Choose to protect Lincoln County

By Demi Falcon, Las Vegas

Saturday, Feb. 28, 2015 | 2 a.m.

Rachel Carson wrote telegraphically, “The real wealth of the nation lies in the resources of the earth ... and cannot be a matter of politics.” Despite our state’s empty coffers, Nevada is rich. The intrinsic value of our state’s cultural heritage and natural beauty far surpasses any amount of revenue attained from development on our pristine Garden and Coal valleys.

More than 70 percent of public lands remains unprotected, leaving the lands vulnerable to exploitation. The most important first step in preservation is building up a groundswell of public support to show members of Congress and the administration that Nevadans want to see public lands protected.

I have always felt profoundly connected to Nevada’s public lands. Red Rock Canyon is just 10 minutes from my home. As a UNLV student and senator within the student government, maintaining a healthy balance between college and my personal life becomes stressful. During the semester I take hikes on my own, CamelBak brimmed with textbooks to read in the solace of the wild. I find asylum in the beautiful landscapes of Nevada. These natural wonders have proved to be an absolute imperative to preserving balance in my life in the midst of urbanization and excessive screen time.

We have a choice to make in Lincoln County. We have the opportunity to choose preservation for future generations over irresponsible development for short-term convenience, to create refuge for stressed-out city dwellers, to save some of Nevada’s most beloved species and to safeguard the existential record of ancient tribes. We must choose to protect Basin and Range as some of the last pristine valleys in our state.