Nevada Power cuts into wilderness area

Nevada Power Co. trespassed on an endangered desert tortoise habitat when it cleared a 10-mile dirt road to make way for two power lines, one of which would serve Del Webb's Anthem project south of Henderson, the Bureau of Land Management said.

The agency issued a trespass notice last week that says Nevada Power was allowed to put up poles to carry the lines but did not have permission to build the road on BLM land just outside the North McCullough Mountains wilderness-study area.

The utility added 10.41 miles of road, 1,500 feet of which extends into the wilderness-study area and habitat for the endangered desert tortoise, BLM officials said.

The swath of land lies southeast of Lake Mead Drive, just beyond Phase II of Del Webb's Anthem community. BLM officials discovered the road July 30, and the trespass notice was issued Wednesday.

Mike Dwyer, acting director of the BLM's Las Vegas office, said such accidents happen and that Nevada Power officials likely didn't intentionally do anything wrong.

"This kind of thing happens all the time," Dwyer said. "It's very frequently a mistake. It's not a willful thing."

The power company is adding a 230,000-volt transmission line that will connect substations in the southwest and southeast areas of the valley. The poles also will carry a 138,000-volt line to serve Anthem, Tom Henley, Nevada Power spokesman, said Monday afternoon.

Nevada Power officials are conducting their own investigation and will do whatever BLM officials ask, he said.

"The company is very committed to the environment, and we will work with the BLM to put this process through," Henley said.

But Charles S. Watson Jr., director and co-founder of the Nevada Outdoor Recreation Association in Carson City, said he isn't going to let big business off the hook.

Even though utility and BLM officials say it was an honest mistake and not a deliberate desecration of public land, Watson says the wilderness-study area's boundary is hard to overlook.

"The flags are sticking up at close intervals along the boundary. You can't miss it," Watson said Monday.

He also contends part of the blame belongs to Del Webb because one of the two lines was being installed to serve Anthem.

"As far as I'm concerned, Del Webb should come in and help with the clean up. The true villain, in my opinion, is Del Webb," Watson said. "This is proof that they are not trying to save the planet. They are an arrogant, greedy corporation out to make a fast buck."

BLM officials said they have no idea what areas the Nevada Power lines are to serve, and Del Webb is not being charged or investigated in connection with the trespass violation issued last week.

"We have no responsibility here," Sean Patrick, Del Webb spokesman, said. "We're concerned about the wilderness area, and we've educated our people about where the boundaries are very stringently."

Patrick also said criticism of Del Webb's communities isn't new.

"It's not unusual for people to have some kind of criticism about (BLM) land swaps. And they have a right to do that," he said.

Watson said that earlier this year he appealed the BLM's granting of the power line right of way and the construction of Anthem's Phase II project, which has not started. Watson said he still is waiting for a ruling from the Interior Department's Board of Land Appeals. Nevada Power will have to remove the road and restore the area as closely to its original condition as possible, BLM spokesman Phil Guerrero said.

"It's always been our knowledge that (Nevada Power) is a very environmentally sensitive company. They're going to fix this violation of trespass," Guerrero said.

Watson said he'll be watching. He fears any development in the public lands surrounding the wilderness study area can threaten it gaining permanent wilderness status.

"This is one of the major crown jewels," Watson said. "No other city in the West has these kinds of treasures surrounding the city that still are pristine wilderness."

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