LAS VEGAS (AP) — Environmental groups are speaking out against southern Nevada officials looking to get permission from Congress to open up land outside of Las Vegas for development.
KVVU-TV reports the 61 square miles that Clark County is looking at is owned by the Bureau of Land Management. Clark County officials plan to ask the federal government to open up the swaths of land for bidding.
They predicted the lands could be used for residential and commercial development.
The plan also includes adding new wilderness areas and areas of critical environmental concern.
The county's Department of Air Quality Director Marci Henson says the metro area just needs more space.
Some environmental groups have called the plan dangerous because it's unclear what it will mean for southern Nevada's desert tortoise.