I read the (11/20/24) story by Gabby Birenbaum regarding the Clark and Washoe counties lands bills passed out of the Senate Natural Resources Committee. As someone who has been involved, directly and indirectly, with most Nevada public lands bills since 1998, I would like to share some facts and information that may help readers understand the historic situation and future challenges we face in Clark County.
Timely federal disposal and land use authorizations have been critical to Clark County and Southern Nevada since passage of the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act (SNPLMA) in October 1998. The federal land disposal and permit process, especially within the Las Vegas Valley urban area, impacts community development, attainable housing, expansion for schools and parks, and infrastructure development vital to future economic development.
The original goal of the SNPLMA was to provide for the orderly disposal of certain federal lands in Clark County within the urban core, and to provide for the acquisition of environmentally sensitive land throughout Nevada.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has extensive land ownership in small and large parcels interspersed with or adjacent to private land in the Las Vegas Valley making those parcels difficult and uneconomical to manage. Eliminating the burden of urban land management was designed to allow the BLM to focus on other high priority resource areas and environmentally sensitive land outside of the Las Vegas Valley.
Here are additional facts that may not be well-known:
- During the last 26 years, no county in the United States has done more for water conservation, endangered species management, air quality and natural resource protection than Clark County.
- No county in the United States is more dependent upon the federal government relative to helping balance economic development and conservation objectives.
- More than 90 percent of the land (4.5 million acres) in Clark County is managed by the federal government.
- BLM, the largest federal land manager in Clark County, is responsible for the management of 2.9 million acres.
- Less than 1 percent (25,000 acres) of the current BLM land base is identified for disposal.
- Since passage of the SNPLMA in 1998, more than 977,432 acres of additional public land have been “permanently protected” and set aside in Clark County.
- Approximately, 25,371 acres of public land managed by BLM have been disposed of since 1998.
- Without the release of additional public land, Southern Nevada will face a land shortage in 2023, stunting economic growth and resilience, especially attainable/affordable housing.
- Failing to ensure an adequate supply of employment and housing land will reduce the size of the Southern Nevada economy and drop economic growth and activity, resulting in a significant loss of jobs by 2030.
The job of managing public lands has become increasingly more complex, especially as we are witnessing unprecedented social, economic, environmental and cultural changes. However, not every acre of public land demands maximum protection, nor is every acre suitable for development.
The current ratio of public land protected versus public land developed under the SNPLMA, in Clark County, is approximately 40 to 1 in favor of conservation. This does not include land that was permanently protected prior to the passage of the SNPLMA. Those areas include but are not limited to Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Desert National Wildlife Refuge and Spring Mountain National Recreation Area.
If we are to achieve comparable economic development gains, in accordance with the original goals of the SNPLMA, we must advance a more balanced approach, something the current Clark County lands bill needs to revisit in light of the above.
After 26 years the SNPLMA has become one of the most successful pieces of public land legislation in history. We can continue to ensure a positive outdoor legacy for Clark County, and the rest of the state, if we use a bit of common sense and strive for a necessary balance recognizing the unique burden of living in a state that is dominated by public land and federal decision making.
Mike Ford worked for the Bureau of Land Management for 25 years before beginning a second career in land conservation and public land consulting. He also has served on numerous land and environment related boards and committees at the local, state and national levels. Ford served as a congressional fellow and legislative assistant for U.S. Sen. Pete V. Domenci (R-NM), where he was responsible for public land and environmental issues.
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