Monday, April 19, 2004 | 8:15 a.m.
When Alan O'Neill first explained the concept of the Outside Las Vegas Foundation back in 1999, it sounded like a great idea.
This rapidly growing urban valley is embraced by some of the most spectacular scenery in the West, the former Lake Mead Recreation Area superintendent pointed out. Public lands managed by four federal agencies offer recreational opportunities as solitary and rugged as they come.
Outside Las Vegas' job was to package and promote those opportunities, O'Neill said, while helping visitors and residents learn how to enjoy their fragile outdoor environment without destroying it. Respect and conservation would be as important as maps and T-shirts.
Five years later, I still believe in that dream and its promise. I just hope both still are there.
Starting Tuesday the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will begin 10 days of meetings to gather public comment and suggestions on how to design a residential environmental education center and wild horse and burro facility at Oliver Ranch in the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. (Information on the meetings is at the bottom of this column.)
Outside Las Vegas' proponents say the school will allow youngsters who otherwise wouldn't have the chance to spend even an afternoon at Red Rock Canyon to learn about the fragile desert ecosystem.
Opponents of the facility say it will create a water-sucking blight on the valley's most beloved chunk of landscape.
It has the potential to do both. Whether it can avoid doing the latter is now largely up to us.
A 2002 feasibility study for Outside Las Vegas by Yosemite National Institutes recommends a 250-bed school incorporating eco-friendly design elements that incorporate existing buildings to limit development's "footprint."
It sounds good. We need a place that shows the next generation of decision-makers what we have to lose and how to save it.
I hope the school emphasizes the importance of water conservation through tepid, three-minute showers once a day. I hope it stresses that the "wild" horses and burros hovering near death from starvation and dehydration on our public lands exist because we abandoned their domestic ancestors when we no longer needed them. They are more like abandoned house cats than endangered tortoises.
If life at Oliver Ranch shows youngsters what happens when we don't conserve our resources, maybe they will be less likely to let water run down the drain at home. Maybe they will understand that domestic animals, be they cats, dogs or horses, are huge problems if neglected. Maybe they will see that we lose more than dirt under a paved road.
But if the school mainly shows we have the money and technology to bring air conditioning, smooth roads and as much water as we please to the desert, then it fails.
If you want the former rather than the latter, go to a meeting and say so.
Meetings Tuesday and Wednesday focus on the relationships of the project's partner agencies. Thursday and Friday's gatherings focus on the wild horse facility. The environmental school will be the focus of meetings April 27-30.
For times and locations go to www.rrcnca-architecture.com or call the BLM, 515-5000.
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