Sloan Canyon Conservation and Lateral Pipeline Act
Sponsored By: Senator Cortez Masto, Catherine [D-NV]
Introduced
Summary
Expands the Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area. The bill also authorizes a Horizon Lateral water pipeline right-of-way for the Southern Nevada Water Authority outside the conservation area.
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- Public lands and conservation: Updates the map defining Sloan Canyon and increases the area from 48,438 acres to 57,728 acres.
- Water infrastructure: Requires the Secretary of the Interior to grant, within 1 year, rent-free rights-of-way to the Southern Nevada Water Authority for temporary and permanent pipeline infrastructure and related facilities. It allows excavation and disposal of tunneling materials without payment and calls for a memorandum of understanding to identify disposal sites.
- Protections and existing rights: Grants are subject to reasonable terms to protect conservation resources and cannot be located through designated wilderness. The expansion respects valid existing utility corridors and rights and allows new corridor authorizations under the National Environmental Policy Act when appropriate.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
2 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.
Water pipeline rights for Southern Nevada
If enacted, this bill would require the Interior Department to grant the Southern Nevada Water Authority temporary and permanent rights-of-way outside the Sloan Canyon Conservation Area. The rights must be granted not later than 1 year after enactment and would not be subject to rents or other charges. SNWA could perform geotechnical investigations, build and operate a water transmission pipeline, and excavate tunnel materials when the grant starts. The Secretary and SNWA would need to sign an MOU within 30 days after the grant to identify federal land for disposal of excavated materials. Rights could include reasonable terms to protect conservation resources and could not go through designated wilderness or permanently harm surface resources.
Sloan Canyon boundary and map change
If enacted, the bill would expand the Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area from 48,438 acres to 57,728 acres and replace the official boundary map with the May 20, 2024 "Proposed Sloan Canyon Expansion" map. The expansion would be subject to valid existing rights, including lands inside designated utility transmission corridors and prior transmission right-of-way grants. The change would not stop authorized activities in those corridors and would let the Secretary approve new utility rights-of-way inside existing corridors after NEPA review and other laws.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Cortez Masto, Catherine [D-NV]
NV • D
Cosponsors
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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