Letter: Growth should stop before water runs dry

Monday, Aug. 28, 2006 | 7:23 a.m.

The headline from the Aug. 16 Las Vegas Sun screams, "A matter of survival." Pat Mulroy, general manager of the Southern Nevada Water Authority, contends that growth will end in the Las Vegas Valley by 2013 if water is not taken from the rural counties.

Am I missing something here? Will all of the casinos and resorts close up shop, if we can't build more homes? Will those of us who retired here decide to leave, if more homes aren't built? Will everyone in the valley leave, if roads don't become more congested?

As to the idea of pumping water from the rural counties, this is repugnant on several levels. First, taking the water from the ranchers is just as bad as the misuse of eminent domain that has been in the news so much lately. Second, I agree completely with White Pine County Commissioner Gary Perea - once the pumps are turned on, they will never be turned off, no matter what the environmental impact. Third, Pat Mulroy has no plan to ever stop taking water from the rural counties and yet seems to believe that Las Vegas must continue to grow - forever! In other words, she has no plan at all except to take all the water until it's gone.

I, for one, am willing to pay to bring more water to the valley, but only if limitations on growth are part of the plan. More importantly, the pipeline must go southwest to the ocean. Yes, desalination is expensive, but the technology will improve and the ocean is an inexhaustible supply of water. As I said, I'm willing to pay for the water. I am not willing to pay for the rape of rural Nevada!

Chuck Upson, Henderson