The nation's top climate scientist is getting an award for his outstanding work on the issue of climate change. Why, governor, are you completely ignoring him? I think a response to his letter is important. We want to read it and have it be part of the record.

How can you actually support these coal plants in spite of the dire warnings? I understand your important Texas meeting includes a panel discussion on energy with some of the biggest fossil fuel corporations and polluters in the world, including Shell, BP, Peabody and others. Will you be golfing with them too?

Are you giving equal attention to the clean energy options? Of course I'm not referring to the ridiculous oxymoron of "clean coal," something that does not and will never actually exist.

This is Nevada's chance to step up to the plate and shine like never before. Governor Gibbons, please, for the sake of the citizens you represent and their children, stop these coal plants and embrace renewable energy on a comparable scale!

Let's not miss this one time, golden opportunity to make a contribution to the world that goes far beyond that of gaming, lights and glitter. Our economy will thrive, the flow of energy dollars will begin to flow into our state instead of out, jobs will be created, the lights WILL stay on and we'll all breathe easier.

Please listen to Dr. Hansen and the thousands of other scientists from around the world. There has never been so much scientific agreement on an issue. We MUST heed their warnings. The only place for coal is in the ground...untouched.

Great editorial! Rather than a "solar growth spurt" however, we are poised for what could be a significant, long-term and beneficial economic transition.

Nevada is set to become a major player in an industry that makes gaming look like, well, a game. That industry is ENERGY, and unlike the coal industry wannabees who will never be what they profess, our renewable energy is truly clean.

I do not understand people's love affair with coal. It IS yesterday's energy. In fact, it's ancient energy. It belongs in the ground, permanently.

We get more energy from the sun than we could possibly need. All that is missing is education and political (corporate) will.

Those who embrace coal as a viable energy source must be under the illusion that it will somehow be profitable for them personally. After all, coal is just dirty, black stuff - why else would someone defend it so strongly? Unfortunately, any profit, even for the wealthiest corporations, will be short-lived and foolish in the long term.

mschaffer is right, the real cost of coal goes far beyond air quality issues. We are risking lives and raping our landscape, destroying vast bio-regions of forested mountains and once-beautiful valley streams to get that coal.

But hey, we have to watch American Idol on big plasma screens in air-conditioned comfort for the lowest possible cost, right? Surely we need to pump endless tons of water over phony waterfalls to create Disney-esque illusions of natural beauty. I suppose we think that's better than a real waterfall, on a real mountain, supporting real habitat in some far off place, right?

Oh sure, those people might suffer and lose what they hold dear, including their homes, their health, their land and their lives. But that's their problem I suppose.

COAL: The ultimate folly.

Humans are constantly trying to engineer their way to a better world. Remember the "Better Living Through Chemistry" slogan? That led to the chemical pollution of every living thing and every square inch of the planet.

Now we're being told "Better Living Through Pipelines" or "Better Living Through Desalinization." Either way, it's a very energy-intensive dead end.

Regarding water, it is time to recognize that there are limits. We have exceeded many of them in Nevada, especially in the south. Population is the real problem but is rarely discussed. How about electing a rational administration in DC that will aggressively promote responsible family planning on a global scale?

We must strive for zero or even negative growth if we wish to sustain our community (local and global) over the long haul. Otherwise, we'll engineer ourselves into an even tighter corner a decade or two down the road.

Real economic principles must be in alignment with the natural world. If not, they will only create short-term benefits for a few and eventual disaster for all. The pipeline leads to it. Desalinization does too. Exporting our negative environmental impacts is not a solution.

We live in a very dry climate. Are we so immature that we can't face that fact? We waste millions of tons of water. Who said Nevada should look like Florida or Illinois? Amazingly, we still allow grass! Stop it!

Stop the growth. To do otherwise is a form of collective insanity that will lead to even greater problems in the future.

Embrace the Mojave and stop trying to remake it into something else. It's a beautiful desert. Let us not fool ourselves that this fragile, arid environment can sustain additional millions of people - residents or visitors.

What happens when you put too many people into one boat?

Thank you LV Sun. This is great reporting. The article and video are interesting and informative, connecting our present situation with a fascinating glimpse of the past.

Las Vegas has clearly exceeded its carrying capacity, as humanity has done on a global scale. Whether the water is used by us or by others is moot. There is a drought and we must face up to it.

The Mojave Desert is in charge here. We must live here on its terms or face the consequences.

Nature bats last.