Rural counties fear speculation as company files to control as much water as Nevada gets from the Colorado River every year

U.S. Water and Land, LLC is in the opportunity business. It knows that where there is scarcity and volatility, there is opportunity. And it knows that where there is water, there is often both. It also knows that few places deal with scarcity and volatility as directly as the Humboldt River, a small river that Mark Twain once described as a “sickly rivulet” but the economic lifeblood for several Northern Nevada communities. Knowing this, the entity — an investment vehicle for a New York hedge fund — filed an application late last year with Nevada’s top water official to stake a large claim for the last available rights to one of the state’s most contested waterways. In the months since its application, Nevada’s wildlife department and four rural counties — Elko, Lander, Humboldt and Pershing — have filed protests. If the rights are granted to the company, they argue, it could fuel speculation, harm existing water rights and damage the environment. All parties will present their cases in a public hearing, according to the state engineer, Nevada’s top water official who is charged with approving or denying applications for new water rights...MORE