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Pahrump sits on top of a large aquifer, which also covers parts of Death Valley. I can't find any references to it now, but I saw a program on tv (Discovery Channel?) which showed exactly how big it was & where it was. The run off from Mt Charleston feeds the aquifer, I would assume the Amargosa River also feeds it, but I'm not sure what else contributes to it.
The test site is firmly in Nye County & the County has a dept dedicated to testing/monitoring the ground water around the site. To my knowledge, nothing has been severely contaminated. There are some places, basically right next to the site, which show extremely low levels of contamination. It doesn't appear to be growing or leaching into any water supply & it's not enough to cause damage to anyone/anything, just enough to make the scientists aware of it.
The majority of people out here WELCOME the thought of opening Yucca Mtn again. We're not sure who Harry Reid has been chatting to, but he's not listening to us. It created thousands of jobs for our town, brought mass amounts of $$$ to our County & if it was taxed correctly, Nye County would be vastly different than you see it now. We'd like it to be our own "Alaska Pipe Line", where the residents receive a residual check each year.
This spring the County has decided to work with an outside company to see about importing water at some point in the future. Not because of contamination, but because of growth. The scenario was something like "we have ~38k people here right now, let's pretend we have ~500k". I just can't imagine having THAT many people here, but for worst case scenario, it's a good idea to go big
As for a small town running the show...it may look like that on the surface, but in fact Pahrump is in charge. Our Board of County Commissioners is made up of 5 elected positions. Those positions are based on population. Up until this year, the population of Nye County was such that we had 2 commissioners from Tonopah area & 3 from Pahrump. With this last census, Tonopah actually lost one of their seats. As of Jan 1 2013, we have 4 commissioners from Pahrump & 1 from Tonopah area. Our commissioners meet twice a month - the 1st meeting is held in Tonopah; the 2nd meeting is held in Pahrump. Whenever new laws are discussed, we often take into account that this is a HUGE county - what works for Pahrump doesn't always work for Tonopah & vice versa. Such as, recent animal regulations. Pahrump has a more city like environment compared to Tonopah. Pahrump wanted to limit the # of animals you could have (cats & dogs specifically), before a permit would be required. Tonopah got to weigh in on the decision, as they tend to have more wide open spaces & could potentially have more animals than Pahrumpians. I believe the original amount suggested was like 3, with the compromise being 6. Because of the current balance of power on the board, Pahrump really is making the decisions. Granted, not all the decisions are wise ones.....
The general feeling in both locations are quite different. Pahrump tends to be more of a laid back environment compared to Tonopah. My job requires me to travel to Tonopah occasionally. I can tell you the locals in Tonopah are hit & miss. Some of them are genuinely nice. Others are nice until they learn you are from Pahrump & all of a sudden, you are the enemy. Their feeling is "Pahrump gets everything & Tonopah gets sh#t on". Many of those people would LOVE to have the County split into 2 separate counties (Beatty would be part of Pahrump County). They have a handful of mines up there (Round Mtn), which produce MASS quantities of $$$ for the County. They think by splitting the County, they would be able to keep their mine $$$ & Pahrump would dry up & go away. They are forgetting that the average lifespan of a mine is something like 5 yrs. When their mines go away, what would they be left with? I have no idea where their water source is, but it's not the Pahrump aquifer. Pahrump/Beatty have the brothels, which help with our local economy. Tonopah has none. Not that this is an equal comparison, but we're all benefiting from the assets that each part of the County has.
If/when we get out of this economy funk, I'm sure incorporation talk will start up again. Does it help us? Possibly, but not in the short term. We have a Town Board & our County Commissioners. The Town Board would go away, with only the Commissioners left. The Town operates X amount of services, the County operates the rest. By incorporating, all of those services would be absorbed into the County's responsibility. Then there's a new layer of government that is created. But that new layer of gov't would only cover a portion of town & would probably be using the County resources to do business (police, fire, court staff, probably IT). So what exactly are we gaining? The County staff have already been doing more with less for the last 4 yrs (furlow days, smaller staff, increased work load). In this scenario, I'm sure the furlows are long gone, but they're still going to suffer with increased work load & reduced staff - which will just mean the public will also suffer. The County itself will have to have one heck of a financial boom for incorporation to really work.
Not to mention, there are people out here that REFUSE to think positively. "Not in my backyard" is big with them. Any new proposed company thinking of coming to town, they don't want them here. Any new development, they're not interested in. I will agree with some of them, but not all - some of the ideas generated out here are just.... asinine. Recently it was proposed to build a theme park out here, with the idea of attracting some of the LV visitors. I'm sorry, who is going to drive an hour thru NOTHING to sit on blazing hot roller coaster seats in the middle of summer? I love roller coasters & I wouldn't do that. Or let's build a tank driving experience! Um, doesn't sound appealing to me either. Sitting inside a hot piece of metal, with no padding so that I can tear up the desert. Hey, I got it! Let's have our very own mini-Burning Man festival, even tho we have no idea what this really is. Cuz the people that attend Burning Man spends LOADS of $$$ on hotels & food. Riiiiiiight.
What we need out here is simple, our tag line is "your base camp to adventure". So let's create it. Why don't we have guided/unguided tours for horseback riding; hiking; atv rentals, hieroglyphics, hot air ballon rides, those motorized hang glider thingees, etc. If you take the guided tour, it includes lunch from one of our local restaurants. We need an indoor shooting/archery range; an indoor rock climbing wall. I've suggested all of this to our local tourism board, we'll see what happens....
At one point they were brought the states & have become a nightmare to get rid of. They thrive in alkaline soil, can grow ~10 feet in one season & will suck up ground water like there's no tomorrow. One of the local utilities company (Utilities, Inc) has recently offered an incentive program - use a contractor to get rid of the salt cedar trees on your property & they will pay you $75 for each tree removed. I'm not sure if they offer the incentive if you DON'T use the contractor....
These pests start off so innocent looking, but by the time they are medium sized....you're in trouble. They are a terrible pain in the backside to eradicate from your property. To get rid of them, I've been told you can cut the tree down to a stump, then cross cut the exposed stump & pour bleach into it. I try to catch them when they are small so I don't end up with a yard full of them, unlike my neighbors, who have decided they want to use them as a wind break. The ones in the "large" picture? They are at least 40 feet tall, taller than your standard telephone pole.
You might want to research the situation on water a little more.
As I understand it the large pahrump aquifer is quite free from contamination. But it is oversubscribed and dropping a foot or two a year. This goes back to the old days when they were growing cotton in Pahrump based upon an infinite supply of water. That is a classical pattern in Nevada. Water resources are virtually always over subscribed.
The only reason why the test site is a problem is that it is over the next large aquifer to the north...thus preventing Pahrump reaching in that direction for water. That aquifer is not seriously contaminated but the fear is that it will be if pumped for Pahrump.
As for oversubscribed vs undersubscribed....no one can tell us for sure what our current status is. Some "officials" come thru & tell us we're fine, other's tell us the end is near.
Now let's see if I can figure out how to get some pictures posted out here.....
Thanks much for the information and the pictures. We're planning a visit in the near future to look for a home, and you've given us a great idea of how parts of the town look, and some of the history and info.
IT'S SPRING TIME IN PAHRUMP!!! I just love love love this season. The flowers are blooming, the trees are turning green. Yesterday was the warmest day this year, 84 degrees with a slight cooling breeze. Got my 1st sunburn of the season For about the last month the temperatures have been FABULOUS. No need for the a/c, no need for the heater. The doors & windows are open pretty much 24/7 at my house.
I planted some 'red apple ice plant' about 3 weeks ago & I have flowers already!! I found a spot on the Southern Nevada Water Authority webpage where it'll tell you all about the plants that'll grow well here. This particular plant is hardy to 23 degrees during the winter - which is right about how cold it gets here in Pahrump, so we'll see if it survives. At least it'll look good from here until December.
Roses LOVE it here! I have 7 roses planted in my yard - 2 are climbers, 2 are from ProFlowers live plant delivery, the rest are transplants from my parents house. I have to watch out for aphids, but that's the only thing that'll kill the roses. The picture of the rose with the white flowers is from Tombstone AZ. They have the worlds largest rose bush, called a "white lady banksia". The original root came from Scotland in 1885. The one in Tombstone covers 8000 sq feet & yes, they sell cuttings. I got mine ~4 or 5 yrs ago. Wasn't sure how it would do out here, but apparently it's quite happy.
Indoors my 'apple blossom amaryllis' has been blooming for the last week or so. I don't dare move this outside....the wind, the heat & the cold will kill it in no time.
Of course, with the good comes the bad.....weeds Interestingly enough, each year we have different weeds. Most common is the tumbleweed. They pull up outta the ground easily when they are small, but by the time they are medium sized (shin tall) they take a little more umph to pull them. By the time they are large (knee or thigh high), you might need a shovel for help. Be warned!! These puppies have nasty stickers all over them. If you catch then when they are small, little to no stickers. Medium sized? Handle them just right or you're get stuck. Large? Get a pair of gloves. It's not worth the hassle.
Last year was a bad year for tumbleweeds - they were EVERYWHERE. This year? Not so much. This year weeds of choice is unknown to me. It tends to spread out instead of growing tall. Pretty little purple flowers on it. Either way, it's gotta go.
i stumbled on simkins park recently. had no clue it was there. simkins park is located on simkins road (go figure), on the north end of town.
it is an 8.7 acre park, has 125 asphault parking spots!!! shade covering the playgrounds, a 48'x48' octagonal metal pavillion, picnic tables, softball field & bathroom facilities.
i didn't get a picture of it, but on the chain link fence between the parking lot & the playground is a sign clearly marked "no smoking past this point". there were a few kids playing on the equipment while i was there, along with their mother (i'm assuming), who was sitting at a picnic table just next to the playground equipment, she was busy chatting on her cell phone & smoking. way to set a good example for your kids!
i had no idea what they were when we moved here either. i had always seen them brown before living here. wasn't until they got knee high that i finally put 2 + 2 together
cre8lite, I just wanted to say that this thread is AMAZING!! Thank you so much for contributing such awesome content!!
I've never been to Pahrump, but I've always had a bit of a fascination with small-town desert life, and seeing your information and photos is soooo cool!! I'll be going to Vegas in July, might take a drive to Pahrump to check it out now!
Last edited by thepinksquid; 04-16-2013 at 09:03 PM..
Reason: typo
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For about the last month the temperatures have been FABULOUS. No need for the a/c, no need for the heater. The doors & windows are open pretty much 24/7 at my house. 
Interestingly enough, each year we have different weeds. Most common is the tumbleweed. They pull up outta the ground easily when they are small, but by the time they are medium sized (shin tall) they take a little more umph to pull them. By the time they are large (knee or thigh high), you might need a shovel for help. Be warned!! These puppies have nasty stickers all over them. If you catch then when they are small, little to no stickers. Medium sized? Handle them just right or you're get stuck. Large? Get a pair of gloves. It's not worth the hassle.
