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<br />1318
<br />
<br />The Wells of \Vashoe
<br />.
<br />
<br />In [he vigorous exercise of what it perceives as enlightened self-sufficienq' and what others con-
<br />sider a high-handed ,l<:ub. the RL-,Io:lonal Water Plannin)o: and Advisory Board of W'ashoe County,
<br />. Nevada. a WUolY char mcludes [he ciues of Sparks and Reno. has proposed what It ,grandlv de-
<br />scribes.lS [he Silver Stare Water ;lod Power ProJecL Desl.cneJ to bt an enmely self.contalned water
<br />supply and Jjmibution system (or Washoe COUnty, the S 1 SO milhon scheme would include ,ground
<br />warer well fields. pipelines. pumping plants. conventional hrdroeleccric power prolt'CU, and
<br />pumped srorage h)'droelectric power projects. All of [his co encourap:e an Increase in the fe-gion's
<br />population co half a million. QUII;,dy, the board h.1S filed fifry-f';!.'o warer appropriation applications
<br />representing: all of rhe unappropriated waters in northern Washoe Counr)'.
<br />Those waters include the p:round v.-ater rhat underlIes maior portions of fedcral lands adminis-
<br />tered by the Bureau of Land .~f.lna,lo!ement (BlMl.lnd rhe Fish &: \\'iJdlife Service (f'X's~among
<br />them the enormous Sheldon Antelope Ran,!l:e and such potential additions 10 the National \'\'ilder.
<br />ness Preservation Sysrem as rhe Smoke Creek Desert, the Black Rock Desert and High Rock Can-
<br />yon. The grandiose project obviously would have a tremendous impact on these unique lands, yet
<br />the Ihreat nevertheless is almosr entirely unknown and unopposed oU[side the 100al area, as Chris.
<br />topher Ross. a R.t:no resident, informs us: ~ ^ diverse coalirion of citizens of nonhwestern Nevada
<br />and nonheasrern California-artists, ranchers, recreationlS[s, hUOlers. and Olhcrs-have mouOled a
<br />spirited and entirely local defense, with virtually no suppon even from 100al conservalion groups,
<br />who 3re engrossed in other banles. The f'X'S has filed some protests, and the BLM a very few. AI.
<br />though 100al opposition to rhe plan is mong: in the BL'.t and f'X'S offices, the political climate obvi-
<br />ously does not encourage those personnel to be tOO vocal. Unfortunately, most of the interesr
<br />groups, 100al and national, who would be Ihe namral enemies of the proposal, are completely un.
<br />aware of it.-
<br />NOI any longer, we trust,
<br />
<br />.the water once used. Some others
<br />Are plantlng less-thirsry crops, milo and
<br />sunflowers instead of corn and beans.
<br />For a good m.a.ny f.a.rmers. though,
<br />Ihe new ,,-ater conkrvatlon techniques
<br />have come tOO late. There is, according
<br />(Q Bob R.Lschke of rhe National ^sso-
<br />ciation of Conservation Dutf1cu, a
<br />"posirive (QrreJation~ between farm
<br />b.a.nkruptcy .a.nd cenrer pivOl irri.'t;l.tion
<br />on the High Plains. Moreover, High
<br />Plains irngation fumen are flocking to
<br />Ihe new Conser..-ation Reserve Pro.
<br />,!U'am, established by rhe 198~ fum
<br />bill. The pro,!U'am offers ro pay farmers
<br />berv.'een S40 .a.nd $50 per acre per year
<br />(Q retire "high!)' erodible- l.ind from
<br />aetive agriculrure for a period of ten
<br />years. and requires them to plant cover
<br />crops or trees 10 hold the soil in pliiCe.
<br />After the ten years, farmers can rerurn
<br />[he land 10 agriculrure, but ir "'"Quid be
<br />ineli,cible forever for any crop subsidy
<br />payment unless strier and possibly ex.
<br />penSive .conservation compliance- reo
<br />quirement! can be- met. ^ccording 10
<br />Mack Gray, of USDA'S Soil Conserva-
<br />.' n ServICe (00), Ihere are forq'.
<br />ree counties. n.a.[ionwlde, in \l,hlCh
<br />turners ha\'e remed agnculrural land
<br />up to the limit allo'ilo'ed by the program
<br />(2'1 pt"rcenr of lOul counry l.a.nJ ueal
<br />Of those forty. three countles. tv..enry-
<br />
<br />46
<br />
<br />ei,lO:hr of them, nearly two-thirds, are in
<br />the Qgalbla-High PlAins uea.
<br />
<br />As il hJppens, thl' Conserva-
<br />tion Resen'e Program md.~'
<br />point the way ro .a. more per-
<br />manenr approd.ch to rhe stewardship
<br />of the ra\'aged lJ.nJscapes of the Hi,l):h
<br />Plains-however plowed up and
<br />sucked dry rhey might be. They can,
<br />ecologically, make a comeback. Dunng
<br />rhe 1930s, rhe National Resources
<br />Planning Board recommended buying
<br />up n million acres of devastared Dust
<br />Bowl land, and returning It permJ.
<br />nenrly 10 naflve gra..sses. In [he end,
<br />only a fraCtion of that amount WJS
<br />boughr, .1nd the !,:usslands became. .u
<br />Univenlt)' of Qklahom.a. ,e:eographer
<br />8rC,'( 'X'allach h.u pUI it, -the orph.a.ns
<br />of the federal esrate.~ 8uI after
<br />bein,l<: transferred from 1,I1;ency to a~en-
<br />cy for rv.enry-live years, they finally
<br />came to rest 10 the National Forest Ser.
<br />vice in 1961 a..s designated -NationaJ
<br />Gr;usl.i1.nds.~ The~' d.re, In tJCt. heavy in
<br />grass. san \X'a1lach, .while on the pri.
<br />\'ate siJe of the fence the land IS nearly
<br />denuded,- In Kans,lS' 1O"',OOO.d.cre
<br />Clmarron Nauonal Gtassl,loJ. (or ex-
<br />ample. buffJJo once .1.,::;un roam. (hew-
<br />ing on the n.1tl\'e blut"stem. Grumg
<br />ri",hrs leas(.'s 10 [0(.11 calde ranchen
<br />
<br />bnng in S50,OOO a ~'ear to pay for aJ.
<br />ministration and ecolo,l<:ical mJ.lOte.
<br />nance. Given the overdrafr cnsis of [he
<br />OgallalJ. together with farm failures
<br />throu,l::hout rhe pl;uns, ~'allach rNom.
<br />mends that the nauonalgrasslands (un.
<br />cepr be dusted off and slgni(ic.a.nr aJdi-
<br />tlonal acrea,i{e of dried-out bnd be
<br />acqulfed by Ihe Forest Service 'iIo'ithout
<br />del.a.y,
<br />As everyone knows. the reliuc.a.lly
<br />conservative Hi#! Platns farmer would
<br />jusI as soon invite Karl Man: to a hJr-
<br />becue as e\'en rhmt Jbout convenng
<br />hIS l.1nd 10 the federal government. ^t
<br />the ume time. a mechJOIsm ma\' be
<br />ne(essary, after the Conservation fk-
<br />st'(\'e Pro,o:ram is all over. ro return ef-
<br />feered lands [0 economic use, as well as
<br />to .a.rnve ar some SOrt of economic .and
<br />Nolo,ll:lcal eqUilibrium m Ihe Hl,o:h
<br />Plams as a v.hole. Clt'.lrly, a susu.ioJble
<br />bJ.l.a.nce between Irrlgation. dq'land
<br />f.l(mlO~, .a.nd reslOred rangeland IS
<br />needed.
<br />The ke~' to bal.a.nced land use IS,
<br />man)' believe. the return of ;1 Sl,i:"rllfi-
<br />unt portion of the HlIo:h PlainS to m,ln-
<br />d..lI:t'd ran~elJ.nd-somethln,o: JpprUll.
<br />ImJlln.il rhe oriIo:ln.l1 short,l:rass pralnt".
<br />However. .l((ordlO~ 10 SCS offl(lal
<br />~I.a.ck Gur. the lands reured under lhe
<br />Conserv.ltion Reserve Pro,l.':ram .trt"
<br />
<br />\);'ILDERSESS f.Ul I'JR.
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