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Planned land acquisition criticized

A spokeswoman for Citizen Alert, a statewide environmental group, said Tuesday she is upset with plans by the Air Force to withdraw more public land for a buffer zone around a secret Groom Lake Stealth aircraft base, 35 miles west of Alamo.

"Nellis Air Force Base has 3 million acres of land, and where do they want to build their top secret base? Right on the border," said the spokeswoman, Grace Bukowski, the group's military project director.

Gary Ryan, acting director for the Bureau of Land Management's Las Vegas District, confirmed that the Air Force was interested in withdrawing 3,900 acres of public land for the buffer zone.

The proposed withdrawal is in addition to 89,300 acres of the Groom Range that the Air Force obtained in 1984 amid charges by environmentalists that the land was posted and patrolled by Air Force security without legal authority.

Bukowski said Citizen Alert has written the Bureau of Land Management, Gov. Bob Miller and Nevada's congressional delegation requesting that public hearings be held and that the Air Force prepare an environmental impact statement with public participation.

"I think it's necessary before there is any land taking," she said.

"The whole thing is, who are they afraid of? Are they afraid of American citizens? Are we still living in the Cold War era?" Bukowski said.