The Goldstrike Mine in Elko, Nev. consumes almost 10 million gallons of water daily from “the driest state in the nation,” the New York Times notes. Thanks to Las Vegas, Nevada is also the fastest growing. Gold mining operates freer from the regulations imposed on coal and oil. Nevada’s gold mines produced 86% of the mercury waste in the U.S. in 2003. And Nevada is being “written off” by environmentalists, according to John D. Leshy, a former lawyer for the Department of Interior.

Gregory Yanick - New York
Greener Magazine Staff Writer

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