May 24, 2021

Commissioner Strickland

extended an invitation to the Water District Governing Board to participate on a tour of Desert Utilities, which will be conducted by Darrin Tuck, today (5/24/21) at 1:30pm. Helene Williams shared the Water Conservation Brochure she designed which was distributed at the 2021 Earth Day event.

Commissioner Strickland

disclosed in addition to this Board’s liaison and a County Commissioner, she is also the owner of Strickland Construction, T&M Group Realty and Lakeside Storage. She has been a licensed well drilling, pump setting, septic contractor as well as a broker who brokers water rights for 26 years. She will not be voting on items during this meeting. Although she will be able to influence this Board, she does not find this to be a conflict of interest. It is her hope that her knowledge base is of value. TIMED ITEM 9:00 AM

Commissioner Strickland

mentioned the upcoming NDWR workshop scheduled 6/16 at 9:30 am. Focus of workshop will be on NDWR’s public hearing process. Commissioner Strickland made a request that Oz follow-up on County timelines regarding NDWR hearings, stating that Counties should be given preferential treatment especially when dealing with County / State needs. The time it takes to get change applications, protests, etc. needs to be expedited. Oz stated he will make every attempt to follow-up. c. Staff Reports I. Oz Wichman Oz discussed AB 6 and AB 356, the only two water bills that have made it through the legislative process thus far. AB 6 deals with protest hearings on temporary change applications. AB 356 was a completely re-written conservation bill that now focuses on the removal of non-functional turf in Las Vegas. Oz has been appointed to serve on the Nevada Supreme Court Water Commission. The Commission will meet approximately every 3 months and will meet for about a year. For the first meeting, Oz mentioned that rural cases should have a geographic connection with judges who understand the specific issues. He suggested that districts be formed. As the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Order 1293A, the Groundwater Management Plan stays intact. In the next few years, we’ll have enough data to assess our projections. Right now the domestic well drilling rate is running about half of what was projected (approximately 5 per month). Lastly, Oz is working with the town of Beatty on some water planning issues as there is some foreseen mining interest in that area. He will be traveling to Beatty in the next week, meeting with their engineer, to discuss how to format the engagement with the mining companies. II. John Klenke John is working on a letter of opposition regarding the proposed USGS Pump Test which would require them to reopen a large well that was used in the 1970’s for petroleum exploration in Amargosa Valley (west side of the gravity fault). The Water District does support protection of the Devil’s Hole Pup Fish, and proposes an enhanced monitoring system along the pathway of the water model. We also support the drilling of a shallow carbonate well on the eastside of the gravity fault. III. Christal Behrends The Property Water Information Sheet is now on-line with all usable links. As spoken about before, it will assist those who buy land (usually through the tax auctions) and want to know how to get water service. This sheet is available under Frequently Asked Questions. Christal attends a bi-monthly CA / NV Drought Climate Conditions meeting. No surprise, drought conditions have intensified. Nevada is now in a “multi- year” drought. According to the US Drought Monitor, 98% of Nye County is in extreme drought (the worst). The website livingwithdrought.com provides Nevada specific agriculture and livestock drought recovery programs, including links to financial assistance. Additionally, Christal spoke about a 4-part WaterSmart Innovations workshop series she engaged in. Leak detection is the new turf removal. WaterSense is now doing certifications with builders. During COVID, there was an increased interest in landscaping. SNWA is providing computer aided landscape modeling using drought resistant landscape plans. d. Projects Status Report I. Staff e. Board Liaison Reports I. Commissioner Debra Strickland The County is looking at possibly using astro-turf for the park ball fields. Additional research is being conducted. Board member Bill Knecht suggested that they look at the turf that has thatch built in as its 10-15 degrees cooler. f. Report from other individuals, groups and or agencies regarding water- related issues; for informational purposes only.