State engineer to decide Lincoln water war

Friday, May 17, 2002 | 10:23 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Mesquite, the fastest growing city in Nevada, fears its water supply is threatened. Lincoln County, one of the poorest counties in Nevada, sees its underground water resource as a way to avoid bankruptcy.

The winner in the two-horse race for 7,000 acre-feet of water will be decided by state Engineer Hugh Ricci, who closed three days of public hearings Thursday. A ruling will be made by the end of the year.

Lincoln County and its private partner, Vidler Water Co. Inc., have filed applications with Ricci to pump 14,482 acre-feet of water from the Tule Desert Groundwater Basin, half of which would go to supply a proposed $650 million power plant in the southern part of the county.

Karen Peterson, attorney for the Lincoln-Vidler combine, urged Ricci in her closing arguments to allow the pumping of at least 7,241 acre-feet. There is an annual recharge of water in the Tule basin of 7,000 to 9,000 acre-feet.

Vidler has invested $2.5 million so far in studies and other items to prove there is enough water available without harming the interests of others, Peterson said. She added that a second application for 7,241 acre-feet could be held in abeyance.

But George Benesch, attorney for the Virgin Valley Water District, which serves Mesquite, said testimony indicated there is "some water" in the Tule Desert. But he said nobody knows how much, where it comes from or where it goes.

Allowing Lincoln-Vidler to pump that basin would interrupt the water flow for Mesquite.

"We're trying to protect our sole source," Benesch said. "We don't have any alternatives."

After the hearing, Benesch said water in the Virgin River was of such poor quality it could not be used for domestic purposes, and an expensive plant would have to be built to purify the water.

Benesch said the underground water flows out of one basin, where the Virgin Valley Water District has rights, into the Tule Desert and then back into another basin where the water district has rights to pump.

Peterson said, however, the Virgin Valley has permits for 14,000 acre-feet of water but is using only 5,000 acre feet. An acre-foot is enough to serve a family of four for a year.

Lincoln County and Vidler want to lease 7,000 acre-feet to supply a proposed water-cooled power plant to be built by CoGentrics Energy Co. of North Carolina. CoGentrics will pay $23 million to use the water over the next 42 years. After that the water rights would revert to Lincoln County.

Vidler, the largest private landholder in Nevada, is financing the initial costs. The profits would be split 50-50 between Lincoln and Vidler after the private company is reimbursed for its costs.

Lincoln County Manager Doug Carriger said the county expects to generate about $8 million. About 80 percent would be stashed in an interest-bearing account and the interest would be spent on the county's infrastructure needs.

Carriger said the remaining 20 percent would be used for immediate needs. If Ricci denies the permit, Carriger said "eventually the county would be bankrupt."

Lincoln County, with about 5,000 residents, has an annual operating budget of about $2 million and will have only $60,000 in the bank at the end of the current fiscal year on June 30.

The federal government owns about 98 percent of the land in the county so the local government is looking for other ways to push economic development.