Lincoln gets partial water win

Friday, Nov. 29, 2002 | 9:50 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Lincoln County and its partner, Vidler Water Co. Inc., have won a partial victory to supply water to a proposed $650 million power plant in the southern part of the county.

State Engineer Hugh Ricci has ruled that the Lincoln-Vidler combine could use 2,100 acre-feet of water a year, but not the 7,240 acre-feet it sought.

"We're happy with the ruling," Dorothy Timian-Palmer, president of Vidler, said. "And it gives us a road map to get the other 7,000" acre-feet.

But Ricci said more work must be done to assure that the plant's consumption of additional water will not harm Mesquite and its surrounding area.

Lincoln-Vidler and Clark County entities have waged a long-running battle over rights to the underground water in rural Lincoln.

The Lincoln-Vidler application was vigorously protested by the Virgin Valley Water District that serves Mesquite in Clark County. It argued the pumping could lower the water table by hundreds of feet over the next 20-40 years and would limit the future growth of Mesquite. George Benesch, Virgin Valley Water District's lawyer, could not be reached for comment Friday morning.

In his decision issued Tuesday, Ricci noted that granting 2,100 acre-feet will still protect the water rights of the Virgin Valley Water District. Ricci said there was evidence that Tule Desert Groundwater Basin has an annual recharge of 2,100 acre feet so that much would be available without lowering the water table.

Ricci also said if additional studies substantiate Vidler's claims that there is more water available, there could be further approvals.

Palmer said the proposed Cogentrix Toquop power plant is "still in the permitting stage" before it can start construction. She said the comment period on its environmental impact statement is under way.

While the 2,100 acre-feet is an insufficient supply for the proposed 1,000-megawatt plant, Timian-Palmer said it might be enough to allow generation of the first 500 megawatts.