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Nevada State Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Director Allen Biaggi, right, State Forester Firewarden, Division of Forestry Pete Anderson, center, and Nevada State Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Deputy Director Kay Scherer, listen Monday after testifying in front of the Committee on Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Mining at the Nevada Legislature.
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Lawmakers were told Monday that Gov. Jim Gibbons’ proposed budget cuts would result in limited state park operations, closure of a camp for prison inmate firefighters and an end to a commission that protects Nevada’s wild horse herds.
State Forester Pete Anderson said the budget cuts will require closure of the Tonopah Conservation Camp, which houses state prison inmates who help fight forest fires and work on various conservation projects. That would leave eight conservation camps around the state.
“The closure of Tonopah does have impacts on our state in terms of wildfire suppression,” Anderson told the Assembly Natural Resources, Agriculture and Mining Committee.
After the closure, “what kind of gap is that going to give you on fire suppression across the middle of our state?” asked Assemblyman Tom Grady, R-Yerington.
“The Tonopah camp plays a key role in central Nevada,” Anderson said. “So there’s a slower response time to get resources to Las Vegas, Pioche, or the north counties. ... That’s probably the most significant component of it.”
Allen Biaggi, director of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, agreed with Anderson but reassured the committee that he believed the department still would function.
“Despite the fact that we have substantial budget reductions because of these very difficult times, we believe that we are going to continue to meet our mission and our goals and objectives of these programs, not only in forestry but throughout all of our programs,” Biaggi said.
State Parks Administrator David Morrow characterized the cuts for his agency as “closure light.” Of the 25 state parks, 10 would be operated on a seasonal basis, and would close during the least-visited times of the year. The state’s Elgin Schoolhouse and Walker Lake sites would be temporarily closed, but Morrow said both had access problems anyway.
Cathy Barcomb, longtime Administrator for the state’s Wild Horse Program, said that her office would close in 2011 when money from a trust that funds the office is depleted. Barcomb said she has applied widely for new funding, but has had no luck.
“People will fund something such as our prison programs, our rescue efforts, feeding,” Barcomb said. “But people don’t want to fund government.”
Efforts to care for wild horses will continue through a nonprofit foundation, called the Mustang Heritage Foundation.
State Forester Pete Anderson said the budget cuts will require closure of the Tonopah Conservation Camp, which houses state prison inmates who help fight forest fires and work on various conservation projects. That would leave eight conservation camps around the state.
“The closure of Tonopah does have impacts on our state in terms of wildfire suppression,” Anderson told the Assembly Natural Resources, Agriculture and Mining Committee.
After the closure, “what kind of gap is that going to give you on fire suppression across the middle of our state?” asked Assemblyman Tom Grady, R-Yerington.
“The Tonopah camp plays a key role in central Nevada,” Anderson said. “So there’s a slower response time to get resources to Las Vegas, Pioche, or the north counties. ... That’s probably the most significant component of it.”
Allen Biaggi, director of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, agreed with Anderson but reassured the committee that he believed the department still would function.
“Despite the fact that we have substantial budget reductions because of these very difficult times, we believe that we are going to continue to meet our mission and our goals and objectives of these programs, not only in forestry but throughout all of our programs,” Biaggi said.
State Parks Administrator David Morrow characterized the cuts for his agency as “closure light.” Of the 25 state parks, 10 would be operated on a seasonal basis, and would close during the least-visited times of the year. The state’s Elgin Schoolhouse and Walker Lake sites would be temporarily closed, but Morrow said both had access problems anyway.
Cathy Barcomb, longtime Administrator for the state’s Wild Horse Program, said that her office would close in 2011 when money from a trust that funds the office is depleted. Barcomb said she has applied widely for new funding, but has had no luck.
“People will fund something such as our prison programs, our rescue efforts, feeding,” Barcomb said. “But people don’t want to fund government.”
Efforts to care for wild horses will continue through a nonprofit foundation, called the Mustang Heritage Foundation.
