You don't have to be from a multigenerational Nevada family to remember the good old days.

Your ancestors might not have crossed the burning sands in a covered wagon to settle here. You might not have been around when Bugsy Siegel ran the Flamingo. Why, you might not even recall seeing Lake Mead without a bathtub ring.

But you probably remember 2019. That was back when human-caused climate change wasn't a hoax and a scam, as the current president has called it, and the year that Nevada codified a plan to do something about it.

That year, lawmakers in a state that has so often treated its citizens like rubes at a fixed poker game achieved something remarkable. The Nevada Legislature overcame its propensity for political myopia and passed SB254, which charted a course toward a more environmentally friendly future by setting reasonable goals for reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

The goal-setting was part of a larger embrace of the state's potential for the production of renewable energy. Much of Nevada might be short on shade, but when it comes to sun, wind and geothermal heat, we have a lot of it. Under SB254's goals, greenhouse emissions were to be reduced by 28 percent in 2025, 45 percent by 2030 and to net zero emissions by 2050.

Lofty aspirations? Certainly. But with growing proof of a human-driven climate crisis and dire predictions of rising temperatures and dramatic aridification, it was the responsible thing to do.

Signed by Gov. Steve Sisolak (D), SB254 was a good start. But it was a carrot that lacked a stick, an inconvenient truth without consequences for falling short of its high-minded but seemingly attainable goals.

It's not news that 2025 has come and gone, and Nevada fell far short of its greenhouse gas-reduction goals. It promises to lag even further behind by 2030.

As the artificial intelligence (AI) data center gold rush in Northern Nevada expands with ever-larger hyperscale projects taking shape, SB254 is looking like a relic of a distant past — something once cherished before ending up boxed and forgotten in the back of a closet.

This modern gold rush needs power, and at a level that current utility plants aren't projected to match.

The issue deserves more than a small mention in Monday's scheduled "preview" meeting of the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada as it considers the application of the Tract company to construct what's been dubbed a "temporary" natural gas power plant capable of generating 144 megawatts to power a single hyperscale data center in Storey County.

On another front, what sounds anything but temporary is a Northern Nevada pipeline project being presented by Great Basin Natural Gas Transmission Company. Early details describe a 42-inch pipeline with a nearly 777,000-dekatherm capacity, enough natural gas to fuel major data center projects that would produce millions of tons of new carbon emissions. Although the identity of the end users isn't public, it's no stretch to speculate that they'll likely be using all that fuel to power hyperscale projects.

Although cleaner than coal and diesel-powered facilities, natural gas emissions still contribute to greenhouse-linked warming. A single hyperscale AI data center can consume enough electricity to power as many as 100,000 homes, and the rush is on. It's little wonder the state has essentially zero chance of meeting its 2030 reduction goals.

Will powerful companies putting down a massive investment — and footprint — be compelled to play by the rules and work toward the goals contained in SB254? Or will they successfully argue that their independent power supplies — despite whatever environmental impacts they create — are exempt from the rules?

The state's environmental mandates shouldn't apply to some and not others, or stop at a county line. But much stranger things have happened in Nevada and, considering the power politics in play, the shelving of SB254 is not much of a surprise.

Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo (R), a darling of the state's big utilities, is a vocal supporter of the gas pipeline project and the development of data centers in the state. Under Lombardo's leadership, the state has made a sharp turn away from its renewable energy portfolio strategy and withdrew from the U.S. Climate Alliance. In 2023, he appointed former Southwest Gas lobbyist and renewable energy specialist Dwayne McClinton to head the state Office of Energy.

Given the level of affection being expressed for the proposed natural gas projects, you'd be forgiven for confusing the office with a Southwest Gas satellite.

Among the Lombardo administration's strategic energy goals, as expressed in a 2023 executive order, was balancing electric and natural gas reliance, maintaining affordable rates, increasing reliability, pursuing new energy transmission and developing "dedicated in-state energy markets."

When McClinton stepped down from the office in February, he told The Indy's Amy Alonzo, "If they stick with that vision, they'll be fine."

In light of the gargantuan energy demands of AI data centers under construction and in the planning stages, I wonder if that's even remotely possible. All talk of using natural gas as "temporary" fuel for power generation rings pretty hollow.

During the primary campaign season, I was surprised that more candidates weren't actively discussing the merits and risks of data center development. With the exception of Democratic candidate for governor Alexis Hill and a few others, not many watts of energy were devoted to the subject.

Will that change in the general election?

Although there is an acknowledgment of the environmental component contained in the 2019 legislation in the governor's executive order, it's hard to believe the state can feed the AI data center gold rush and still meet greenhouse gas reduction goals. The issue deserves a vigorous public vetting.

That is, if those in positions of power really care what the public thinks.

Monday's meeting seems like a good place to start a conversation.

John L. Smith is an author and longtime columnist. He was born in Henderson and his family's Nevada roots go back to 1881. His stories have appeared in New Lines, Time, Reader's Digest, Rolling Stone, The Daily Beast, Reuters and Desert Companion, among others.