The Center for Biological Diversity is trying to get protection for four species of springsnails under the Endangered Species Act. They're doing this in hopes of having a stronger argument for stopping the water pipeline from the Great Basin to Las Vegas. Could the snail become the Spotted Owl of Nevada?
GUESTS
Rob Mrowka, Ecologist and Nature Conservation Advocate, Center for Biological Diversity
Joe Roman, author "Listed: Dispatches from America's Endangered Species Act"
Zane Marshall, Southern Nevada Water Authority, Environmental Resources Director
Any honest and competent hydrologist would absolutely guarantee that drawing the quantity of water LVVWD wants from the intended basins *will* seriously and negatively affect springs, vegetation and wildlife because they will be removing far more than is recharged - it's called groundwater mining. That this hyper-expensive program is being rammed through when approximately 70% of the water consumption in the Las Vegas Valley is used for ornamental irrigation is outrageous and ridiculous; how about implementing turf laws like other desert cities have? And, by the way, LVVWD's cost estimate has more than doubled since its initial proposal, and I predict that it will more than double again before completion. This is a massive boondoggle that we cannot afford!Tom Hurst –Oct 24, 2012 17:38:40 PM
