Editing Clark County, Nevada (section)

==Geography==
[[File:Kyle Canyon Big Falls 1.jpg|thumb|upright|Kyle Canyon in the [[Mount Charleston Wilderness]] ]]
The [[Colorado River (US)|Colorado River]] forms the county's southeastern boundary, with [[Hoover Dam]] forming [[Lake Mead]] along much of its length. The [[List of U.S. states by elevation|lowest point]] in the state of Nevada is on the Colorado River just south of [[Laughlin, Nevada|Laughlin]] in Clark County, where it flows out of Nevada into [[California]] and [[Arizona]]. Greater Las Vegas is a tectonic valley, surrounded by four mountain ranges, with nearby [[Mount Charleston]] being the highest elevation at {{convert|11918|ft|abbr=on}}, located to the northwest. Other than the forests on Mount Charleston, the geography in Clark County is a desert. Creosote bushes are the main native vegetation, and the mountains are mostly rocky with little vegetation.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.google.com/maps/place/Clark+County,+NV/@35.9247456,-116.0937367,8z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x80b8d6496837aa1d:0x3317d403aa5236f8!8m2!3d36.0795613!4d-115.094045| title = ''Clark County NV'' Google Maps (accessed 10 February 2019)}}</ref> The terrain slopes to the south and east.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.daftlogic.com/sandbox-google-maps-find-altitude.htm |title="Find an Altitude" Google Maps (accessed 10 February 2019) |access-date=February 11, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190521043409/https://www.daftlogic.com/sandbox-google-maps-find-altitude.htm |archive-date=May 21, 2019 }}</ref> The county has an area of <!-- Units should reflect the customary norm for the locale, which would be standard American units. -->{{convert|8061|sqmi||abbr=on}}, of which {{convert|7891|sqmi||abbr=on}} is land and {{convert|170|sqmi||abbr=on}} (2.1%) is water.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/counties_list_32.txt|publisher=US Census Bureau|access-date=December 20, 2014|date=August 22, 2012|title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files}}</ref>

===Adjacent counties===
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* [[Lincoln County, Nevada|Lincoln County]] – north
* [[Mohave County, Arizona|Mohave County]], [[Arizona]] – east (observes [[Mountain Time Zone|Mountain Time]])
* [[San Bernardino County, California]] – south
* [[Inyo County, California]] – northwest
* [[Nye County, Nevada|Nye County]] – west
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===National protected areas===
[[File:Calico basin red rock cumulus mediocris.jpg|thumb|Calico basin in [[Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area]] ]]
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* [[Avi Kwa Ame National Monument]]
* [[Desert National Wildlife Refuge]] (part)
* [[Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest]] (part)
* [[Lake Mead National Recreation Area]] (part)
* [[Moapa Valley National Wildlife Refuge]]
* [[Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area]]
* [[Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area]]
* [[Spring Mountains National Recreation Area]] (part)
* [[Toiyabe National Forest]] (part)
* [[Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument]] (part)
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Twenty official [[wilderness area]]s in Clark County are part of the [[National Wilderness Preservation System]]. Many of these are in, or partially in, one of the preceding protected areas, as shown below. Many are separate entities that are managed by the [[Bureau of Land Management]] (BLM):
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* [[Arrow Canyon Wilderness]] (BLM)
* [[Black Canyon Wilderness (Nevada)]] (Lake Mead National Recreational Area [NRA])
* [[Bridge Canyon Wilderness]] (Lake Mead NRA)
* [[Eldorado Wilderness]] (Lake Mead NRA / BLM)
* [[Ireteba Peaks Wilderness]] (Lake Mead NRA / BLM)
* [[Jimbilnan Wilderness]] (Lake Mead NRA)
* [[Jumbo Springs Wilderness]] (BLM)
* [[La Madre Mountain Wilderness]] (BLM / Toiyabe National Forest [NF])
* [[Lime Canyon Wilderness]] (BLM)
* [[Meadow Valley Range Wilderness]] (BLM) mostly in Lincoln County, Nevada
* [[Mormon Mountains Wilderness]] (BLM) mostly in Lincoln County, Nevada
* [[Mount Charleston Wilderness]] (Toiyabe NF / BLM)
* [[Muddy Mountains Wilderness]] (BLM / Lake Mead NRA)
* [[Nellis Wash Wilderness]] (Lake Mead NRA)
* [[North McCullough Wilderness]] (part of Sloan Canyon NCA, which is managed by BLM)
* [[Pinto Valley Wilderness]] (Lake Mead NRA)
* [[Rainbow Mountain Wilderness]] (BLM / Toiyabe NF)
* [[South McCullough Wilderness]] (BLM)
* [[Spirit Mountain Wilderness]] (Lake Mead NRA / BLM)
* [[Wee Thump Joshua Tree Wilderness]] (BLM)
{{div col end}}[[File:White Domes trail movie site.jpg|thumb|White Domes trail, [[Valley of Fire State Park]], in NE Clark County]]
===Environmental factors===
{{More citations needed section|date=June 2009}}
Clark County has [[biodiversity|diverse]] [[desert]] [[flora]] and [[fauna]], including higher-elevation mountain areas, the desert floor, and the [[Colorado River]]/[[Lake Mead]] ecosystems. Variations in diurnal temperature as well as seasonal swings in temperature create demanding adaptation elements on the [[species]] of this county. [[Population growth|Population expansion]], especially since 1970, has placed additional pressure on species in the area.

Correspondingly, [[air quality]] levels prior to the 1960s were in a favorable range, but the proliferation of automobiles with the human population expansion created circumstances where some federal air quality standards were violated starting in the 1980s.{{citation needed|date=May 2022}}

To plan for the wave of development forecast by 1980, Clark County embarked on a regional environmental impact assessment funded by a federal Section 208 program, with Sedway-Cooke conducting the planning work and Earth Metrics performing environmental analysis. This endeavor projected population growth, land use changes and environmental impacts.{{citation needed|date=May 2022}}

To prevent the loss of federal funds due to unacceptable dust levels in the Las Vegas valley, in 2003 the Nevada Air Quality Management division (under direction of Clark County officials) created the [[Dusty the Dusthole|"Don't Be a Dusthole"]] campaign. The campaign successfully raised awareness of dust pollution in the Las Vegas Valley, quantifiably reducing pollutants and preserving ongoing federal funding.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2007/Jan-04-Thu-2007/news/11774909.html|title=News – Dusty the Dusthole successful|publisher=Reviewjournal.com|access-date=May 4, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324101925/http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2007/Jan-04-Thu-2007/news/11774909.html|archive-date=March 24, 2012}}</ref>

The [[Apex Landfill]], at {{convert|2200|acre|abbr=on}}, is the nation's largest landfill.<ref>{{cite news|first=Joe|last=Schoenmann|author-link=Joe Schoenmann|title=Official calls for sort reform|url=http://m.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/dec/17/official-calls-sort-reform/|work=[[Las Vegas Sun]]|date=December 17, 2008|access-date=December 20, 2008}}</ref> [[Republic Services]] owns and operates the landfill.

===Earthquake hazards===
Nevada is the third most seismically active state in the U.S. (after Alaska and California); the United States Geological Survey has estimated that over the next 50 years, Clark County has a 10–20% chance of a [[Seismic magnitude scales|(moment magnitude) M]]6.0 or greater earthquake occurring within {{convert|50|km|abbr=on}} of Las Vegas.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://data.nbmg.unr.edu/Public/freedownloads/misc/Presentations/earthquakes/lossestimationmodeling23feb06.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150910054050/http://data.nbmg.unr.edu/Public/freedownloads/misc/Presentations/earthquakes/lossestimationmodeling23feb06.pdf |archive-date=September 10, 2015 |url-status=live|title=Loss-Estimation Modeling of Earthquake Scenarios for Each County in Nevada Using HAZUS-MH|date=February 23, 2006|website=Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology|publisher=Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology/University of Nevada, Reno|access-date=March 27, 2016|quote="Probability of an earthquake of magnitude 6.0 or greater occurring within 50 km in 50 years (from USGS probabilistic seismic hazard analysis) 10–20% chance for Las Vegas area, magnitude 6" (p. 65)}}</ref>