Air Force, conservationists want Upper Las Vegas Wash protected

Air Force Col. Dave Belote shudders to think what would happen if the Bureau of Land Management makes public land available for development along a corridor where fighter jets with live munitions fly to reach the Nellis training range.

Conservationists concerned about rare plants and fossils from Columbian mammoths, camels and other animals from the ice ages fear dense housing would ruin the integrity of the area for future generations.

Those were the points made today on a tour of Upper Las Vegas Wash by Nellis Air Force Base officials, Protectors of Tule Springs Wash and Archeo-Nevada Society after researchers presented the BLM with studies to help the agency decide how much of the area to conserve and how much to sell for development.