Water authority goes with Virgin River flow

Under a sweeping agreement signed in December by the seven Colorado River states, water managers in Las Vegas won the right to tap the Virgin River without having to build even an inch of new pipeline.

Now the Southern Nevada Water Authority is moving to secure as much of that worry-free water as it can.

Through a series of swaps and purchases approved last week with water users in the Mesquite area, the authority has increased the amount of water it can take from the Virgin River to about 5,000 acre-feet a year.

When stretched through reuse, that's enough water to supply about 17,000 homes.

That might not sound like much in the grand scheme of things, but getting the water couldn't be easier. All the authority has to do is wait for it to flow down the river and into Lake Mead, then pipe it to the Las Vegas Valley using its existing inlet pipes.

Best of all, the water will still be available even when some Colorado River water is off limits due to mandatory shortages, said John Entsminger, deputy counsel for the authority.

"It really becomes the best water in our portfolio," he said.

Only Virgin River rights permitted before 1929 can be taken by the authority under Nevada's agreement with the other Colorado River states.

With that in mind, board members voted to buy about 1,060 acre-feet of water rights permitted in 1914. As part of the $12.4 million deal with the owners of an old ranch southwest of Mesquite, the authority also got 1,200 acre-feet of rights from 1990.

Under a separate deal, also approved last week, the newer rights will be swapped with the Virgin Valley Water District in Mesquite for almost 900 acre-feet of pre-1929 water rights.

The authority also transferred to the Virgin Valley Water District some pending applications for groundwater in northeastern Clark County.

The rural water district serves about 18,000 customers in and around Mesquite but owns the rights to enough additional groundwater to support up to 40,000 people, depending on how the community develops.

If Mesquite continues to grow, the district eventually might have to start treating and delivering Virgin River water to customers.

Entsminger said the authority plans to start using its share of the Virgin River this year, either by delivering it to customers or storing it underground in the Las Vegas Valley.

The new seven-state agreement also allows the authority to bank its Virgin River water in Lake Mead for future use.

"We're not going to lose it," Entsminger said.

The authority board also has signed off on a plan to develop a comprehensive habitat conservation and recovery program for the Virgin River.

The program would be developed in cooperation with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, National Park Service, Nevada Department of Wildlife, Clark County, the city of Mesquite, and the Virgin Valley Water District.

Water authority General Manager Pat Mulroy said the river could use the help.

"The Virgin has been on the threatened river list forever," she said.

Contact reporter Henry Brean at hbrean @reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-0350.