LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — A bill authorizing a $2 billion pipeline to deliver Colorado River water to the south Las Vegas valley has passed both chambers of Congress and is headed to the president’s desk.
The Sloan Canyon Conservation and Lateral Pipeline Project would install a second pipeline running approximately 40 miles from the east valley to the south valley, tunneling underground beneath the Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area. The Southern Nevada Water Authority determined the underground route beneath Sloan Canyon to be the safest and least disruptive option compared to routing the pipeline through the city of Henderson.
Existing pipeline nearing capacity
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) testified in a Senate hearing that the project would serve more than a million Nevadans.
“Right now, almost 40 percent of Las Vegas residents and businesses depend on the south valley lateral pipeline — that is one single pipeline for nearly 3 million people — and that pipeline is 25 years old,” Masto said. “Ten years from now it will reach 95 percent capacity.”
Masto said the second pipeline would secure water delivery to the southern portion of the valley for decades.
“This bill that we are hopefully passing today will allow the Southern Nevada Water Authority to build a new pipeline,” she said.
Congressional approval required for protected land access
As Sloan Canyon is a permanently protected area, congressional authorization is required to grant access for construction. HR 972 passed the Senate unanimously this week. A companion bill in the House, led by Rep. Dina Titus, passed last year. Gov. Joe Lombardo also expressed support for the legislation.
The bill also expands the Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area by nearly 9,300 acres — an increase of approximately 20 percent.
Funding and environmental considerations
Southern Nevada water users will fund the pipeline. The SNWA said the project will not increase the region’s total water usage.
The Conservation Lands Foundation, a nonprofit focused on protecting and expanding national conservation lands, said the legislation strikes a balance between conservation and development, with input from local advocates.
The bill comes after years of study by the SNWA.
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