Congress OK’s bill for pipeline in Lincoln County

Suzanne Struglinski

Thursday, Nov. 18, 2004 | 9:11 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- After several months of compromises and negotiations, Congress approved a 299-mile utility corridor on federal land between Clark and Lincoln counties, which paves the way for a new water pipeline for the Southern Nevada Water Authority.

The House passed the Lincoln County lands bill again on Wednesday, giving the bill the final approval it needed before going to the president. The bill was not identical to the one introduced in the House and Senate in June.

"Now, we can begin the environmental impact statement work in earnest," said Pat Mulroy," general manager of the Southern Nevada Water Authority.

Mulroy said she hopes the environmental studies will start in the spring and she has been working with the Bureau of Land Management on the details of how everything will work during the process.

The board approved $4.6 million to pay for the study.

"We are off and running," Mulroy said.

The right-of-way for the utility corridor will only be granted after a complete environmental assessment. The bill does not change any water rights or water allocations, it just gives the water authority the ability to build a pipeline.

Mulroy said the bill narrowed down the idea of a utility corridor to a a specific route rather than just considering the whole county.

The authority will be applying for water permits in Lincoln County while the environmental studies are going on.

The bill also allows Lincoln County to use the corridor to develop its own water resources.

Also in the bill, the Bureau of Land Management will get 85 percent of money from federal land sales in the county, five percent to the state's general education fund and Lincoln County 10 percent, but it would also allow Lincoln County to tap into money from federal land sales in Clark County.

Environmental groups are concerned by the potential of Clark County pulling water out of Lincoln and White Pine counties.

The Nevada Wilderness Coalition, a group of six environmental organizations, hailed the protection of land in the bill. The bill creates 14 wilderness areas or about 768,000 acres.

"The legislation protects some of Nevada's unique wild heritage," said John Wallin, director of the Nevada Wilderness Project. "Many areas we sought protection for were not in the bill. However, the areas designated as wilderness represent a significant step forward in conserving Nevada's spectacular landscape and wildlife habitat."

The bill was supported by the entire Nevada congressional delegation.