Nevada

A tribe in Nevada finally had funding for climate resilience. Then a grant was ripped away

Published

5 months ago

November 4, 2025

A tribe in Nevada finally had funding for climate resilience. Then a grant was ripped away

Jeniffer Solis
| Nevada Current

Joseph Frank was one of the first firefighters to respond to a massive wildfire that broke out on the Walker River Reservation in June 2024.

Temperatures that month were well above average, according to the National Weather Service. It was 90 degrees in Schurz, Nevada that day — 5 degrees hotter than normal for the area — when a lead-acid battery from a Bureau of Indian Affairs building overheated and “kind of blew up,” said Frank.

Fueled by vegetation cooked by record heat and drought in the months prior, the fire quickly spread across 65 acres. It took two days to fully contain, cutting off a portion of U.S. Route 95 and causing the evacuation of all the tribe’s administrative offices.

“We ended up calling out all the municipalities to help us, just because of how intense it was,” Frank said of the June 20, 2024, fire.

Wildfire risk in Schurz is higher than 60% of communities in the U.S., according to data from the U.S. Forest Service. But the Walker River Paiute Tribe’s current water system, built in the 1960s, wasn’t designed to provide the water pressure needed to combat the large wildfires the tribe sees now.

It’s one of the major infrastructure problems that could be solved with a $20 million grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded to the tribe last winter. But the funding would never come.

Members of the Walker River Paiute Tribe are surrounded on all sides by reminders of their vulnerability to a changing climate.

They see it in the river banks eroded by record floods and the fire-scorched landscape. They see it in the wilting pinon trees and waning pine nut harvest. They see it in the infrastructure that can’t keep up and rising power bills they can’t afford.

Those observations have also turned into plans, and those plans into grant applications for projects that would prepare the tribe and residents of Schurz for a more extreme climate.

It all came together in December when the Walker River Paiute Tribe was awarded $20 million in funding from the EPA’s Community Change Grant, according to Nevada Current. The grant was one of hundreds awarded under the Environmental and Climate Justice Program — a $2.8 billion financial assistance program created by the Inflation Reduction Act under former President Joe Biden.

With the funds, the tribe could execute a multiyear climate resiliency plan to deliver water, energy and food infrastructure to about 1,200 tribal members who live on the Walker River Reservation.

In total, 150 homes would be weatherized and upgraded for energy efficiency and climate resiliency — about 30% of all existing homes on the reservation.

Swamp coolers that aren’t designed to work in 100-degree temperatures would be swapped out for central air conditioning. Insulation and windows that fail to keep out rising heat would be replaced. Rooftops would be repaired and covered in solar panels and battery storage that could keep medication and food refrigerated during summer blackouts.

No one would be left out. The funding would also cover the remaining cost of a planned Community Resilience and Food Storage Hub — a fully electric and solar-powered building with battery storage to shelter the town’s most vulnerable residents during weather emergencies, like floods and extreme heat waves, while increasing food and medication security.

The grant would also fund the last leg of a water infrastructure project that would support dozens of new fire hydrants on the reservation and secure reliable clean water for 425 existing homes and over 100 future homes.

But the January inauguration of President Donald Trump brought new priorities, and a White House crusade against diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs funded by his predecessor’s 2022 climate law.

Within five months, on May 1, the $20 million Community Change Grant was officially terminated by EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, along with more than 780 other environmental justice grants as part of Trump’s executive order to eliminate DEI across the government.

The tribe only used about $70,000 from the grant before losing access to funding that would have helped the rural community adapt to a rapidly changing climate.

Multiple nonprofits, tribes and local governments sued the EPA, challenging the legality of abruptly terminating congressionally approved funds, but as the case moves through the court system, it’s unclear when — if ever — the funds will be restored.

Fires and floods

Melanie McFalls, the newly elected chair of the Walker River Paiute Tribe, was a month into the job when the EPA first cut off the tribe’s access to the Community Change Grant on Jan. 29. It was one of several grants the tribe would lose in the wake of Trump’s efforts to slash spending and remake the federal government.

Hundreds of emails piled up as McFalls contacted every state and congressional leader she could think of to restore the tribe’s funding.

“I was focused solely on funding cuts, everything else was left on the table because we rely on grant funding. We had to fight for that,” McFalls said in her office, the one she had to evacuate during the wildfire last year with the rest of the tribe’s council.

“We were wondering ‘what else is going to get cut? What’s going to be next? What’s going to happen?’ We had no idea,” McFalls said.

Thirteen years ago, the last time McFalls was chair of the tribe, they didn’t have a climate adaptation plan or an emergency plan for major floods and wildfires. Since then, she’s seen the impacts of climate change piling up on the reservation.

The year before the fire, on May 17, 2023, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) found that flooding on the Walker River caused by record-breaking rain and snowmelt created enough structural damage to the Weber Dam seven miles northwest of Schurz that it “could have potentially progressed into a life-threatening event” for the tribe.

The Walker River flooded for 48 consecutive days between May and June that year, according to the Nevada Division of Water Resources. It was partially caused by a sudden mid-to-late May warmup that quickly melted record-breaking snowpack in the Walker Basin. By July, streamflows into the Weber Reservoir were seven times the average for the time of year.

About a month after finding the damage in the dam, the BIA told the tribe during a community meeting that if the dam’s spillway failed, they would have to prepare for more than three Olympic-sized pools worth of flooding a minute until the reservoir leveled out. The whole town of Schurz would need to be evacuated within 24 hours.

“It just wiped out our riverbanks. Took most of the land around it. Water was going up to some peoples porches. It was kind of scary to see that happen,” McFalls said.

The Walker River Reservation spans 325,000 acres across three Nevada counties — Mineral, Churchill and Lyon — but nearly every home is built along the flood-prone river. That’s because the reservation’s water system uses a gravity-fed storage tank located at the top of a hill that can only move water down to the lowest point in the valley where the river runs.

Before it was terminated, nearly $2 million from the Community Change Grant was reserved for a planned water infrastructure project that would improve water pressure and allow more than a hundred homes to be built at higher elevations further from the river.

“If we could build higher up and we’re out of the flood zone, that’s one less thing for us to worry about,” said Frank, the firefighter, who also serves as the tribe’s project manager.

Heat and energy

By the next year, the precipitation that flooded Walker River in 2023 was gone. Mineral, Lyon, and Churchill counties only received about a quarter of the rain and snow they typically do from April to June, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The drought was accelerated by record-breaking heat in 2024, the hottest year on record. But record-breaking heat is becoming the norm. The past decade has been the hottest in two centuries of record-keeping, NOAA reports.

Heat waves are also becoming the norm. Researchers at NASA found that summer heat waves in the U.S. have roughly doubled in number since 1980, increasing from an average of two to four per month.

Rising temperatures have helped Nevada claim two of the fastest warming cities in the nation — Reno and Las Vegas — but rural areas haven’t escaped the heat. When the fire broke out on the Walker River Reservation in June, the nearest weather tower (about 25 miles away) recorded average monthly temperatures 5 degrees above normal.

Since 1950, average temperatures on the Walker River Reservation have increased by 3 degrees, according to Native Climate, a U.S. Department of Agriculture-funded research project to support climate adaptation efforts in Native American communities.

Days over 100 degrees have also tripled on the reservation from an average of five days in 1950, to 20 days in 2025. If emissions continue on their current trajectory, there could be about 40 days over 100 degrees on the Walker River Reservation by the end of the century.

“You can see a huge increase in the number of degree days over 100 degrees,” said Maureen McCarthy, a research professor at Desert Research Institute who led the Native Climate project.

“The extremes are becoming more extreme, in addition to the average temperatures changing,” McCarthy said. “That’s a big impact. We’re not designed to function at 100 degrees.”

The Walker River Housing Department reports that about 44% of homes on the reservation rely on swamp coolers, but evaporative-cooling appliances become less effective at 100 degrees and above. The cost of replacing one with central cooling is also a barrier for low-income households.

Aging infrastructure only makes adapting to rising temperatures and extreme weather more difficult. The Walker River Housing Department reports that two-thirds of homes on the reservation built before 2000 have older, deteriorating roofs and windows that must be replaced to improve climate resilience.

Households on the reservation are already burdened with energy costs that are 24% higher than the state average, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Low-Income Energy Affordability Data tool. They also spend twice as much of their income on energy costs compared to the state average.

Replacing inefficient appliances that increase energy costs can also be difficult for lower-income households, including many on the reservation. The median household income for the Walker River Paiute Tribe is around $40,000 – about 53% lower than the median household income for Nevada. Unemployment is about twice as high, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.

Funding from the Community Change Grant would have covered the purchase of energy-efficient heat pumps, water heaters, induction cooktops, electric ovens and new dryers and refrigerators for 120 homes on the reservation.

“We were devastated when we started hearing all of our funding getting cut because we thought we were going to have these programs,” said Genia Williams, the housing director for the Walker River Paiute Tribe. “There was a lot of work put into it from my grant writers, past chairman, past administrators that worked hard to get this.”

The Nevada Clean Energy Fund — a nonprofit bank created by state legislation — also worked with the Walker River Paiute Tribe to secure the Community Change Grant.

Since becoming the housing director a decade ago, Williams said persistent blackouts have also been a challenge for the rural reservation. The reservation sits at the end of an energy grid, and as demands for electricity rise with more intense summer heat blackouts rise too.

A joint survey by the bank and tribe found that 50% of households surveyed reported experiencing blackouts four to nine times per year, while a third reported experiencing blackouts more than 12 times per year. Two-thirds of households reported that power outages generally last between four and eight hours.

Unreliable power is especially hard on elders who have difficulty operating backup generators, and medically vulnerable residents who rely on ventilators or need to keep medication refrigerated. The Community Change Grant would have allowed the tribe to install solar power and battery storage in 100 of the most vulnerable households.

“We’re just going to have to weather the storm and see what we can come up with and keep moving forward on these things,” Williams said.

Saving graces

The years of planning are not lost, and some of the tribe’s climate resiliency plans are moving forward, but on a smaller scale.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded the tribe partial funding in 2022 to build a food distribution center that supports the tribe’s long-term food security and sovereignty plan.

Without the Community Change Grant it likely won’t be at the scale of the Community Resilience and Food Storage Hub the tribe envisioned. The solar panels, battery storage, walk-in refrigerators and freezers the grant would have funded won’t be included in the building, but it’ll take the tribe a step closer to their goal.

“We’ve come through a lot of storms. The one thing about our tribe and our community is that we’ve been able to overcome,” Williams said.

In September, the tribe also broke ground on a water infrastructure project that will add a second water storage tank and nearly 1,600 feet of water lines to the Walker River Reservation. The new “water loop” system will make it possible for about 30 new houses to be built on the reservation, allowing many of the 75 tribal members currently on the housing waitlist to live on their ancestral land and in their community.

Frank, the firefighter, took on the role of project manager for the tribe a year ago. When the EPA revoked the Community Change Grant he said it was a “sickening feeling.”

When the EPA revoked the Community Change Grant the tribe had already completed engineering, procurement, and planning for the project. About three-fourths of the total $15.8 million needed for the project was secured from a combination of federal and state funds.

The EPA grant was the last piece of the puzzle. Without it, the tribe would have to dip into their limited reserves. If they didn’t, their remaining funds for the project would be lost.

“We had a deadline to meet the needs of certain funding requirements, and if this was not met, we would have lost the entire project,” said Frank.

The project couldn’t wait. The existing water systems were built like a tree with branches leading off to nowhere; water lines were not connecting to facilities, which led to some situations where hydrants failed to provide water during an emergency.

Frank, the volunteer firefighter, recalls how one of the fire hydrants on the reservation didn’t work during the 2024 fire that burned 65 acres of the reservation.

“These improvements are not just numbers on the page. They represent safer homes, stronger emergency readiness and peace of mind for every community member who depends on the system every day,” Frank said.

In 2019, the Indian Health Service also determined that low water pressure and stagnant water on the Walker River Reservation posed a public health threat in the form of cross-contamination, bacterial diseases that breed in stagnant water from the ageing infrastructure.

The Walker River Paiute Tribe is deeply affected by persistent drought conditions and has lacked reliable access to domestic water supplies for generations. But the water loop project would allow the community to build long-term resilience to drought by increasing water reserves and improving the distribution system.

A 2022 report by the U.S. Geological Survey showed that drought has caused evaporation of the surface water levels of Walker River down to Walker Lake, limiting the recharge of groundwater levels. Groundwater in the area supplies at least half of the drinking water for the tribe, according to the EPA.

Generations of tribal members have left to pursue education with the goal of coming back and building up their community, but the infrastructure wasn’t there, said Williams.

“This is home for a lot of people. It’s where they grew up, or where their families grew up. Now they can come back,” Williams said.

This story was published as part of the Wake Forest University Mellon Foundation Environmental and Epistemic Justice Initiative (EEJI)

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Nevada

Is it legal to park in someone’s driveway in Nevada? What the law says

Published

4 hours ago

March 27, 2026

Press Room

Is it legal to park in someone’s driveway in Nevada? What the law says

As Nevadans are getting ready for family and friend cookouts and summer parties, they may be looking for a place to park in residential areas. It may be tempting to park near your neighbor’s driveway, but people should first know what’s allowed.

After all, as annoying as it is to have to park far away from your destination, a large fine and a tow is far more inconvenient.

Here’s what the Nevada law says about parking in front of your neighbor’s house, near their driveway, and on a public street.

Can I park in my neighbor’s driveway?

No. Unless you are a United States Postal Service worker, it is prohibited in Nevada to park “within 5 feet of a public or private driveway.”

Can you park in front of your neighbor’s house in Nevada?

Unless a permit is required or other official signage on a street notes special parking requirements, it is legal to park on any public street. That includes in front of your neighbor’s house, as long as it is not blocking their driveway.

Can you park in front of your neighbor’s house?

Can I sell my car from my yard?

As long as you keep the number of vehicles you sell from your yard to three personally-owned vehicles per year, it is legal. If you exceed that amount and don’t have a dealer’s license, you could be reported to the Nevada DMV.

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Nevada

Scholarships available for Nevada Youth Range Camp

Published

16 hours ago

March 27, 2026

Press Room

Scholarships available for Nevada Youth Range Camp

The Nevada Division of Forestry and the Nevada Section of the Society for Range Management are inviting high school-aged students from around the Silver State to participate in the 2026 Nevada Youth Range Camp essay competition.

“The Nevada Youth Range Camp is a yearly educational opportunity that has been held each summer in central Nevada since 1961,” stated a press release. “Last year, eight students were awarded scholarships and received a certificate of achievement.”

Selected essays will receive up to $250 to register for this year’s Youth Range Camp. Students must be between ages 14 and 18 in order to apply. Parental consent is also required. Essays that are flagged for plagiarism or that utilize AI will be disqualified.

“Range Camp has served Nevada’s youth for 65 years. It is a great opportunity for anyone interested in natural resources to learn basic rangeland and resource management skills,” said Kelcey Hein, Conservation Education lead at the Nevada Division of Forestry, in a statement.

According to the application form, this year’s essay prompt is:

“In your own words, tell a story or a few stories of when you were able to connect with a natural space such as a park, your backyard, a farm, a field, a forest, a beach, or so on. Please incorporate three (3) key words from the key word list that you noticed of that ecosystem into your response. Explain what you noticed about these aspects that drew your attention in that space. How did this influence you and your goals as a future steward of Natural Resources?”

Visit bit.ly/RangeCamp2026 for submission forms, essay instructions and the full rules. The contest is open until April 30.

For more information about the Nevada Division of Forestry, visit forestry.nv.gov.

Visit nevada.rangelands.org for more information about the Nevada Section of the Society for Range Management.

Contact reporter Elijah Dulay at edulay@pvtimes.com

Nevada Youth Range Camp: June 21 through June 27

“We invite high school youth to enjoy a week of fun, camping, and learning about rangelands and natural resource management,” states the Nevada Section of the Society for Range Management website. “This year the camp headquarters will be located in the Timber Creek Campground area Northwest of McGill, NV. This area provides a splendid setting for learning and recreation.”

“The week is filled with many learning opportunities. Instructors teach various subjects through group investigations. Camp instructors and counselors are trained specialists from the University of Nevada, Reno; Nevada State Parks; Natural Resources Conservation Service; Bureau of Land Management; Forest Service; Nevada Division of Forestry; Nevada Division of Conservation Districts; Nevada Division of Wildlife; and others,” the Nevada Section of the Society for Range Management website continues.

“Campers arrive by noon on Sunday and break camp the following Saturday morning. Campers register and form groups with an adult counselor and assistant youth counselor. The weeklong program runs from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and includes instruction, projects, rest, meals, and recreation,” the Nevada Section of the Society for Range Management website reads further. “Adult supervision occurs throughout the entire week. Parents and sponsors are welcome to visit the camp any time and are especially invited for the Friday night awards program. The evening programs are geared more for enjoyment and personal interest and include map and compass orientation, conservation skill workshops, wildlife presentations, and campfires.”

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Nevada

4 Southern Nevadans named to USA flag football national roster

Published

1 day ago

March 26, 2026

Press Room

4 Southern Nevadans named to USA flag football national roster

Four flag football players with ties to Southern Nevada have been named to USA Football’s 2026 women’s flag national team initial roster.

Former high school standouts Akemi Higa (Desert Oasis), Kaylie Phillips (Liberty), Maci Joncich (Coronado) and Brooklin Hill (Desert Oasis) were named to the 24-person roster.

Higa just completed her senior season with Desert Oasis where she was a first-team All-Southern Nevada selection and led the state with 5,764 passing yards. She is committed to play college flag football at Nevada State University.

Hill and Phillips currently play for Nevada State. Joncich graduated from Coronado in 2024 and was on the 2025 national team.

After a training camp that will determine the traveling roster and alternates, the team will compete in the 2026 International Federation of American Football flag football world championships in Germany this August.

Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.

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