A 1-inch butterfly that can only be found beside hot springs near the Nevada-Oregon border will soon be awarded federal protections under the Endangered Species Act, the law meant to protect plants and animals at risk of extinction.

The bleached sandhill skipper’s largest population is found at the Baltazor Hot Spring — a spring that’s located next to what is planned to become a geothermal energy plant.

Some environmentalists worry that the 84-acre plant operated by Ormat, which has received all required permits from the Bureau of Land Management, could alter the flow of nearby groundwater. Ormat’s media representative did not respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.

The final environmental assessment for the project does mention the bleached sandhill skipper, with some facilities moved to accommodate the habitat. The BLM ultimately declared that any impacts to the species would be “unlikely and minor,” and Ormat committed to doing assessments of the species every year for the first five years of the project.

“The wetlands these butterflies need to survive will dry up and blow away unless we can protect the water that sustains them,” Patrick Donnelly, Great Basin director at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement. “Endangered species protections can help ensure this rare butterfly is still here for future generations.”

Only about 1,000 of the butterflies were found in recent annual surveys, according to the nonprofit conservation organization. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service declined to list the species in 2012.

With the proposal for protections on Tuesday, the Fish and Wildlife Service began a 60-day public comment period. Within a year, a final rule awarding protections will be issued.

In Southern Nevada, the Mount Charleston blue butterfly is another species that has similar federal protections.

The new proposed protections are paramount for the longstanding fight to protect rural Nevada’s water, according to Donnelly.

“The bleached sandhill skipper needs the same thing to survive that we do: water,” Donnelly said. “With these endangered species protections, we aren’t just protecting charming little butterflies and their wetland habitat. We’re protecting the water that sustains all life in the desert, including our own.”

Contact Alan Halaly at ahalaly@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlanHalaly on X.

(KTNV) — Baby’s Bounty is once again hosting multiple diaper banks statewide for families in need of these supplies for their children.

Families will be able to receive a week’s worth of diapers and wipes for up to three children.

You must provide a photo ID and proof of parental paperwork (birth certificate, Medicaid card, crib card, social security card, foster or adoption paperwork) to utilize these services.

Henderson:
📍Location: Morell Park – 500 Harris St, Henderson
🗓️ Date: Wednesday, Jan. 8
⏰ Time: 9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
🚙 Drive-thru bank
Registration is required and can be found here.

Las Vegas:
📍Location: Baby’s Bounty Center for Families – 4495 W Reno Ave, Las Vegas
🗓️ Date: Wednesday, Jan. 22
⏰ Time: 9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
🚙 Drive-thru bank
Registration is required and can be found here.

📍Location: Las Vegas Indian Center – 2300 W Bonanza Rd, Las Vegas
🗓️ Date: Thursday, Jan. 30
⏰ Time: 9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
🚚 Mobile bank

North Las Vegas:
📍Location: Martin Luther King Jr. Senior Center – 2420 N MLK Blvd, North Las Vegas
🗓️ Date: Wednesday, Jan. 15
⏰ Time: 9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
🚙 Drive-thru bank
Registration is required and can be found here.

Reno/Sparks:
📍Location: Baby’s Bounty Northern Nevada – 1410 Greg St, #409, Sparks
🗓️ Date: Wednesday, Jan. 29
⏰ Time: 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
🚙 Drive-thru bank
Registration is required and can be found here.

Mesquite:
📍Location: Salvation Army Mesquite – 742 W Pioneer Blvd, Mesquite
🗓️ Date: Friday, Jan. 31
⏰ Time: 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
🚚 Mobile bank

JETT/Terrible’s Gaming announced the launch of Terrible’s Mobile Gaming, a new real-money five-card draw poker app available in Nevada, according to a press release.

The multi-player game includes features such as Royal Flush bonuses of up to $4,500 and four-of-a-kind payouts up to $175. To celebrate the app’s launch, Terrible’s Mobile Gaming is offering a deposit match of up to $500 each week.

Terrible’s Mobile Gaming is available for download on iOS and Android devices.

“JETT/Terrible’s Gaming and the Terrible’s brand in general have been making life more convenient for Nevadans for over 65 years,” said Tim Herbst, president of JETT Gaming & Terrible Herbst Inc. in a statement. “Now, we are excited to bring that same level of convenience to mobile gaming—delivering the excitement of Multi-Player 5 Card Draw Poker directly to our customers, wherever they are, and within the palm of their hand.”

The app is available in collaboration with Real Gaming, the igaming platform co-founded by South Point casino-hotel owner Michael Gaughan and tech entrepreneur Lawrence Vaughan.

“Nevada players know that both the JETT Gaming and Terrible’s Gaming brands mean convenience, and that’s exactly what we’ve delivered,” Vaughan said in the news release.

Culinary Local 226 ratifies Fontainebleau Las Vegas labor contract

Members of Culinary Union Local 226 recently voted to ratify a labor contract with Fontainebleau Las Vegas. According to the union, 99.6 percent voted in favor of the labor deal.

The new contract covers nearly 3,300 non-gaming employees at the Fontainebleau casino-hotel, located at the north end of the Las Vegas Strip. It is the first labor contract with the new resort, which opened in December 2023.

According to previous reports, the Culinary workers’ contract is for slightly less than five years, timed to match the span of the citywide contracts agreed to at the end of 2023 and the beginning of 2024 with other Strip operators.

The deal with Fontainebleau comes as Culinary Local 226 workers at the off-Strip Virgin casino-hotel have been striking for more than seven weeks. The union rejected the casino-hotel’s invitation to arbitration in late December.

Sports wagering

Two U.S. states that haven’t legalized sports wagering are making efforts to win approval in 2025.

Oklahoma state Sen. Dave Rader has introduced legislation in the Sooner state to modify the state’s compact with tribal casinos there to allow betting on sports. The bill’s first reading is scheduled Feb. 3.

Under Rader’s proposal, tribes would be required to pay the state 5 percent of the first $5 million in gross gaming revenue, 6 percent of the next $5 million and 7 percent for any revenue over $10 million as a fee.

A bill introduced in Oklahoma last year never made it out of committee.

In Minnesota, state Sen. Matt Klein said he will reintroduce a bill that failed to win approval last year early in that state’s legislative session. The session opens Jan. 14 in St. Paul.

Bill opponents have blocked passage because of fears of gambling addiction and family bankruptcies. Klein said his legislation has protections that would make it the safest sports-betting law in the country.

Washington D.C. and 38 U.S. states have legalized sports wagering and Missouri is establishing rules and regulations to begin this year.

Raising the age limit

New Hampshire lawmakers will consider raising the minimum age to place a sports bet from 18 to 21 under a bill that is expected to be reviewed Wednesday by the state’s House Ways and Means Committee.

New Hampshire is one of seven states and Washington D.C. that set the minimum gambling age at 18 and most neighboring states — Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, Maine, and New York — have 21 as their minimum age.

If signed into law, the bill would likely take effect in mid-2026. Lawmakers will take into consideration the possible loss of $640,000 a year in gaming revenue with the age increase.

DraftKings is the only online sports-betting option in the state.

Macao

Gross gaming revenue in Macao totaled $28.3 billion (U.S.) in 2024, a 23.9 percent increase over 2023, the special administrative region’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau reported last week.

December revenue of $2.3 billion was off 2 percent from a year ago and was the first month in 2024 to have less monthly revenue than in the previous year.

October was the strongest month of the year with revenue of $2.6 billion.

By comparison, Nevada’s October gaming revenue total was $1.286 billion.