Amargosa Conservancy

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Amargosa Conservancy We are dedicated to the future of the Amargosa Watershed. We engage the natural and human communities of the Amargosa to promote long-term conservation.

Our Goals:

Make the Amargosa a priority for government land managers, and partner with them to accomplish goals of common interest. Build support for the Amargosa Conservancy in local communities and among others who love the Amargosa. Promote awareness and support for conservation in the Amargosa region among political leaders in California and Nevada who represent the region at the national (Congress), state (legislature), and county (supervisors) levels. Control invasive species. To gather essential data to gain a clearer understanding of the water resources of the Amargosa Basin. Partner with others to support economic sustainability that protects the land, water, and beauty of the Amargosa. Protect key conservation target properties in the Conservancy's area of interest through acquisition of conservation easements or outright purchase. Ensure sound organizational operations and structures.

Proposed Ash Meadows National Conservation Area Information Series 🖋️ What is an Ash Meadows NCA?A National Conservation...
10/15/2026

Proposed Ash Meadows National Conservation Area Information Series 🖋️

What is an Ash Meadows NCA?

A National Conservation Area, or NCA, is a designation created by Congress for public lands with important ecological, cultural, scientific, historical, recreational, or other values.

The Ash Meadows National Conservation Area proposal concerns federally managed public lands surrounding Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. It would not expand the Refuge, create a national park, or convert private property into federal land.

An NCA would instead give Congress an opportunity to establish lasting direction for how designated federal public lands are managed.

The details matter. NCAs are created through individual acts of Congress, so legislation can address conservation purposes, recreation, access, mineral development, cultural resources, and other uses.

That is why the current conversation matters: the proposal is still being shaped, and the eventual legislative language would determine what an Ash Meadows NCA actually does.

Can you spot our Restoration Project Manager, Holly Fischer? We’ve been having a great time out in the marsh during our ...
10/14/2026

Can you spot our Restoration Project Manager, Holly Fischer? We’ve been having a great time out in the marsh during our fieldwork in Tecopa!

Happy Flower Friday!🌸 Today, we are throwing it back to spring, when this Amargosa niterwort (Nitrophila mohavensis) wa...
10/09/2026

Happy Flower Friday!🌸 Today, we are throwing it back to spring, when this Amargosa niterwort (Nitrophila mohavensis) was in bloom. Its flowers may be small, but they sure are beautiful!

Over the last several months, we have been talking with local residents and landowners, recreationists, Tribal partners,...
10/08/2026

Over the last several months, we have been talking with local residents and landowners, recreationists, Tribal partners, elected officials, conservationists, and others about the future of Ash Meadows and the Amargosa Valley.

A lot has come out of these conversations that will shape the recent proposal for the designation of an Ash Meadows National Conservation Area intended to protect water, wildlife, and communities from harmful extraction.

Over the next few months, we are going to spend some time explaining the proposal for an Ash Meadows National Conservation Area: what an NCA is, where this proposal came from, what it could mean for recreation, private property, groundwater, wildlife, and local communities, and why this conversation is happening now.

Amargosa Conservancy’s position is that an NCA offers a durable way to balance conservation with continued economic activity in a landscape facing substantial pressure from mining, renewable energy, and other industrial development.

A proposal this consequential deserves questions, scrutiny, and conversation. In the weeks ahead, we will dig into the details, address concerns we have heard, and explain the reasoning behind the proposal.

Fall fieldwork has been full of tiny friends! 🪲🕷️🌞
10/08/2026

Fall fieldwork has been full of tiny friends! 🪲🕷️🌞

Executive Director Position OpenWe are working with Aspen Leadership Group to find an Executive Director to lead the org...
10/06/2026

Executive Director Position Open

We are working with Aspen Leadership Group to find an Executive Director to lead the organization through this important leadership transition while building upon more than two decades of conservation impact across the Amargosa River Basin.

Interested in the position? Follow the link in bio for more information.

Five years fighting for the future of Ash MeadowsOutgoing Executive Director Mason Voehl looks back on five years of wor...
10/04/2026

Five years fighting for the future of Ash Meadows

Outgoing Executive Director Mason Voehl looks back on five years of work to protect Ash Meadows, the Amargosa River, and the groundwater that sustains this unique landscape.

From stopping proposed lithium exploration and advancing the mineral withdrawal process to continuing discussions around the proposed Ash Meadows National Conservation Area (NCA), Mason reflects on the community and partnerships that have shaped these efforts to protect Ash Meadows from future energy and mining development.

“The fight that began over a handful of proposed lithium exploration holes has become something much larger: a conversation about what kind of future Amargosa Valley wants, what we owe the water beneath our feet, and what we are willing to leave intact for our children.”

Please read Mason's full article to learn more about this work and what comes next for Ash Meadows. Link in the bio!

10/02/2026

Insect surveys in Tecopa!

Last week we were joined with biologists and scientists from University of California Davis Weill School of Veterinary Medicine and the BLM to survey the Tecopa marsh for insects. Utilizing the sweep netting method, we were able to collect various species in a short time period, allowing for other surveys of the marsh such as water depth measurements and soil analysis. Insects are usually underrepresented in surveys even though they play vital roles in habitat life, which is why insect surveying is essential.

What bugs do you think got caught in our nets?
Do you have a favorite bug?

After five years with Amargosa Conservancy, my time has come to ride off into that wild and glorious desert sunset.I won...
10/01/2026

After five years with Amargosa Conservancy, my time has come to ride off into that wild and glorious desert sunset.

I won’t be leaving conservation behind, but I will be embracing a new role: the role of parent. Watching my young daughter discover the world has made me realize that, at least for now, my highest and best use is teaching her what it means to be human in this wild and beautiful more-than-human world she has inherited.

It’s a decision that feels both as bitter and as sweet as an Amargosa spring.
These five years have been among the most meaningful and formative of my life. I had the incredible luck of stumbling into a community of some of the most devoted conservationists in the West, working together to protect one of the most extraordinary landscapes I’ve ever known.

To our staff, board, partners, funders, members, and every person who has donated, signed a petition, shared a story, written a note, or simply spoken the name of the Amargosa River with respect and reverence: thank you.

I’ll carry these years, this landscape, and this community with me always.

A friend of the river will always be a friend of mine.

Onward. 🌅

Read Mason's full letter at the link in our bio.

Just another beautiful day monitoring the wells at Carson Slough! Located just south of Ash Meadows National Wildlife Re...
09/30/2026

Just another beautiful day monitoring the wells at Carson Slough!

Located just south of Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, Carson Slough is a spring discharge area where groundwater reaches the surface. Monitoring groundwater here helps us better understand the health and changing conditions of this unique landscape.

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PO BOX 63
Shoshone, CA
92384

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