Who is Nevada Water Resources Association?

NWRA is a non-profit professional association whose mission is to provide education, training and networking opportunities for those interested in understanding, developing, conserving and protecting Nevada’s water resources.

NWRA has been in operation for 70 years. In 1944, Tom Smith, State Engineer at that time, spearheaded a group who focused on groundwater and agricultural issues throughout the State. After many years of serving as a special interest group, the group became the Nevada Reclamation Association and eventually evolved to become Nevada Water Resources Association.

NWRA is directed by a 17 member Board of Trustees representing four districts. They are from multi-disciplinary backgrounds and are all respected professionals in their area of expertise. Four representatives from each district serve on a voluntary basis with three of the members serving a three year staggered term and having full voting rights. The fourth representative serves for one year as an alternate and has voting rights in the absence of one of the full term representatives. The State Engineer is an ex-officio member.

What does Nevada Water Resources Association do?

NWRA hosts an annual conference targeted towards water professionals throughout the State. The conference takes a multi-disciplinary approach to discuss current and ongoing statewide water issues critical to sustaining Nevada’s rapidly growing population and the many competing interests. The primary goal of the conference is to bring key issues to the table for discussion and to provide water managers, policy makers, environmental representatives, federal and state agencies, private consultants, and the general public with a more comprehensive understanding of these issues; including the technical component and legal aspect of each issue. The annual conference is typically held in February or March of each year. Please check our Events Page for conference information.

NWRA currently hosts a variety of workshops, classes and symposia that cover a broad range of topics, from Nevada Water Law, the Lake Tahoe Basin, Well Construction Methods, the Truckee River, and Ground Water. Previous workshops included Sustainability of Southern Nevada’s Water Resources, Nitrate Management, Ground Water Recharge, and Climate Change. Qualified instructors teach all of the courses, and professional development hours are available to Nevada registered engineers and land surveyors, attorneys, water operators and realtors.

NWRA has facilitated several National Salinity Management and Desalination Summits. This was a collaborative effort with the Multi-State Salinity Coalition and was directed to encourage dialogue between technicians, policy makers, managers and others in an effort to identify and advance breakthroughs in this key area.

To contact Nevada Water Resources Association, please visit our “Contact Us” page! Thank You for visiting our website!