BLM recommends five county land areas for protection

Suzanne Struglinski

Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2004 | 9:06 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- The Bureau of Land Management included five areas of land in Clark County in its list of proposed purchases for environmental protection released Monday.

The five sites' $30 million total price tag makes up almost one-third of the bureau's total $94 million list of 33 proposed sites. A panel of state and local officials will review the suggested areas. A 30-day public comment period started Monday.

Through the Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act, the Interior Department can use funds collected through public land auctions in Clark County to add the proposed land to the bureau, the National Park Service or the U.S. Forest Service. Once the panel reviews the list, it will make a recommendation to an executive committee, which will make the final recommendation to Interior Secretary Gale Norton most likely by July, said Merv Boyd, the act's division manager for land sales and acquisition at BLM in Nevada.

Boyd said it is possible that all 33 parcels could be included, but noted the other conservation areas for which money from the auctions can be used -- park trails, capital improvements, and conservation initiatives -- also need to be considered.

Land sales through June 2005 are projected to bring in $450 million to be used for land-based projects, Boyd said, but recommendations for conservation initiatives have come in at $66 million, capital improvements at $86.4 million and park trails and natural areas at $692 million along with the $94 million land acquisition proposal, so decisions on what to leave out will have to be made.

A parallel process to consider the other possible projects will take place, including additional public comment periods, Boyd said.

Federal, state and local governments, along with environmental groups and individuals, recommended the sites to be purchased based on their conservation qualities.

The sites in Clark Country are:

Norton will have to sign off on which land areas will be purchased, Boyd said.

The Interior Department backed off a proposal last week that would have diverted $2.3 million of auction money to use for its wild horse and burro management program.