News Release Archive

Reclamation Awards Contract for Nevada Conservation Corps Construction and Restoration Work

Media Contact: Rose Davis, 702-293-8421, jdavis@usbr.gov

For Release: October 12, 2011

Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Michael L. Connor has announced that nearly $54,000 in funding was awarded to the Great Basin Institute in Reno, Nev., for construction and restoration work by youth crews from the Nevada Conservation Corps beginning in 2012.

“The Nevada Conservation Corps crews will help us improve local recreation opportunities on Reclamation and adjacent lands near the Colorado River,” said Commissioner Connor. “Through these projects and because of Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar’s focus on youth employment, these young people will have an excellent opportunity to work outdoors in the coming year and perhaps choose careers with Reclamation.” The Colorado Regional Heritage Greenway Trail Project is a collaborative partnership whose partners include the National Park Service, Nevada’s Clark County, the Laughlin Chamber of Commerce and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. The crews will work on the greenway trail system and picnic areas, improve fishing and river access, improve hiking and equestrian trails and develop a ½-mile-long interpretative walk highlighting Reclamation’s heritage in the 1940’s Davis Dam Contractors Camp.

“This Greenway project is part of Reclamation’s ongoing collaboration to enhance recreation areas along the lower Colorado River and offer more opportunities for families to get outside,” said Lower Colorado Regional Director Lorri Gray-Lee. “We are also glad we can offer employment experience and resource education for these crews of five to ten young folks out of the Las Vegas area,” added Gray-Lee.

The NCC crews will also work on the River Mountains Loop Trail and in the adjacent River Mountains area in Henderson, Nev. They will perform trail maintenance and construction as well as work on restoration projects and desert clean-up initiatives, including installing signs and safety devices on the trail and on Reclamation lands adjacent to the 11.5-mile trail segment. The city of Henderson manages the trail, and partners include the River Mountains Loop Trail Partnership, the Railroad Pass Casino, Boulder City and the NPS.

The popular Historic Railroad Trail begins in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, meanders onto Reclamation-managed land and ends at the top of the Hoover Dam Parking Garage. With its great views of Lake Mead and pathways through tunnels, the trail follows the old railroad bed that was used for delivering materials and supplies that could not be transported by conventional roadway means for the construction of Hoover Dam. The NCC crews will perform fencing and basic construction activities on the Historic Railroad Trail.

The contract includes NCC work on ongoing resource management efforts through large-scale clean-up efforts and the restoration of heavily impacted areas on other lands managed by Reclamation that need attention due to desert trash dumping and increased usage.

The NCC is an AmeriCorps affiliated program founded on the original Civilian Conservation Corps model with participants ranging in age from 18 to 25.

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