The Daily Rundown - February 6th, 2026
🌿 The Timbisha Shoshone Tribe and two environmental groups are suing the Bureau of Land Management to block the expansion of a mine near Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. The owners of a mine already operating near the refuge were approved to drill 43 exploratory holes in search of zeolite, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
The tribe, the Center for Biological Diversity, and the Amargosa Conservancy say the BLM failed to fully consider the potential harm drilling could cause to the area’s water system and to the plants and animals that rely on it. They also say the agency did not consult the tribe, as required under federal law.
Officials in Nye County and the town of Amargosa Valley have previously raised concerns about how drilling could affect local water resources. The lawsuit asks that the BLM’s approval be vacated and that the agency consider Endangered Species Act guidelines before taking further action.
🚗 Las Vegas police are joining law enforcement agencies statewide for a crackdown on impaired driving. The enforcement and education campaign runs from Feb. 6 through Feb. 22, according to a press release from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
Driving while impaired remains a major safety issue in Nevada. A total of 381 people died on the state’s roadways last year, with impairment and speeding cited as the leading causes of crashes.
🏥 Southern Nevada’s first fully integrated addiction recovery hospital has opened in Henderson. The Las Vegas Recovery Hospital began operations late last week. The 32,000-square-foot, 68-bed facility occupies the third and fourth floors of Dignity Health’s Rose de Lima Hospital, but is operated independently by Lion Health System.
The hospital aims to stabilize patients whose conditions are not severe enough for intensive care but are more complex than what traditional residential facilities can handle. “This really takes patients from the ER to that next level of care,” said CEO Stacey Campa, adding that the hospital treats both detox and medical needs before discharge.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least 850 people in Clark County died of overdoses between June 2024 and June 2025. Nationally, Nevada was one of only two states to see an increase in overdose deaths in 2024.
💧 Government Wash Reopens at Lake Mead After Cleanup and Repairs. Lake Mead National Recreation Area will reopen Government Wash Saturday morning. The National Park Service removed unauthorized encampments and about 12,000 pounds of trash — an accumulation the agency says built up over several years.
Repairs also addressed land damaged by erosion and soil compaction. According to a National Park Service press release, the work restored the area to safe conditions and improved the quality and availability of visitor use. Lake Mead officials closed Government Wash in August 2024 following an increase in homeless encampments and to repair areas damaged by illegal roads.
⚡ Nearly $4 million in federal funding is being distributed to states to help families struggling to pay rising utility bills. The assistance comes as energy costs continue to increase nationwide. The average household is expected to spend more than three times the rate of inflation on utility bills this year, driven by higher electricity and natural gas prices and increased demand during recent cold weather. That’s according to the National Energy Assistance Directors Association, which represents state administrators of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.
Households are projected to spend an average of $995 on heating this winter — $84 more than last year. Families relying on electric heating are expected to see the steepest increases, with costs up 12.2% from the 2024–25 winter season.
📺 If you’re wondering whether it’s truly worth the $8 million to $10 million cost per 30 seconds to air a commercial during the Super Bowl, just ask the creative minds behind the pro-Jesus advertising campaign He Gets Us. According to Come Near, the group managing the He Gets Us campaign, after airing commercials in three previous Super Bowls, they have seen nearly 10 billion video views, more than 70 million visitors to their website, HeGetsUs.com, and awareness of the campaign so high that 40% of U.S. adults now know about He Gets Us.
Offering a distinctly noncommercial message in the middle of the world’s biggest advertising showcase is certainly one way to stand out. But that’s only one of the many messages featured in an event that set a record last year — and the year before — as the most-watched single telecast in U.S. history.
A dive into the raft of ads airing in the Big Game — many of which were released early to rocket around social media and build buzz ahead of their debut Sunday — revealed the typical mix of celebrities, nostalgia, special effects and bold humor seen every year.
Part of these stories are taken from KNPR's daily newscast segment. To hear more daily updates like these, tune in to 88.9 KNPR FM.
