6, 2001 | 11:32 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- The Lincoln County Commission Wednesday asked state Engineer Hugh Ricci to dismiss applications filed 12 years ago by the Las Vegas Valley Water District to pump an estimated 125,000 acre feet of water a year out of Lincoln County to Southern Nevada.

Recent water district disclosures show the agency is banking on other water resources to meet the growing population of Southern Nevada, Lincoln County officials said, adding that the water in question would be used as a backup that would not be tapped for 50 years.

Lincoln County has its own development plans and needs the water now, an attorney representing the county said in a letter to Ricci.

Pat Mulroy, general manager of the Las Vegas water district, said this morning the agency would resist the move by Lincoln County, which could force the water negotiations into costly public hearings that would tax the financial resources of the rural county.

Southern Nevada needs the Lincoln County water in the future to meet the requirements of an agreement with other states that use Colorado River water, Mulroy said.

The Las Vegas Water District is trying to work cooperatively with the rural counties surrounding Clark County to meet the water needs of Southern Nevada, Mulroy said.

"We want to do something right," said Mulroy. "It's going to take a lot of time and talking to put something together to work for rural counties and us."

The district has filed applications to draw water from the four rural counties, and Mulroy said the applications are designed to provide water as a long-term solution for Southern Nevada.

In fighting the request by Lincoln County, Mulroy said the water district may ask for hearings on basin-by-basin applications. These hearings are expensive and could "throw Lincoln County into debt."

"But we would rather have discussions with the four counties on how we can proceed, rather than going into acrimonious hearings."

The Lincoln County commission approved the letter prepared by Attorney Karen Peterson to Ricci which said, "Never before has a Nevada county sought to use the natural resources of another county to further its own master plan at the expense of that sister county."

The state engineer's office had not seen Peterson's letter this morning, a spokesman said.

In making its request, Lincoln County cited testimony at hearings in July in which the water district is also seeking five other water rights totaling 27,512 acre feet in Coyote Springs in Lincoln County.

An acre-foot of water serves a family of four or five for a year.

Peterson of Carson City, who represents Lincoln County in water issue, said the water district presented testimony that its choice in resolving water needs in Southern Nevada would be derived through ground water banking in Arizona, the Las Vegas Valley and through the Muddy and Virgin rivers.

The proposed pumping of 32 additional wells in Lincoln County would not be used to serve Las Vegas' needs until 2050, and there are no plans to go forward with applications to the state engineer to use the water sooner, Peterson said.

Lincoln County filed applications for the water after Clark County, but Peterson said deference should be given Lincoln County where the underground water supply is located. Lincoln County has its own master plan for development, she said.

Acknowledging that Clark County has a greater population and "political clout," Peterson said, however, that both counties should be on an equal footing in developing their master plans.

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