Stop me if you’ve heard this one before.

Conservationists move to protect a plant or animal by adding it to the federal endangered species list, prompting public outcry from opponents concerned they will be harmed.

If it sounds familiar, it’s because it’s been going on since Congress enacted the Endangered Species Act (ESA) more than 50 years ago.

Then, it was the fight over a tiny fish known as the snail darter, the first fish to be listed under the ESA. Depending which side you were on, the 3-inch-long fish was the link to the preservation of a portion of the Tennessee River or a hindrance to the construction of the Tellico Dam for flood control.

This time around it’s a Nevada fish causing a hubbub — the Fish Lake Valley tui chub.

Read more: Central Nevada farmers, conservationist square off in battle between water and a rare fish

On the surface, the story seems simple — conservationists have suggested central Nevada farmers should cut back on groundwater pumping to protect a rare fish they are seeking to gain federal protections for. The farmers are pushing back, saying a change in pumping would ruin their livelihoods and destroy the valley they call home.

And while there are differences between the case of the snail darter and tui chub, both instances raise a similar question — how does an ESA listing affect development? 

In the mid-1970s, a lawsuit seeking to halt construction of the Tellico Dam to protect the snail darter made its way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, which issued a 6-3 decision in favor of the diminutive fish, finding that the ESA prohibited projects — even those as large as the nearly finished Tellico Dam — if they jeopardized an endangered species.

The act demonstrated “beyond doubt that Congress intended endangered species to be afforded the highest of priorities,” then-Justice Warren Burger wrote. 

Then-Justice Lewis Powell issued a dissenting opinion that the court’s decision “casts a long shadow over the continued operation of even the most important projects.” 

It was the first of what would be a long line of lawsuits and public outcries over the ESA. 

In the case of the snail darter, it’s a toss up on who won — after costly delays, development was allowed to go forward; meanwhile, successful conservation efforts ultimately led to the snail darter being removed from the endangered species list several years ago. (Ironically, it was found earlier this year to not be a unique species.)

Let’s hope that some sort of middle ground can also be reached for the tui chub and the farmers who call the valley home. 

More water woes

The Fish Lake Valley tui chub aren’t the only Nevada species facing water woes. Nevada’s desert-adapted wildlife have long depended on relief from summer monsoons to get them through the state’s hottest periods, but those monsoons are becoming more erratic, experts say. Now, even animals as expertly adapted to the state’s harsh living conditions as bighorn sheep can’t keep up with the hotter, drier weather.   

Read more: ‘When the water goes away, it goes away’ — NV’s desert wildlife can’t keep up with drought

Earlier this summer, state wildlife officials relocated roughly 140 bighorn sheep from Southern Nevada to other portions of the state and Utah to give the remaining Southern Nevada sheep a better chance of survival in the drying region. 

“We live in a world where we walk into the other room and flip a tap and water comes out,” one state wildlife expert told me. “But the wildlife out on the wildlands, they don’t have that luxury. With wildlife, when the water goes away, it goes away.”

Fireworks sink lake study

Lake Tahoe took a hit in July when a barge full of commercial-grade fireworks sank in the lake. Some of the fireworks were pulled from the barge before it collapsed in a brief storm, but others made their way to the bottom of the lake. The sinking derailed what was to be the first comprehensive modern study examining the effects of fireworks shows on the lake.

Read more: Study to monitor fireworks’ effect on Tahoe upended when fireworks-laden barge sinks

Scientists have monitored the lake’s clarity for decades; the study could have contributed to better understanding what has caused it to decline over the decades. 

For a look at more of my stories from the past month, visit thenevadaindependent.com.

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In the weeds:

Early birds get the parking — Visitors looking to travel to Lake Tahoe’s Emerald Bay area will need to arrive early to grab one of the area’s few parking spaces or book a seat on a new shuttle service through Keep Tahoe Blue and the Tahoe Fund.  

The popular tourist attraction and adjacent trailheads draw thousands of visitors annually, but limited parking often forces people to park along the sides of the highway. To eliminate that, the Tahoe Transportation District has installed barriers to eliminate roadside parking and California Highway Patrol is enforcing those restrictions along the Emerald Bay Corridor. 

Off the beaten path— A new caving tour at Great Basin National Park lets visitors explore portions of the park’s famed Lehman Caves that have been closed for more than four decades, as well as explore an area that has never before been open to the public. 

The three-hour-long Introduction to Wild Caving Tours are being offered on weekends through Labor Day and take participants past the caves’ paved trail and lighted rooms into football-field sized rooms and annexes filled with delicate cave formations that require scrambling and off-trail hiking to reach. 

Your Google search requires water — A new report from Western Resource Advocates shows that buildout of proposed data centers in five Western states, including Nevada, would require anywhere from 21,600 acre-feet of water to 89,700 acre-feet of water by 2035. For reference, Nevada is allocated about 300,000 acre-feet of water each year from the overtapped Colorado River. 

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Here’s what else I’m reading (and listening to) this week:

The Colorado River’s top climate expert is worried, Politico says 

Nevada mine delayed amid lithium price plunge, from The Nevada Current 

A new invader threatens California water supplies. Can the state stop its spread? CalMatters poses the question

Feds approve mine drilling in Amargosa critical environmental area, from The Nevada Current 

How Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) ended up alone in megabill land fight, from Politico 

Nevada scores poorly for plastics pollution in recent report, according to This is Reno

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A closer look: 

We all know someone who pronounces it wrong...