Working to Save Groundwater Dependent Organisms in the Face of the Resource Extraction Boom in the Amargosa River Basin

Authors: Patrick Donnelly

Year: 2024

Abstract

The wildlands of the Great Basin and northern Mojave Deserts are experiencing a resource extraction boom unparalleled in the human history of these lands. The energy transition is a chief driver of this, with hundreds of proposed lithium mines, solar projects, wind farms, and geothermal projects proposed. However conventional extraction such as gold and materials mining continues unabated. The combined effects of these large-scale disturbances threatens to destabilize what is currently one of the most intact assemblages of biodiversity in North America. The Amargosa River Basin is a region on the California/Nevada border centered around a number of spring-fed oases where water comes to the surface, sustaining dozens of endemic plants and animals along the River’s 180 mile course. Protected areas of note in the Basin include Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, Death Valley National Park - including the famous Devils Hole, and the Amargosa Wild and Scenic River. The Basin has 13 federally listed endemic groundwater-dependent taxa including 7 plants, 4 fishes, 1 small mammal, and 1 insect. The Amargosa River Basin is the site of great contestation right now over the future of these groundwater-dependent ecosystems. 25 utility-scale solar projects, 7 gold mines, 5 lithium mines, 3 clay mines, 3 transmission lines, a hydrogen plant and a wind farm are all proposed for parts of the Amargosa River Basin in Nevada. The cumulative effects of this development threatens to completely industrialize the landscape, dramatically affecting upland and groundwater-dependent ecosystems alike. Cumulative water withdrawals for these uses would far exceed available water resources, potentially drying up the oases that form the Amargosa River. Using the Endangered Species Act, NEPA, litigation, community organizing, media outreach, on-the-ground monitoring and lobbying, a diverse coalition of environmentalists, Tribes, community members, and local governments are trying to stop these existential threats to the Amargosa River. This talk will describe the threats present and the actions being taken to save the biodiversity and communities of the Amargosa River Basin.