Editorial

London Bridge Resort
A Lake of Contrasts

A Lake of Contrasts

 Lake Mojave is an incongruity – blue, sparkling water in one of the driest regions of the continent. The waters of the Colorado derive from rain and snow melt in the high mountains of Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado. The river works its way through the canyon lands and finally reaches the sere, brown treeless landscape of Arizona and Nevada. The drought lands of these two states, even before human water withdrawals, demand more water from the river than they give – the evaporation off Lake Mead is greater than Nevada’s total legal water allotment. And yet we go boating on clear, blue shimmering water in the middle of the Great American Desert.

Lake Mohave History

Lake Mohave was created in 1951 following the construction of Davis Dam on the Colorado River southeast of Las Vegas.  The 64 mile long reservoir is subject to fluctuating water levels and exchange flows.  The upper 20 miles of the reservoir is cold year round due to deep-water releases from Hoover Dam. This section lies within the narrow walls of Black Canyon. The remainder of the reservoir is seasonally warm and more open with the widest section being Cottonwood Basin (4 miles). Lake Mohave is located within the Lake Mead Recreational Area and is administered by the National Park Service located in Boulder City. A detailed description of the Lake Mead Recreation Area can be found on the National Park Service web page at nps.gov/lame.

BLM seeks public comment on Draft Resource Management Plan

BLM seeks public comment on Draft Resource Management Plan

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is seeking public comment on a Draft Resource Management Plan (RMP) and Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for nearly 1.4 million acres of public lands located southwest of Phoenix in parts of Maricopa, Pinal, Pima, Gila and Yuma Counties, Arizona. The BLM Lower Sonoran Field Office (LSFO) manages these lands, including the Sonoran Desert National Monument. Comments must be submitted by Nov. 25, 2011.