Sandoval rebuffs efforts to name Nevada mine a Superfund site
By Sandra Cherub | January 29, 2016 CARSON CITY — Gov. Brian Sandoval told federal environmental regulators Friday there are no imminent health concerns at an abandoned copper mine near Yerington to demand immediate listing as a national priority for Superfund cleanup. In a letter to Jared Blumenfeld, regional administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency in […]
Refuge standoff: Our federal public servants deserve better
By Rocky Barker | January 28, 2016 BURNS, ORE. – When a longtime U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employee returned here from his Christmas holiday, he immediately was ordered to take his family and leave. “We had heard there was going to be a Fish and Wildlife Service person taken hostage,” explained Jason Holm, assistant regional director […]
Did solar lobbying tactics sow the seeds of the Nevada net metering controversy?
By Herman K. Trabish | January 28, 2016 Only a nascent solar market less than two years ago, debates in Nevada over net metering policies have captured the attention of utilities and renewable energy advocates nationwide at the beginning of 2016. At the end of December, utility regulators issued a decision calling for reforms to […]
Who Owns the Sun?
By Noah Buhayar | January 28, 2016 Outside the Public Utilities Commission office, which is on the second floor of a modern, three-story building about 7 miles from the Strip in Las Vegas, a chorus of women are shouting to the tune of a Beastie Boys classic: “We’re gonna fight … for our right … to go soooolar!” It’s […]
What can Southern Nevada do about its water problem?
By Sun Staff | January 25, 2016 The water level in Lake Mead has dropped to historic lows, forcing the construction of a third straw at the bottom of Las Vegas’ reservoir. Gov. Brian Sandoval’s panel of experts issued a report that recommended more aggressive water-saving plans. If you follow the headlines, it looks as if […]
2015 Was Hottest Year in Historical Record, Scientists Say
By Justin Gillis | January 20, 2016 Scientists reported Wednesday that 2015 was the hottest year in the historical record by far, breaking a mark set only the year before — a burst of heat that has continued into the new year and is roiling weather patterns all over the world. In the contiguous United States, […]
Nevada ranching family loses federal lands court case
By Sean Whaley | January 18, 2016 CARSON CITY — The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of the federal government in a long-running dispute with the late Nevada rancher Wayne Hage, remanding the case to a new federal judge because of apparent bias on the part of U.S. District Judge […]
Tension between ranchers and federal officials is dangerously high in Nevada
By Molly Hennessy-Fiske | January 14, 2016 Gerald “Jerry” Smith grew up in Nevada and went to work for the Bureau of Land Management right after college. As a local, he figured he was uniquely suited to work with the ranchers who have long resented the federal government’s role in land management here. It didn’t quite […]
Nevada’s New Solar Fees Have People Furious
By Katie Fehrenbacher |January 14, 2016 “Don’t tax the sun!” chants a crowd of hundreds of people gathered outside of a non-descript office building in Las Vegas on Wednesday. One person holds up a neon yellow sign that reads: “Sandoval stole my sunshine,” a reference to the state’s Governor. Another reads: “Solar lives matter.” The […]
Solar Customers Anxiously Await PUC Review Of New Rates
By Julia Ritchey |January 13, 2016 Last month the PUC gave NV Energy the OK to raise rates for existing solar customers. That includes Reno City Councilwoman Naomi Duerr, who invested $50,000 to install 36 solar panels on her home five years ago. “So you have $50,000 and you’re saying, ‘What can I do to […]