Land deal

Occasionally, a land sale from a private party to a conservation organization bears closer scrutiny -- if the "willing seller" was left few good options but to sell after draconian government land regulators stripped him of any ability to make a living on the land, the "willing" part of "willing seller" can seem a might forced.

No such concerns seem to mar the decision of electric utility NV Energy to sell a parcel of wilderness land surrounding Independence Lake to The Nature Conservancy for $15 million -- though it is odd that some of that purchase price ended up coming from federal taxpayers.

Nature Conservancy in California executive Mike Sweeney calls the purchase of more than 3.6 square miles of land around the 2.5-mile lake an important conservation milestone in the Sierra Nevada. The alpine lake just north of Lake Tahoe provides water to the Reno-Sparks area and is a popular destination for anglers and hikers. It harbors one of the world's last two wild lake populations of the Lahontan cutthroat trout.

The utility had owned the 2,325 acres of forest land since 1937. NV Energy President and Chief Executive Michael Yackira says the ownership transfer will continue a legacy of stewardship. "Tourism is the mainstay economy in the Sierra, so allowing public access was always central to our vision for Independence Lake," added Kathryn Landreth, executive director of The Nature Conservancy in Nevada. "It provides an affordable, yet breathtaking destination for locals and visitors alike."

If the Conservancy came up with the cash, and the seller is happy with the deal, more power to all involved.