FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    February 4, 2002

 

NEWS RELEASE

 

Date: Time: Place:

February 15, 2002 8:30 a.m. Nye County Board of Commissioners     Chambers 101 Radar Road Tonopah, Nevada

Contact:

Scott Young, Committee Policy Analyst Legislative Committee on Public Lands’ Wilderness and Wilderness Study Areas Subcommittee 401 South Carson Street Carson City, Nevada  89701-4747 (775) 684-6825

LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC LANDS’ WILDERNESS AND WILDERNESS STUDY AREAS SUBCOMMITTEE TO MEET IN TONOPAH

 

More than two decades ago, approximately 5.1 million acres of Nevada land were designated as Wilderness Study Areas pursuant to federal law.  As such, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) administers these tracts as though they are wilderness.  The original intent of the United States Congress was to have these lands evaluated for permanent status as Wilderness Areas or returned to more general use.  However, in the ensuing years, the various groups interested in using these lands have been unable to reach a consensus regarding the final disposition of the Wilderness Study Areas.

 

Nevada State Senator Dean A. Rhoads (R-Tuscarora) now chairs a legislative subcommittee established to review the status of those areas.  “These are public lands and the public has a right to know how they will be used.  They should not remain in limbo indefinitely,” Chairman Rhoads stated.  “A great deal of study and thought has already gone into the issue of Wilderness Areas.  We want to determine if there is enough common ground to move the process to a more productive stage,” Rhoads said.

 

The second meeting of the subcommittee will be held February 15, 2002, in the Nye County Board of Commissioners Chambers, 101 Radar Road, Tonopah, Nevada, beginning at 8:30 a.m.  Members of the public are invited to attend and address the subcommittee.  Four additional meetings will be held around the state during the winter and spring to solicit input from interested parties.  Other members of the subcommittee include Assemblyman P.M. “Roy” Neighbors, Vice Chairman (D‑Tonopah); Senator Mark E. Amodei (R‑Carson City); Senator Dina Titus (D-Las Vegas); Assemblyman David F. Brown (R‑Henderson); and Assemblyman Jerry D. Claborn (D-Las Vegas).