Legislating Green

A guide to the environmental bills introduced in this year’s legislative session

BY Paul Boger

Nevada lawmakers have shown a growing interest in addressing the state’s environmental needs. In 2019, they revamped renewable energy standards. During the 2021 session, they took steps toward electrifying the state’s transportation system. So far, in 2023, they’ve drafted 16 pieces of legislation dealing with water. Others look to increase wildlife and habitat protection, and mitigate the impacts of climate change. Examples follow.

Accessing Nature

Outdoor recreation is big business in Nevada, bringing almost $5 billion into the state’s economy annually, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Between Lake Tahoe and the Ruby Mountains, from the Jarbidge Wilderness to Lake Mead, the state’s natural areas are under threat from climate change and overuse by people.

AJR3 — Proposed by Assemblywoman Sarah Peters (D-Reno) and Howard Watts (D-Las Vegas), this resolution would kick off the process of amending the Nevada Constitution to include language guaranteeing every resident the right to a clean and healthy environment and that the state must protect its natural resources. A change to the constitution, it would have to be approved twice, once this session and again in 2025, and then go before voters in 2026.

AB164 — Call it the anti-screen time bill. To get more kids outside more often, this legisla- tion from Speaker of the Assembly Steve Yeager. (D-Las Vegas) would create a study to find ways to incorporate more outdoor recreational opportunities in public school curricula. It also looks to teach kids to be better stewards of the environment.

Water Conservation

One good precipitation year won’t fix the American West’s water woes, and despite above-average snowpack in the Sierra Nevada and Rockies, water levels at Lake Mead continue to shrink. That’s why lawmakers are considering a handful of measures to recover every last drop of reusable water.

SB176 — Amid the patchwork of complicated, contentious water laws, one rule has remained relatively constant: Those with the oldest rights get to take their share first. But there’s not enough to go around in some basins. Sen. Pete Goicoechea’s (R-Eureka) has proposed creating a state program allowing the engineer’s office to buy water claims in areas where groundwater is overallocated and retire them — forever taking them off the market.

AB220 — The Southern Nevada Water Authority estimates there are as many as 15,000 private septic systems in the Las Vegas Valley. To regain some of the water trapped in those tanks, AB220 would require all privately owned septic tanks within 400 feet of a community sewer in Clark County to connect to that system by 2054. It would also create a program to help pay at least half the cost for property owners to make the switch. SNWA estimates each septic system could generate as many as 315,000 gallons of water annually.

Protecting Animals And Wildlife

At almost 110,000 square miles, home means Nevada to 309 endemic species, making it the country’s 11th most species-diverse state. Yet many of those animals are at risk, including 94 plants, 26 invertebrates, seven fishes, two amphibians, 16 reptiles, 26 birds, and 27 mammals.

AB112 — Vehicles kill more than 5,000 wild animals in Nevada every year, creating both ecological and financial problems. According to the Nevada Department of Transportation, vehicle crashes caused by animal collisions cost the state roughly $20 million annually. This bill would allow the state to use federal dollars to build and maintain animal crossings over state highways.

AB102 — This bill would ban killing contests, which ranchers and hunters have used to control animal populations they’ve considered pests for generations. The measure protects beavers, bobcats, coyotes,. mink, muskrats, ot- ters, rabbits, skunks, and weasels. Anyone caught organizing a competition could face fines of up to $30,000. Those caught participating could face a $1,000 fine.

Addressing Climate Change

If you think it’s hot in Las Vegas now, then buckle up, buttercup! Temperatures have already risen by two degrees over the last century, and that growth rate will likely worsen. Clark County’s Climate Vulnerability Assessment projections show temperatures climbing by more than seven degrees by 2050 and eight to almost 13 degrees by the end of this century. For some lawmakers, it’s become imperative to take steps now to prepare for life in a changing climate.

AB131 — The Las Vegas Valley becomes a heat sink by summer’s end, and nowhere is it felt more than greenspace-starved east Las Vegas. Assemblywoman Lesley Cohen’s (D-Las Vegas) bill would create an Urban and Community Forestry Program under the state’s Division of Forestry. It would promote, develop, and maintain tree canopies in communities across the state, with particular attention on traditionally underserved neighborhoods.

AB71 — Advocacy groups such as the Nevada Environmental Justice Coalition want lawmakers to create rules requiring employers to ensure workers have access to shade and water, and train them in spotting signs of heat stroke and what to do about it. Lawmakers want to study the issue for a few years to determine which communities are most burned by the changing climate. ✦