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The Great Basin is a hydrographic region that includes most of Nevada and parts of five other Western states. The histories of four of the Western rivers of the Great Basin--the Walker, the Truckee, the Carson and the Humboldt--are explored in this book, along with three of the western lakes of the Great Basin: Lake Tahoe, Pyramid Lake, and Walker Lake. Drawing on a range of sources, the coauthors address both the natural and the human aspects of the history and likely futures of Great Basin waterways.
List of contents
Table of ContentsPreface
Introduction
¿1.¿The Rivers
¿2.¿The Indians Before and After Contact with the Whites
¿3.¿Highlights of Exploration, Emigration, Communications and Transportation
¿4.¿Rivers Encourage the Development of Agriculture, Towns and Cities
¿5.¿The Rise and Fall of the Comstock Lode and Its Rivals
¿6.¿Railroads Depend on the Rivers and Forests
¿7.¿The Chinese Find Gold and Build Railroads
¿8.¿An Introduction to Nevada's Water Laws and Water Rights
¿9.¿Basque Sheepherders in the High Desert Ranges
10.¿The Newlands Project
11.¿The Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe Challenges Derby Dam
12.¿The Alpine Decree
13.¿Lake Tahoe and the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA)
14.¿The Truckee River Operating Agreement (TROA)
15.¿Walker Lake
16.¿Nevada Floods
17.¿Notable Men and Women Living Near the Waterways
18.¿Environmental Degradation
19.¿Climate Change and Population Growth
20.¿Looking Toward the Future
Conclusion
Chronology
Appendix 1: Dan De Quille on How the Sinks Came Into Being
Appendix 2: Floodplain Protection for the Carson River
Appendix 3: Denial of Global Warming
Appendix 4: A Note on the Effects of Humidity on Snowpack
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index
About the author
Hunt Janin is an American writer living in southwestern France. He has written numerous nonfiction and scholarly books on a range of subjects, including medieval history and cross-cultural studies.Ursula Carlson is a professor emerita at Western Nevada College, Carson City, Nevada.
