Part I. The Truckee and Carson River Basins -- Water, people, and politics -- Reclamation Policy : Trials and tribulations -- The California-Nevada Interstate Compact -- Coming to terms -- Navigating congressional waters -- An end in sight? -- Staying the course -- Part II. The Walker River Basin -- Contemporary Issues in the Walker River Basin -- The Road to the Walker Basin Project -- The Walker Basin Project -- Into the Future.
Summary:
"This book is a political history of conflict over water resources in northwestern Nevada and an analysis of regional approaches to resolving those conflicts. The waters discussed are conveyed by the Truckee, Carson, and Walker river systems. The use, allocation, and ownership of these waters have long been the subject of legislation and litigation. The first edition of Water Politics in Northern Nevada, published in 2010, dealt with water policy and legislation concerning the Truckee and Carson River water systems. This revised edition brings the reader up-to-date on the implementation of the 2008 Truckee River Operating Agreement, including ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance Pyramid Lake. The second edition now also includes a discussion of the Walker River Basin, following a major project undertaken to address concerns about the health and viability of Walker Lake. The approaches taken to save these two desert treasures are offered as models for resolving similar water resources conflicts in the West"-- Provided by publisher. "In northwestern Nevada, the waters of the Truckee, Carson, and Walker river systems are fought over by competing interests: agriculture, industry, Native Americans and newer residents, and environmentalists. Much of the conflict was caused by the Newlands Project, completed in 1915, the earliest federal water reclamation scheme. Diverting these waters destroyed vital wetlands, polluted groundwater, nearly annihilated the cui-ui and the Lahontan cutthroat trout, and threatened the existence of Pyramid Lake. Water Politics in Northern Nevada examines the Newlands Project, its unintended consequences, and decades of litigation over the abatement of these problems and fair allocation of water. Negotiations and federal legislation brought about the Truckee River Operating Agreement in 2008. This revised edition brings the reader up to date on the implementation of the agreement, including ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance Pyramid Lake. The second edition now also includes a discussion of the Walker River basin, following a major project undertaken to address concerns about the health and viability of Walker Lake. The approaches taken to save these two desert treasures, Pyramid Lake and Walker Lake, are offered as models for resolving similar water-resource conflicts in the West. Leah J. Wilds's study is crucial reading for students and scholars of water politics and environmental issues, not just in Nevada but throughout the western United States"-- Provided by publisher.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.