Information on Painted Rock Mine

The painted Rock Mine is a proposed commercial gravel pit operation located on federal land east of the Johnson Lane community. It is approximately 1.1 to 1.6 miles from the nearest residence on Johnson Lane.

The Painted Rock Mine is under the authority of the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). The location is Trust Land. Trust Land is land held in trust by the United States for tribes or individual Native Americans and managed by the BIA for their benefit. The BIA has sole authority to approve the Painted Rock Mine project. This land and this project are not under the jurisdiction and control of the Douglas County Board of County Commissioners and the County has no authority to approve or condition this project in any way.

1. Initial Proposal (2020):
• Knox Excavating Inc. showed interest in developing the Painted Rock Mine on Indian Allotment Property in northeast Douglas County.
• The company submitted a proposal to the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to lease approximately 148.8 acres of land for the mine.
• The proposed mine would involve three phases of operations over 25 to 35 years, with an expected peak output of 500,000 tons per year.
2. Douglas County's Response (September 2020):
• On September 3, 2020, The Douglas County Board of Commissioners first discussed the potential impacts of the project, particularly on local infrastructure and the environment.
• A cooperatively drafted agreement was created and approved at the September 17, 2020 Board of County Commissioners meeting, which included protections for local residents. However, Knox Excavating Inc. declined to sign the agreement.
• The unexecuted agreement with Knox Excavating Inc. included financial contributions from the company to offset road maintenance costs due to increased truck traffic. However, this agreement was never finalized.
3. Public Opposition and Environmental Assessment (EA) Process (2020-2022):
• Significant public opposition emerged, with more than 600 comments submitted to the BIA during the first EA public comment period.
• In response to these concerns, the BIA revised the EA, and Douglas County participated as a cooperating agency.
• Despite the county's involvement, requests for additional studies (traffic, noise, air quality) were ignored.
4. Further Revisions and Continued Opposition (2022-2023):
• A second public comment period in 2022 resulted in more than 560 comments against the project.
• The BIA and BLM began work on a third, more thorough EA after ongoing opposition and concerns from Douglas County and residents.
• The county continued to highlight issues such as road maintenance, public safety, and environmental impacts throughout the EA process.
5. Final Developments (2023-2024):
• The third EA process started in March 2023, but the county remained dissatisfied with the assessments.
• The county expressed concerns over the long-term impacts on Johnson Lane Road, flood risks, and the compatibility of the mine with the residential character and home values of the area.
6. Douglas County's Official Opposition (2024):
• At the March 21, 2024 meeting, The Douglas County Board of County Commissioners formally opposed the project, citing the failure of the EA to address the community's concerns adequately.
• The Douglas County Board of County Commissioners requested that the BIA and BLM deny the project or impose stringent conditions if it were to proceed.
• At the July 18, 2024 meeting, the Board of County Commissioners heard a first reading of the adoption of Ordinance 2024-1641, an ordinance amending provisions of Chapter 10.08 of the Douglas County Code. This ordinance relates to traffic Control Devices, restricting the passage of trucks on the portion of Johnson Lane from Nye Drive to the eastern terminus of Johnson Lane.
• At its August 15, 2024 meeting, the Board of County Commissioners heard the second reading of Ordinance 2024-1641, and unanimously agreed to continue the hearing on the ordinance to November 7, 2024, to allow time for the county to enter into discussions with Knox Excavating to attempt to reach a compromise to address the concerns raised by the county and the residents of Johnson Lane.
• On August 16, 2024, Douglas County provided a Notice of Appeal to interested parties. Click here to view the Notice of Appeal.

This history reflects the ongoing actions between Knox Excavating Inc.'s plans to develop the Painted Rock Mine and the local community's concerns about the project's environmental, social, and infrastructural impacts, as well as impacts on local neighborhoods.

In May, The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) held an online public meeting to allow members of the public to learn about the Painted Rock Mine Draft Environmental Assessment (Draft EA). The in-person public comment meeting took place on March 20, 2024, from 4:30 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. at the Douglas County Community and Senior Center 1329 Waterloo Lane, Gardnerville, Nevada. The public meeting  included a short presentation, time to converse with subject matter experts, and time to make a verbal public comment on the content of the Revised DEA (limited to two minutes per person).

For more information click here 

What is the Painted Rock Mine?
The painted Rock Mine is a proposed commercial gravel pit operation located on federal land east of the Johnson Lane community. It is approximately 1.1 to 1.6 miles from the nearest residence on Johnson Lane.

Who has the authority to approve the Painted Rock Mine?
The Painted Rock Mine is under the authority of the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). The location is Trust Land. Trust Land is land held in trust by the United States for tribes or individual Native Americans and managed by the BIA for their benefit.

The BIA has sole authority to approve the Painted Rock Mine project. This land and this project are not under the jurisdiction and control of the Douglas County Board of County Commissioners and the county has no authority to approve or condition this project in any way.

What is the approval process?
The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) completed two Environmental Assessments (EA) as part of their approval process. The second EA was completed at the request of county representatives with the county's participation. During this time county staff expressed concerns regarding safety, traffic, drainage, dust, negative effects on property values, and noise impacts from the project on Johnson Lane area residents.

An EA is part of the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA) and is a requirement for approval of many types of development projects on federal land. The EA includes consultation with other federal and state land management agencies. The process also includes a period of time for the public to review and comment on the draft EA.

Where is the Painted Rock Mine in the process?
The first draft Environmental Assessment (EA) was completed and released for a 30 day public comment period in late August 2020. The comment period closed in late September 2020. Based in part on feedback received from the county and the public in 2020, BIA began the process to complete an EA a second time.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) now must consider the final EA and any public comments and issue their findings. If they find the project has no significant environmental impact, they will issues a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). At that point, they will issue a permit for the project. If they determine that environmental impacts from the project would be significant, an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) will be prepared. If so, a permit would not be issued until the EIS was complete and any issues addresses as part of the permit.

What role does Douglas County play in this process?
Douglas County has no authority to authorize or condition this project located on Indian Trust Land. The county participated as a cooperating agency for the second EA and provided comments regarding the potential impacts of the project on county residents from traffic, noise, dust, negative effects on property values, and storm water runoff.

What can the county do now to fight this project? Can trucks from the project be banned from Johnson Lane or other roads? Can a gate be put up at the end of Johnson Lane?
According to the Nevada Department of Transportation, only a portion of Johnson Lane is a major connector collector road. The middle portion from Heybourne to Vicki is a minor collector road designed for truck traffic. Historically, Johnson Lane, from U.S. 395 to Heybourne Road, because as it is adjacent to industrial areas along most of it's length, already sees routine truck traffic. The entire route of Johnson Lane would see in numbers significantly higher than those proposed by this because of the proposed project. This is why the proposed ordinance to restricts truck traffic from Nye to the terminus of Johnson Lane. Douglas County’s 2017 Transportation Plan identifies Johnson Lane from Highway 395 to East Valley Road as a major collector suitable for truck traffic and identifies the remaining portion from East Valley to the terminus as a local road.

Any action taken by the county to prevent this project from operating on public roads would be challenged by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). There is not legally defensible case to single out this one operation and ban or limit their use of Johnson Lane. The Board of County Commissioners—in order to protect the safety of the current users and promote the health and safety of the residents adjacent to the roadway, to prevent an increase in depreciation and wear on the roadway, and otherwise help preserve this section of road—has determined that it is legally defensible to restrict truck traffic on a local road not designed for truck traffic as verified by the Painted Rock Mine's environmental assessment.

Gating or otherwise blocking the east end of Johnson Lane would not be lawful as the BLM roads leading to the project site are historical, public roads. This would not be permitted by the federal government and would restrict the public's access to public land. We have not proposed to gate or restrict access to BLM roads or land.