Sunday, Dec. 20, 2020 | 2 a.m.
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I moved to Nevada in 1976 and can still remember the first time I visited the Desert National Wildlife Refuge — I saw a great horned owl and a bobcat. I thought to myself, “I just moved to a really amazing place.” But in recent months, we almost lost this special place.
The wildlife refuge on the northern boundary of Las Vegas is one of the most pristine landscapes in the contiguous United States and the largest unit in the National Wildlife Refuge System in the lower 48. Despite the beauty of this land, the home it provides to wildlife and its importance to Nevadans, the refuge is at risk.
The United States Air Force has proposed taking over more than a million acres of valuable refuge habitat for military training. I recognize that the military plays an important role in defending Americans from foreign enemies. However, that does not mean we need to sacrifice important pieces of our national history and resources.
Nevada has done its fair share of turning over public lands to the military. The Air Force already controls 2.9 million acres for the Nevada Test and Training Range, a sprawling expanse of public land that has been set aside for military use. These sites will never again be available to the public.
Giving over to the military an ever-increasing portion of the Desert National Wildlife Refuge just doesn’t make sense. The proposed expansion includes building new roads and fences that would permanently displace many bighorn sheep from crucial habitat. This would dramatically affect the survival rate of Nevada’s state animal. And it would close off more than a quarter-million additional acres to public access.
I’m grateful that Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, Rep. Steven Horsford and the entire Nevada congressional delegation have stood up against the military expansion. They have introduced legislation that would largely reject it, maintain existing public access and permanently protect the refuge. I encourage these members of Congress to keep fighting for Nevadans like me who want to protect our public lands.
We are greatly relieved that Congress has passed the National Defense Authorization Act without inclusion of the military expansion language, thus maintaining the status quo. But this fight is not over, and we expect the Air Force will come back next year and ask again for refuge lands for military training. How long can we hold off the Department of Defense?
There is only one solution that will ensure that Desert National Wildlife Refuge lands are permanently protected for the benefit and enjoyment of the American people and are off-limits to military takeover. That is for Congress to designate as fully protected Wilderness all refuge lands proposed for such designation by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1971.
Implementing this recommendation would ensure that refuge lands remain as they are today: a critical refuge for wildlife and people alike. It’s time for Congress to finally permanently protect the refuge. For the benefit of all Nevadans, I hope our delegation will lead the charge.
John Hiatt is conservation chair of Red Rock Audubon.
