America’s Wilderness Act turns 60!
September 2, 2023 – Friends of Nevada Wilderness will observe the 60th anniversary of the 1964 Wilderness Act on Tuesday by buckling down after the Labor Day weekend to focus on saving even more wilderness-quality public land that is under immediate threat.
Clock ticking on Pershing County Lands bill
August 23, 2024 - Friends continues to closely monitor progress of an important piece of legislation, the Pershing County public lands bill, now on a bi-partisan track through Congress.
A priority for both Congressman Mark Amodei and Senator Jacky Rosen, the bill would create seven new Wilderness Areas in Pershing County and help resolve the more than century-old checkerboard pattern of land ownership that inhibits use of the land for both conservation and economic development purposes.
New Save Starry Skies license plate now available!
May 30, 2024 – What is believed to be the only specialty license plate in the country dedicated to preserving dark skies is now available at all Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles offices.
The license plate features an outline of a young family gazing at the stars away from city lights. The tag line, “Save Starry Skies,” is intended to raise public awareness of how the proliferation of artificial lights in our cities, towns, and even rural areas threatens our ability to see a brilliantly star-studded sky at night.
Action Needed! The BLM Public Lands Rule is Already Under Attack
April 26 2024 – The Bureau of Land Management recently released the final version of a new rule elevating conservation as a valid "use" of public lands on par with others uses, such as grazing and energy development. And while we are thrilled that this long-overdue rule has now been issued, we're not yet in full celebration mode. Some members of Congress are fast-tracking legislation to overturn the rule, believing that conservation threatens certain industries. In fact, all the rule does is to help protect lands with the highest conservation values while still allowing for uses on other public lands, such as mining, drilling, road building and energy development. This is urgent, which is why we're asking for your help.
Friends applauds critical new BLM conservation rule
April 18, 2024 – Friends of Nevada Wilderness, celebrating its 40th anniversary as a statewide non-profit organization dedicated to protecting Nevada’s public lands, is applauding the Biden Administration’s final version of a new rule elevating conservation as a valid “use” of public lands on par with others uses, such as grazing and energy development.
Friends Announces Nevada’s New Save Starry Skies License Plate
April 2, 2024 – To launch International Dark Sky Week, April 2 – 8, Friends of Nevada Wilderness today revealed Nevada’s newest specialty license plate that celebrates the state’s uniquely dark skies. Believed to be the first license plate in the country that features dark sky conservation, the Save Starry Skies plate is expected to be available to the public in May.
Friends of Nevada Wilderness celebrates 40 years as statewide non-profit organization
March 21, 2024 – While some folks who shared a passion for conserving public lands as Wilderness Areas had already been volunteering their time and energy for many years, a fledgling young group called Friends of Nevada Wilderness made it official in 1984 when it filed incorporation papers as a statewide non-profit organization. The purpose, the founders agreed, was to give Nevadans a strong voice in how their wild public lands would be managed for them and for generations to come.
Senators Rosen, Cortez Masto call for hearing to advance Washoe County lands bill
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) recently called on the leadership of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee to hold a legislative hearing for the Truckee Meadows Public Lands Management Act as part of a push to bring the bill to the Senate floor for a vote. The legislation, introduced by Senator Rosen and co-sponsored by Senator Cortez Masto, would expand economic development and affordable housing opportunities in Washoe County, support local Tribal communities, increase conservation, protect public lands and outdoor recreation, and keep proceeds from land sales in Nevada for priorities like education and restoration around the Truckee River.
Need Free Spring Break Plans?
From the Las Vegas Review Journal, February 9, 2024 - Every year, spring break offers Southern Nevada college students a brief respite from the strict routine of school.
Some opt to spend it on vacation somewhere else or relaxing at home. That won’t be the case for a set of students and young adults who will camp in the Desert National Wildlife Refuge and restore trails, clean up trash and learn about the diverse and delicate desert ecosystems that make up the Silver State.
Wild Washoe public lands bill introduced in Congress!
January 16, 2024 - The years of time and effort invested by Friends, other conservation groups, tribal leaders and others paid off today when Senator Jacky Rosen introduced the Truckee Meadows Public Lands Management Act in the United States Senate. The Act would protect nearly a million acres of public lands in northern Washoe County; lands valued for their dispersed recreation, wildlife habitat, dark sky and cultural values.
