County, cities eye more acres

Clark County and other local governments are forging ahead with an ambitious effort that will more than double acreage available for development as part of a long-standing program that protects habitat for sensitive species.

Currently the county's 30-year, Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan covers 145,000 acres, of which 77,724 have been developed. In return, lands elsewhere in the county are secured to preserve habitat for 78 species of plants, mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects, snails and mosses.

Under the plan, developers pay a $550 per-acre mitigation fee.

The new plan being discussed with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would increase the number of acres available for development to 360,000 and meet federal species protection requirements for the next 50 years.

Managers in the county's Desert Conservation Program said they want to clear bureaucratic hurdles of the Endangered Species Act now rather than deal with the issue later at the risk of triggering an economic downturn because land will not be available for building homes and businesses.

"One of the things this (economic) slowdown shows us is what the real economic impacts are when development just stops and what it does to people," said John Tennert, project manager for permit amendments in the Desert Conservation Program.

"In this instance it was a result of a financial crisis. But, if at some point in the future it happens because of lack of availability for compliance with the ESA, the impact would be the same," he told the Review-Journal's editorial board Wednesday.

Program Manager Marci Henson said if the effort by the county and cities succeeds, then it would mean "continued orderly economic development while balancing species protection."

Not all parties with a stake in revamping the permit were as optimistic about its proposed scope and time span.

"We haven't seen the specifics," said Bob Williams, field supervisor for Nevada for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "I think the bar they're asking us to jump over is high."

In a telephone interview from his Reno home, Williams vowed that "whatever the county proposes" will be subject to a thorough environmental review that will focus on whether the plan minimizes effects on species.

"We have to make a call that the loss of that many acres wouldn't jeopardize the existence of the desert tortoise," he said.

"There's no way the Fish and Wildlife Service is going to just sign the bottom line and keep Clark County happy. ... They might want a whole lot more than they get at the end of the day," Williams said.

Most of the habitat for the species are on nearly 3 million acres of federal land that are preserved as areas of critical environmental concern and wilderness areas or are lands managed by the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of Land Management.

The list of 78 species includes two that are federally protected: an endangered bird, the Southwestern willow flycatcher, and the desert tortoise, a threatened reptile.

Jane Feldman, spokeswoman for the local Sierra Club who represents the environmental community on the Desert Conservation Program advisory committee, said she was surprised by Wednesday's announcement because the committee is only halfway through its deliberations.

"It was my understanding that there was going to be no decisions made until deliberations were finished," she said.

She said the Community Advisory Committee has not consented on the acreage cap, the length of the permit or what changes will be in store for excluding some species on the list and including others that are not on it, such as the Las Vegas buckwheat plant.

"It sure seems to me like they're jumping the gun," Feldman said.

She said she wonders whether a species plan is a good mechanism for urban planning in light of the number of vacant lots on the Strip.

"If we continue to let builders build cheap houses on the outskirts of town, we're not going to get rid of the empty lots near the Strip," she said.

The permit amendment process is expected to cost $2.5 million.

Contact reporter Keith Rogers at krogers @reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0308.