Date: September 14, 2004

CONTACT: Jamie Thompson, Public Affairs Officer, (775) 623-1500

SMOKE CREEK DESERT PLAYA GETS METEOROLOGICAL TOWER

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Winnemucca Field Office has approved an application from the Desert Research Institute (DRI), the nonprofit research campus of the University and Community College System of Nevada, for a small tower to measure meteorological conditions on the Smoke Creek Desert Playa, located about 65 miles north of Sparks, Nevada. The ten-foot-high tower will contain instruments to measure solar radiation, soil heat flux, air temperature, wind direction and speed, relative humidity, dew point, precipitation, and vapor pressure. Power will be supplied by solar panels attached to the tower and meteorological data will be transmitted by radio to DRI's offices in Reno. DRI's application explains that the data will be used "to estimate evapotranspiration in the area and assist in hydrological studies."

The tower location is adjacent to an existing four-wheel-drive road and will disturb a total area of less than 1,000 square feet. Construction will include setting the three legs of the tower on anchors consisting of 2-foot-deep, concrete-filled holes, six feet apart. The tower will be constructed in the fall of 2004 and is expected to operate through 2006.

At the conclusion of the project, the tower, all the instruments and equipment, and the concrete anchors will be removed and the area reclaimed. Jeff Johnson, BLM Environmental Protection Specialist, says, "No adverse effects on the environment were identified and none are anticipated." Further information on this project is available by contacting BLM realty specialist Barbara Kehrberg at the Winnemucca Field Office at 775-623-1500.

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