BLM to set boundaries of conservation area

Monday, Aug. 22, 2005 | 11:03 a.m.

The Bureau of Land Management on Tuesday is to move a step closer to setting boundaries for a proposed conservation area in the northern Las Vegas Valley that would be off limits to development under a strategy to protect rare plants and prehistoric fossils.

The final meeting in a 10-month process that has brought together 13 groups comprised of environmentalists, developers and government agencies is set for Tuesday. At that meeting, the participants are to outline their proposals for the size, scope and boundaries of the conservation area along the Upper Las Vegas Wash.

Late last year the BLM identified a conservation area of 5,000 acres that would be removed from any future auctions of federal land. That served as a starting point for public discussions regarding how much land is needed to preserve paleontological sites and Las Vegas bearpoppy and buckwheat, said Gayle Marrs-Smith, a BLM botanist and manager of the project.

The Upper Las Vegas Wash Committee has suggested boundaries ranging as low as 3,000 acres, while environmentalists want to double the area to 10,000 acres. The proposals will help the BLM craft alternatives that will undergo an environmental review and ultimately lead the federal agency to select an option by next spring.

"Those boundaries will be bigger or smaller depending on the needs of the community," said Marrs-Smith, who called the groups cordial. "It has been highly cooperative. They have been open and shared their information. But I am sure that will change because not everybody is going to get what they want."

The next phase of the process is expected to pit environmentalists against developers and local governments that would like as much land available for development as possible. Much of the land along the Las Vegas Wash isn't developable, but land adjacent to it is.

Jane Feldman, the conservation chairwoman of the local chapter of the Sierra Club, said the 5,000-acre proposal doesn't go far enough in protecting the fragile plants and preserve paleontological fossils and archeological resources.

The proposed boundaries should be close to doubled to include lands north of the conservation area adjacent to the Desert National Wildlife Range. Otherwise, roads and utility lines will divide up the conservation area, Feldman said.

"If you have a conservation area bisected multiple times with highways and utilities to get in and out, you are not going to have a natural system left," Feldman said.

On Wednesday the North Las Vegas City Council authorized the city to spend $70,123 to hire a consultant to help modify the proposed boundaries. North Las Vegas officials fear that management decisions for the conservation area may restrict the city's ability to provide roads and utilities, thus limiting future development opportunities to the north.

North Las Vegas City Manager Gregory Rose said the city only wants to strike a good balance between between development and conservation.

"We will let science dictate what is a reasonable amount of conservation," Rose said.

Tom Warley, American Nevada Company vice president of community construction and a member of the task force representing developers, didn't want to comment on Feldman's proposal until his group had a chance to see it.

Warley said the task force supports preserving land. He proposed that the conservation area essentially remain the same size.

"Everybody's comment is take what you need but need what you take," Warley said. "If it's 5,000 acres or 4,500 acres, we need to make sure it's taking what needs to be preserved."

Feldman said she's worried that the BLM and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will ultimately select a conservation area based on political considerations rather than what's best for preserving natural resources.

"That is something we are going to have to be vigilant about," Feldman said.

Previously, despite opposition from environmentalists, North Las Vegas struck a deal with the BLM and other federal and state agencies for conserving roughly 12 percent of a 2,300-acre site south of the proposed 5,000 acres.

That agreement set aside 281 acres that would be contiguous with the proposed 5,000-acre conservation area. The Sierra Club wanted at least 700 acres of the 2,300-acre site preserved to protect plants and fossils.

Marrs-Smith said public input, however, will be a key factor of whatever decision is made. She encouraged people to get involved and let the agency know what alternatives they support.

Not only will the plan select the size and boundaries of the conservation area, but the BLM is also seeking input on who will manage the conservation area and what recreational and educational components will be included in it. That includes trails and educational centers, which will be a source of contention for those environmentalists who don't want the habitat disturbed.

Tuesday's public meeting is scheduled from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Bureau of Land Management, 4701 N. Torrey Pines Drive.