Why The VAST MAJORITY Of Nevada Is Owned By The Federal Government

[@GeographyByGeoff]

Go to ground.news/geobygeoff to stay fully informed on breaking news, compare coverage and avoid media bias. Try it out or subscribe through my link for 30% off unlimited access before August 24 and get it for as little as $5 a month.

[@Azurethewolf168]

Nobody is unbiased, this news site has a bias and anyone saying that the news doesn’t is not to believed.

[@ryanjacob8786]

You beautiful eyes

[@jimlewis1992]

8:05 to skip right to the answer

[@ricardoxavier827]

Nevada has water enough to be a single large forest. With fire resist species, just needing the waterboxx help on the first years. Zone by zone, atracting more rain because of the new moisture created by the new trees pumping up gound water by the tree roots, same tree roots that open the soil to allow wazter to feed the groundsheets instead of disapearing by evaporation. If the chinese are smart enough to be able to reverse the gobi desert, why the americans are not smart enough to reverse the nevada desert? "oh! dont touch on nature natural process!" That excessive puritism are the reason americans dont want to reverse the desert. "Or grazing and logging, or desert" culture. The advance of the deserts in USA are not made by climate change... Are made by logging and grazzing suicidle culture. Plant trees, with some extra help, and you stop the advance of the desert, if you dont cut the trees, and stop all the bush fires. Logging and grazzing are not natural as well. Follow the scientists of the rest of the world to learn how they do it.

[@robw7205]

The fact that visible stories in the sponsor's ad are about UFOs really makes me question what news gets covered.

[@nazukum2]

As someone who was born and raised in Nevada, this video was both informational and inciteful. So much of my youth was spent wandering the deserts, not knowing the cultural or geopolitical aspects. It is truly a state where you lose yourself to find yourself

[@yammietits5040]

🤯🤯🤯

[@justsam7919]

Dehydration

[@openbook4231]

Black native American

[@dingusdingus2152]

Insightful

[@E4439Qv5]

​@@dingusdingus2152 Riotous

[@randallthomas5207]

When Nevada became a State, the New State was given 1/18th of the land. Roughly 6% of the land. Most of Nevada is dry and desolate. You must realize that Nevada was the last State in the lower 48, where you could homestead. No one was willing to homestead it, even when the requirements were loosened to eliminate growing crops, or even fencing. All you had to do was build a residence, and live on the property for five years. There were Damned few takers.

[@johannae2159]

by Trespass and Violence and you wonder why your amerikkkan children shoot up their schools 😂

[@felixwankel3989]

Is it still possible to homestead there?

[@randallthomas5207]

@@felixwankel3989 No, they ended it in the mid seventies. I moved to Boulder City in 1974, and had been there about a year when there was an article in the Newspaper, saying it had ended. As the affront edge of the Boomers retired, and started moving from California to Vegas, the BLM suddenly found that people were bidding if they auctioned off parcels in the Vegas Valley.

[@darealest2exist260]

Arizona was the last in the lower 48

[@jamesloghry8083]

Homesteaded there & gov ignored

[@terreniskelley7191]

Pretty good video. I grew up in a tiny town named Hawthorne, Nevada. We have a military depot there. Miles and miles of bunkers storing military ammunition. Also, a very big yet shrinking Walker Lake. Growing up in the Great Basin Desert is a unique experience. Fun fact: Most of Boundary Peak is in California only the summit is in Nevada, Wheeler Peak is the tallest mountain that's completely in Nevada.

[@nodebt6188]

Hawthorne has the smallest McDonald's I have ever seen.

[@superpumpkin1065]

I've been to that military town many times

[@terreniskelley7191]

@nodebt6188 LOL, true. In 1994, we were so happy to get one.

[@InterstateKyle]

I literally just did a video of Walker Lake and your town of Hawthorne on my channel. Feel free to check it out if you want.

[@johannae2159]

do you know Joe's Tavern & El Capitan over there my niece lives there & works at the Depot. I'm in Mason Valley aka Wovoka's water camp in a free country. 🐎🦌🦅

[@jonkaminsky8382]

Nevada was one of the last states I had left to explore after traveling around the country for the past 20 years. It didn’t take long for me to realize that it’s one of the most beautiful places on Earth.

[@Maxdubi]

Traveling the country is not “earth”

[@rogaineablar5608]

I'm surprised you didn't mention the reason Nevada is so dry, the rain shadow from the Sierra Nevada.

[@jwstocker1979]

Great Video Geoff, one correction - The Nevada test site is controlled by the Department of Energy rather than Defense. Some DOD work is done there but it is mostly associated with nuclear stuff.

[@MrOshirinoana]

They also did nuclear testing up until the early 90's; they didn't stop mid century.

[@patriley9449]

As a proud Nevadan, I am glad that much of our land is owned by the BLM. Most of these lands are accessible to the public for free camping, hiking and use of off-road vehicles. I recently went on a trip from western Nevada to Wisconsin and back covering 14 states. When I came back home, I was speaking to a friend who lives in California, and he asked which state was my favorite. Without hesitation I named my home state of Nevada. In northern Nevada we have 4 seasons with some snow in the winter and a few hot days during the summer, but most days are sunny and moderate. Our main problem in the state is an infestation of Californians migrating here and bringing their California ways with them. If you want things done like they were done in California, then move back or stay there in the first place. If you want to assimilate, welcome to Nevada.

[@lauratweed4081]

Out of curiosity can you elaborate on California ways? Can you give examples

[@Mk101T]

LOL as if telling people they can't come to Nevada with their California ways is going to deter them from doing just that ?!? We live in an age of showing people they are wrong just to see the look on their face . What rock have you been living under ? In which you would have been better off just keeping your pie hole shut about it :O Resistance is futile ... YOU WILL BE ASSIMILATED !!! Albeit go ahead and keep getting down on your knees to draw those red lines . But next time I step across it , I would like to get a shoe shine ;)

[@pointreyes4272]

I suppose you want more government regulations telling people where they can and cannot move to. Where does it end!

[@clarabellington]

Yup! Moved to San Diego for work from Nevada but am moving back soon. Miss it too much

[@pointreyes4272]

@@clarabellington That's great news. Thank you for moving out....greatly appreciated. Oh, BTW, please take a dozen or two of your friends with you.

[@jssomewhere6740]

Nevada is the most mountainous state in the lower US. Nevasa is a truly amazing place. It produces more gold than all but 4 or 5 countries in the world. It also has large copper and silver mines. Lithum is another that is in Nevada due to a vast majority of the State having once been covered by a huge fresh water lake. Pyramid Lake contains a fish species that are found in only one other place on the planet. They also take 20+ pound cutthroat trout out of that lake. Tahoe is in Nevada and California and is the 6th largest natural lake in the country behind the great lakes. Tahoe is also very deep at over 1600 feet in places. The Truckee river is one of the few rivers that never makes it to the ocean. It flows out of Tahoe and into Pyramid. Pyramid lake has no outlet so it is an alkaline lake it's considered fresh water but it tastes bad. With all the mining in Nevada there are more man made moutains in Nevada than anywhere else also. They mine an area and when they have sifted all the value out of the soil they build a new mountain out of it. There are small towns in Nevada that have never been connected to the power grid so the only electricity available is produced by the residents themselves. They have old style windmills that pumo water to towers that provide water to a group of homes or a ranch. Nevada is a very interesting place my family has lived in the state for more than 5 generations, so they were here before it was a state. We have been in the Truckee Meadows for 3 generations now. Most of the family has no intention of going anywhere any time soon. There are many more wonders in Nevada. Rhe difference between Nevada and most other places is you need to look a bit harder to see past the desert. Also be sure to bring along more than just a little water.😆😅🤣

[@cassiespencer6134]

"you need to look a bit harder to see past the desert" That's the truth! Because if not you won't last long. I've climbed all of the highest MTMs in the U.S. including Boundary Peak in NV (during the summer no less) which was not a good idea at the time, given the temp, since I had been in AK the previous seven months, climbing high altitude, glaciated Mts.

[@FlyingTigress]

Fun fact: The only reason that the Federal Government doesn't have control over more of Alaska is that the agreement was made that the nascent State government could pick sufficient land area to place under control for supporting the state's economy. A number of acres was picked by the State's representatives. However, there was no firm information was available as to the number of acres in the defined state boundaries. So, it turned out that when picking a number, they hoped that the requested area for state control wasn't greater than the actual number of acres. Turns out, there was WAY more land area in the state than was requested.

[@johnchedsey1306]

Over the years I've driven almost every major highway that crosses Nevada. As such, I instantly knew why the land is owned by the federal government. There just isn't much out there, which is precisely the beauty of it. I will also say for anyone who wants to explore the non-Reno/Vegas parts of the state, fill your gas tank whenever you have a chance and if you're vegan, you're going to miss out on some great steak and rib places. You can also stay at the Clown Motel in Tonopah.

[@graham974]

That clown motel looks creepy as hell! 🤡

[@johnchedsey1306]

@@graham974 Yeah, I haven't got the nerve to actually stay there. The Comfort Inn just up the road seemed like a much more peaceful choice.

[@newdefsys]

The only thing creepier than a clown is a mime.

[@MrTrapaholic33]

I’m sorry but that just goes to show that ur tastes is bad. There’s literally no good restaurants in Nv outside of vegas. And I wouldn’t even say the food is any good there.

[@ricardoxavier827]

Nevada has water enough to be a single large forest. With fire resist species, just needing the waterboxx help on the first years. Zone by zone, atracting more rain because of the new moisture created by the new trees pumping up gound water by the tree roots, same tree roots that open the soil to allow wazter to feed the groundsheets instead of disapearing by evaporation. If the chinese are smart enough to be able to reverse the gobi desert, why the americans are not smart enough to reverse the nevada desert? "oh! dont touch on nature natural process!" That excessive puritism are the reason americans dont want to reverse the desert. "Or grazing and logging, or desert" culture. The advance of the deserts in USA are not made by climate change... Are made by logging and grazzing suicidle culture. Plant trees, with some extra help, and you stop the advance of the desert, if you dont cut the trees, and stop all the bush fires. Logging and grazzing are not natural as well. Follow the scientists of the rest of the world to learn how they do it.

[@mset510]

Paiute has a silent "e" at the end. Lake Mead is ALSO managed by the National Park Service. It is our nation's 1st National Recreation Area

[@FreedomIsntFree2023]

Thank you for saying NEVADA the correct way!! We appreciate it!

[@2Oldcoots]

Nevada has no State Income Tax!!

[@mcpr5971]

Give the Californians a few more years, and once the tax cuts for huge businesses and stadium subsidies create huge shortages, they'll say "do it for the CHILDREN" and guilt trip the voters to enact a "small" tax. Anyone who opposes the tax will be "against children" so the choice will be so easy

[@tedpreston4155]

Geoff, a correction: the US Forest Service is NOT in the Department of Interior. It is in the Department of Agriculture. There's another important fact you never explained. The federal government wanted people to come settle Nevada, so they offered to give nearly all of the land in the state to anybody who came to live on it. Like the rest of the west, they used the Homestead Act to try and give the land away. The feds still own so much of the land simply because nobody would come and take it: it's just not land that can grow enough food to feed settlers, so the settlers never came, even when they could get the land for free. What we now call "BLM land" basically consists of the rest of the land in the arid west that settlers wouldn't take when the government offered to give it to them.

[@lourias]

This guy did not explain why the US government still owns the land. Thank you for explaining that.

[@johndoe-lr9if]

First thing I thought about... all the stolen land

[@stananderson4524]

People don't realize, most of these big western states have a lot land that is not suitable for growing crops, or even grazing.

[@abdallaha92]

9:39 The Forest Service is actually part of the US Department of Agriculture or USDA. Apparently the DOI used to be quite corrupt, so Theodore Roosevelt moved them to USDA. There have been many pushes to include the Forest Service in the DOI, since it follows a similar role with other agencies

[@randallthomas5207]

The Forest Service doesn’t have much in common with the Bovine Love Machine.

[@chadwells7562]

@@randallthomas5207I didn’t know they had that reputation, that’s a hilarious interpretation of the acronym

[@randallthomas5207]

@@chadwells7562 both Agencies, have a mission of capitalizing on the resources they manage, to the betterment of the United States. The major thing BLM does, is grazing leases. Which they lease at roughly one third, of the market value for similar private lands, and spend huge amounts of money improving the grazing allotments, such as fencing, developing water systems, etc.

[@frankmorris4790]

ROTFLMBidenO! Nothing's changed much, the Forest Circus is still a money grubbing, land grabbing parasites of D.C.

[@LDR1100RS]

I admirably refer to Nevada as "The Big Empty", though it is anything but. Thanks, Geoff. Nevada is one of my favorite places. Lots of room to wander.

[@williamweigt7632]

Answer begins 8:06

[@ioio5993]

Arizona is not too far behind with about 85% of the state owned by federal and state along with native american reservations.

[@danieldaniels7571]

It's even worse yet with the most recent federal land grab under the guide of making a new national monument.

[@zaiologyy]

Here in Vegas we always joke that the state tree is those orange road cones lol. We all go out and party on the dry lake beds, federal land is so awesome because you can just do what you want bc no one owns it.! 🥳 Thx for such an insightful & concise summary, much appreciated+

[@dogpatch75]

An informative video. Clarification: US Forest Service is under Agriculture not Interior. It is easy to mix up who does what in government agencies and many folks don't know the difference between agencies and their purposes! Its not uncommon to hear folks confuse state parks with national parks, national parks with national forests, etc.

[@cacogenicist]

There were definitely people in Nevada earlier than 12k years ago. Not far across the border, in Oregon, there's a site called Rimrock Draw with human activity that has an uncontroversial date of a bit over 18,000 years.

[@caseclosed9342]

I used to live in Nevada and yeah the Bureau of Land Management is like a second state government there…

[@mattgoettl6796]

I love this channel! Ever since I discovered it I'm a "watch the day it's uploaded" kinda guy with your videos. You have interesting topics, great visualizations, and a voice that's nice to listen to. I'm glad you're making content on KZbin! Keep up the great work and I'll keep watching!

[@jesse_-]

How can the government own land? That would make it the peoples land, making it public land. When someone owns land, it’s considered private. Do you mean that the federal government controls that land?

[@theinfant]

Awesome video! On the topic of empty land, I'd love to see a video on the Canadian territories. Think it would be super cool!

[@gmw3083]

They burned down. End of story?

[@ya8158]

@@gmw3083 that’s like a tiny little fraction of Canada. Canadas humongous and yet it’s majority populated right near the United States at its southern border mostly in the south east of Canada with another bit of population in the south west. The rest of Canada is almost entirely empty meaning that it’s probably owned by the government hence the question what goes on there in a land larger than the US with like 90% empty land

[@glenstephenson6787]

Thank you Geoff for another great informative video!

[@workaholic5318]

Why does the federal government own large swaths of Nevada? Because they cannot seem to pry their grubby paws off the levers of control. The state of Nevada and nevadans can easily administer these lands.

[@theontologist]

You hate democratic government of, by, and for ALL the people, not just you.

[@danstrayer111]

they own it because when it became the property of the United States, there was no "State of Nevada". It was a territory. Learn a little American history before posting.

[@theontologist]

@@danstrayer111That is true of most states. Cite links instead of expecting people to blindly believe you.

[@danstrayer111]

@@theontologist the question was "Why does the federal government own these lands". The answer to that is NOT "because they can't take their grubby hands off of control'.

[@theontologist]

@@danstrayer111 You are projecting again. Ask yourself why the whole world around you looks grubby. It's in the eye of the beholder.

[@henlohenlo689]

Vegas and reno are the 2 main developed areas because both near big bodies of water and still relatively close to califormias farms. Other than that trees water and animals make for more ideal situation to inhabit humans to coexist. So most of nevada is not ideal condition to develop it for humans.

[@davidelcess6559]

What about Puhrump??

[@jkh2180]

Joshua Trees can be found in the Great Basin Desert too. Even on the outskirts of it.

[@pkrangersf3072]

The US Forest Service is not under the Department of the Interior. It is under the Department of Agriculture. You also forgot the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, who is the third land agency under the Department of the Interior and manages the National Wildlife Refuges in the state.

[@jeffhildreth9244]

No fair posting facts.. don't want to contest the ill informed charlatan presenter.

[@ricardoxavier827]

Nevada has water enough to be a single large forest. With fire resist species, just needing the waterboxx help on the first years. Zone by zone, atracting more rain because of the new moisture created by the new trees pumping up gound water by the tree roots, same tree roots that open the soil to allow wazter to feed the groundsheets instead of disapearing by evaporation. If the chinese are smart enough to be able to reverse the gobi desert, why the americans are not smart enough to reverse the nevada desert? "oh! dont touch on nature natural process!" That excessive puritism are the reason americans dont want to reverse the desert. "Or grazing and logging, or desert" culture. The advance of the deserts in USA are not made by climate change... Are made by logging and grazzing suicidle culture. Plant trees, with some extra help, and you stop the advance of the desert, if you dont cut the trees, and stop all the bush fires. Logging and grazzing are not natural as well. Follow the scientists of the rest of the world to learn how they do it.

[@Jake-yx7ct]

Very informative about state vs Fed land ownership. I have plans to drive HiWay 50 the Loneliest Road in America before end of this year.

[@jag92949]

It’s completely empty. Gas stations are 100 miles apart.

[@johnchedsey1306]

It's a unique drive! I've done it about 3 times now. Just be sure to pay attention to your gas gauge and be aware in the winter, those mountain passes can get a little treacherous in a snow storm. Ely has some good restaurants, incidentally.

[@MrOshirinoana]

Area 51 is only called Area 51 because the DOE has the land divided into grid points on their map for the entire Test Site. Groom Lake happens to be in Area 51 so that's how the name got stuck. The research facility is not called Area 51.

[@TheDavidlloydjones]

One of the most unique states? Yup. 17.3% uniquer than North Dakota.

[@dhrracer]

Does the federal government own anything or do they just control and manage it? If you think of the federal government as "The People" then yes.

[@KentuckyMills]

PUBLIC LAND. not federal. It doesn't belong to the federal government. It belongs to the people of the United States.

[@theontologist]

The people are the federal government. You oppose government of, by, and for the people; you support anarchy.

[@KentuckyMills]

@@theontologist whatever you say dude. Have blessed day.

[@diegomontoya8889]

Due to my extensive travels between Washington State and Arizona, I have traversed almost every part of Nevada. I still enjoy the eastern Nevada highway 93 and the high desert city of Ely (pronounced EEE-lee) and one time I decided to go straight north of Tonipah, to see the Toiyabe Mountain Range, before getting to America's loneliest highway, US 50, and ultimately heading north to Winnemucca, and thento Southeast Oregon and the Steen Mountains. My last bucket list area is the Ruby Mountains and Elko. I have heard Elko is a really cool place, maybe even a niceplace to retire.

[@RWM56]

I live in Elko, Nevada for 4 years as a well driller. We did wells for gold mine and for oil rig the one thing they don’t mention the oil, houses too

[@ctguitarguy8510]

That's where a lot of military bases are, including area 51 and others. They don't want regulars living their much outside of vegas anyway.

[@maisiestar3696]

Great video Geoff! Boundary Peak is not in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, it is instead in the White Mountains

[@PresAlexWhit]

I am very glad that the US citizens own so much desert and sand.

[@jeffhildreth9244]

US citizens do NOT own Nevada, it is still owned by the Washoe, Shoshone and Paiutes. They never gave it up and never signed a treaty relinquishing their property. They allowed it to be traversed, not stolen. The law suit continues to this day. As to desert and sand, I'll be polite, you are full of vaca caca and have obviously never been there or lived there. Before the invasion by Californians , mostly former government employees wallowing in their obscene retirement, it was the finest state in the Union. Now East LA and San Jose. And the "Burning Man" was the death knell.

[@johnchedsey1306]

I am too. I love visiting the desert and its sand.

[@TuddsCrapshoot]

Actually, most of the Nevada desert is sagebrush, not sand.

[@inhabitantwaps3qs803]

its more gravel than sand

[@bpark222]

That's interesting. I would have though that, despite its size, a higher percentage of alaska would be federally owned considering how it wad obtained, its landscape and weather, and abundant natural resources, though the general lack of exploitable land in nevada does lend itself to being federally managed for other purposes as you explained.

[@jessiesheldon-huffey1824]

One of the biggest reasons the federal government has seized land in the western United States ( the government was not ever intended to own land BTW) is that that land and the resources ( mining, etc) is being used as collateral in several government loans - France, Russia and China were lenders- which is scary to think about) hope we don't default on the loans, that would open the door to the collateral being taken by these other countries

[@revenadawson3910]

That explains all the questions I have had over this land grab by foreign countries in the USA.

[@theontologist]

False, unsubstantiated gossip. Cite factual sources, please.

[@danstrayer111]

the US government has NEVER "seized" lands. They own these lands from a variety of treaties and purchases. Louisiana Purchase, Mexican war, and British Treaty dealing with northwestern territories. ALL of these federal lands became part of the US BEFORE these were states.

[@jessiesheldon-huffey1824]

@@danstrayer111 I guess they didn't seize these lands from the native Americans either.... wow.....

[@danstrayer111]

@@jessiesheldon-huffey1824 they did. what does that have to do with it? The point is, none of it ever belonged to the individual states. They did not exist as political entities. Land in the northwest was British, then US government. Louisiana purchase was French, then US gov't. The rest belonged to Mexico, which we actually paid for, like Louisiana Purchase. At no time were there any states from which the US government "seized" land. This is a right wing fairy tale.

[@SharksSJ408]

Same reason a lot of southern AZ is owned by the Feds. Plenty of open land to use as military proving grounds. If you scroll through the area on Google maps you’ll see tons of dirt roads leading out to mock airfields and buildings that the Air Force uses for target practice.

[@ShadowOfTheVoid]

Actually, the Constitution does not have any population requirements for statehood. The 60,000 people requirement was mandated by the Northwest Ordinance of 1787. I'm not sure if that's still in force, but it most certainly isn't something required by the Constitution.

[@jeffhildreth9244]

Consider the source.. Robot Man is woefully uninformed.

[@rodprops]

LOL

[@rogerpenske2411]

My understanding is that area 51 and Creech air force base are both under the authority of Nellis Air Force Base

[@EdandEdGoFishingWithoutEd]

Correction: Boundary Peak is not in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. It is in the White Mountains. You also need to find out how to pronounce Paiute.

[@blech71]

The geology of Nevada is what got me into it. There’s so much to talk about and most interesting is how all the grabens that make up Nv have a tie into the Yellowstone hotspot moreover the thinness of the crust that makes up Nv is also interesting on how Ca & Nv were squashed together and as the plates to the west subducted under spread both out to how wide they are today. Naturally thats just a small snapshot in geologic time and there’s so much more that happened and is going on now.

[@rachelraccoon5565]

You make it sound so sexy!

[@pkrangersf3072]

Boundary Peak is not apart of the Sierra Nevada. It is a part of the White Mountains.

[@jeffhildreth9244]

Consider the source, Robot Man who is clueless about the state.

[@rodprops]

LoL

[@jmccoomber1659]

I disagree that a single 9-day festival on a dry lake in northwestern Nevada exemplifies Nevada's cultural diversity. I think the numerous native American tribes and ghost towns, amazing desert and landscapes (including the lower Grand Canyon at the top of Lake Mead, Lake Tahoe, the northern end of Death Valley, and the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountains), and the many, many, many museums, exhibits, and art installations in Las Vegas and elsewhere have significantly more cultural and historical significance than Burning Man.

[@NamesGolden]

Most of those art installations were probably originally developed for the burn or by burners.

[@mcpr5971]

The natives aren't very diverse. Most of their time is spent at home collecting government subsidies or running no brainer businesses like fireworks, weed, and tobacco shops.

[@itookallthenames]

I you believe in aliens I have a sagebrush to sell you

[@led_farmer]

On behalf of all the west coast.. thank you for pronouncing NevAda correctly!

[@jahrasta4907]

New to this channel but subscribed already. Good stuff, well presented.

[@bobs2809]

Actually around 14% of Nevada is privately owned as is 60% of the United States. Seems strange that there is no mention of private ownership in such a video.

[@realstatistician]

Hi Geoff. From what I know, the state was required to hand over it’s land when it became a state. The western (newer) states had a lot less negotiating power than the early ones, so they acquiesced, with the promise that the land remaining after the homestead act would be given back to the state. (You’ll notice that the western states have way more public land than the eastern and and Midwest states.) Much land was not claimed, as it was difficult to homestead because of the desert climate (requiring significant water management and maintenance, like canals and reservoirs). Fast forward 200 years, and the land still remains in the possession of the federal government. Which is unfortunate, because states manage their land better than the federal government does. It’s as straightforward as leverage and a broken promise.

[@richardbirger2245]

you left out 3 other significant public land holdings managed by US Dept of the Interior; Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge, Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge and Desert National Wildlife Refuge which was created in 1936 to provide habitat and protection for desert bighorn sheep and other desert wildlife, Desert NWR is the largest wildlife refuge outside of Alaska. At 1.6 million acres (643,000 hectares), the refuge can cover Rhode Island twice - and still have enough room left over for a quarter of a million football fields. Teeming with diversity over a vast landscape, Desert NWR boasts over 500 plant species as it transitions from the Mojave to the Great Basin Desert.

[@DrinkingmeadwithsamAdams]

We need to change this

[@PelicanQueef]

That’s cause there are subterranean river tunnels going from Bay Area to Nevada( and beyond) entirely underground

[@TheUrbanOrganism]

Such an excellent channel Geoff. Well done!

[@jeffhildreth9244]

You swallowed the kool aid.. he is at best ill informed. I seriously doubt he has ever set foot in the state.

[@TheUrbanOrganism]

@@jeffhildreth9244 present the content then. Debate on content. Why you gotta be so destructive/negative? As if that's in short supply... Geoff puts his best foot forward to create interesting content for niche topics. Geography ain't exactly mainstream, right? So, rather than tear him down (the easy job), present your opposing view. That's how debate works.

[@erents1]

Surprising how many people squat on Federal Land in Nevada. I lived on the Nevada State line for 40 years and I think I learned more about it here in this ten minutes.

[@venpeddapalli7189]

Reminds me of a trip we took way back in 2013 on the Christmas eve from Twin Falls, Idaho to Las Vegas, Nevada in an all night drive on Route 93 while the temperatures plummeted to negative(minus) 43 degrees. There were zero people and vehicles on the road(due to Holiday or otherwise) and I was so scared we were going to freeze to death in the middle of nowhere. My Jeep GC was the MVP for the night.

[@allon33]

Not saying it is aliens, but it is aliens.

[@aaaaaa2206]

In Nevada there is Area 51, S4. Nuclear testing grounds, D.U.M.B.S. This is why the government owns the land.

[@acp7328]

Does The Fed pay property tax to Nevada Counties which collect such tax?

[@DovahTank]

Just fyi, you said the the other Tribe names so nicely but Paiute is pronounced py-oot / paiju:t/ . Thank you!

[@Cwarnershapes72]

51 years I’ve seen lots along the TRI state & into Baja ‘ northern Mexico 🇲🇽 I have off roaded and seen everything except lake Powell

[@mcflurrybutts4927]

US federal workers getting retirement for managing a literal desert. I am signing up 😂

[@FXwashere]

Theory: The US Federal Government uses Area 51 to create the newest American state, explaining why no more states were created recently.

[@dogpatch75]

Wow! That's a real head scratcher!

[@zeitgeistx5239]

Tell that to Puerto Rico.

[@jd190d]

Well, yes. The Space Aliens control the government and they started their tourist business in Nevada and just like to hang out there, that's why the Federal Alien government owns so much of Nevada. Even Space Aliens need a place to hang out. I can't tell you how I know this is true, but it makes more sense than some other ideas.

[@ricardoxavier827]

Nevada has water enough to be a single large forest. With fire resist species, just needing the waterboxx help on the first years. Zone by zone, atracting more rain because of the new moisture created by the new trees pumping up gound water by the tree roots, same tree roots that open the soil to allow wazter to feed the groundsheets instead of disapearing by evaporation. If the chinese are smart enough to be able to reverse the gobi desert, why the americans are not smart enough to reverse the nevada desert? "oh! dont touch on nature natural process!" That excessive puritism are the reason americans dont want to reverse the desert. "Or grazing and logging, or desert" culture. The advance of the deserts in USA are not made by climate change... Are made by logging and grazzing suicidle culture. Plant trees, with some extra help, and you stop the advance of the desert, if you dont cut the trees, and stop all the bush fires. Logging and grazzing are not natural as well. Follow the scientists of the rest of the world to learn how they do it.

[@inhabitantwaps3qs803]

@@ricardoxavier827 A lot of the mountains in nevada are covered in trees but the chinese cant be trusted they are not expanding forests into the gobi desert or i highly doubt it since when did china care about climate change and natural ecosystems. You would have to redirect rivers into nevada valleys there isnt the proper irrigation thats why the shrubs grow roots up to 30 feet deep to collect groundwater because it doesnt rain nearly enough and it gets way to hot. It would be easier in the northern parts of nevada i gues but still it would require a lot of funding and need a valid purpose.

[@TheBEARofHIGHWAY1]

Nevada in 2093: We're leaving the United States and starting our own country. USA in 2093: Good luck on your tiny country, we own basically all of it losers. Nevada in 2094 after leaving the USA: Dang. They did own it all. We're smaller than Vermont. 🤣

[@jonathanbowers8964]

Nevada is pretty much just Las Vegas, Reno/Carson City, and Desert.

[@ya8158]

If Nevada became a country minus the federal land it would be a bunch of separate territories since the inhabited land is not touching each other and hours drives between them. I could hear one of the territories becoming independent like Vegas but the entirety of Nevada becoming independent together is super unlikely (besides the fact that independence in the first place is unlikely lmao)

[@shaynewhite1]

I lived in California most of my life and as far as I was concerned, civilization ended at Highway 395. Anything beyond that was No Man's Land.

[@sallysorrentino4013]

I was so excited to find ur channel & binge watch ur geography videos until I quickly realized MY BRAIN CANT KEEP UP WITH HOW FAST U TALK 😳😔

[@Mike-ge7pe]

You can reduce the video’s speed in the settings menu. Not much loss of quality at 75% playback speed

[@joycegonzalez4704]

Lived in Vegas for 20 years... learned more in this video that I knew for the lady two decades

[@RadianceRush]

I love Nevada! Thank you for the video.

[@keithsparling5537]

Idaho is 62% federally owned.... So they let all the forest go.... never maintaining them, and the wonder why they burst into flames! So what IS the plan for this federally owned land? I'd like to hear the reasonning for the Federal government Owning this unused land.... Id like to hear the plan behind it all....

[@du24pont70]

It's written in the Constitution, that the government is to own only 5 square miles per state and 10 square miles in D.C. So why do they own 86% of Nevada???

[@danstrayer111]

No, it is not in the Constitution. Read it again

[@Frankybroadcast]

The federal government has no right to any land.

[@Havilah_Springs]

Just a point of interest: Nevada's moto is "Battle Born," and the reason it became a state was it is rich in silver and the Union did not want the silver and it's riches to fall into the hands of the South. Being a former member of the USAF and stationed at Nellis AFB, NV, I can tell you that the military owns a lot more of the state than has been revealed.

[@brentwilbur]

You didn't really discuss _why_ it is owned, only _that_ it is owned.

[@Default78334]

TL;DR the land was so barren and desolate that the government literally couldn't give it away under the Homestead Act.

[@WilliamNewberryTheHandyRealtor]

My family has owned almost 32 acres in Dixie valley for 30 years now the navy is forcing my mother to sell to the navy.

[@MrCard031584]

The federal government doesnt own Nevadas land it manages it. The federal government isnt allowed to own land except forts

[@theontologist]

False. Even the state government acknowledges that the land is owned by the federal government. www.leg.state.nv.us/Division/Research/Publications/PandPReport/35-PLGNR.pdf

[@williamhild1793]

I have heard that at The Burning Man festival people have been known to smoke marijuana.

[@LDR1100RS]

SAY IT AINT SO!

[@sli-fox]

I just drove through Nevada this week. Worst roads I’ve experienced. Vegas freeways are nowhere near flat. It was like driving over waves frozen in the road. Very unimpressed with Nevada.

[@theontologist]

Great highways require either high state population to pay adequate taxes, or higher federal taxes.

[@terrycarver1255]

The real reason is GOLD. If anyone hits a major gold vein, politicians will come in and take it from you.

[@theontologist]

False. We already know from detailed surveys that there is no gold.

[@dgjessee]

The US Forest Service is under the department of agriculture, not the interior

[@mcswain04]

Interesting video. Heads up that the U.S. Forest Service is part of the Department of Agriculture (it's actually on that logo you posted) rather than the interior.

[@engine6944]

The BLM and NPS are dept of the interior. The Forest Service is Dept of Agriculture. Please update your information.

[@paulsholar9356]

Another funny historical fact about about Nevada is, after Nevada Territory was split off from the larger Utah Territory, its eastern boundary was moved to the east (thus reducing the size of Utah Territory) two different times by Congress to punish the Utahns (maybe for their stubborn adherence to polygamy). One of those boundary changes happened after a large mineral deposit was discovered close to that border in western Utah Territory.

[@Wcamp172]

Could you imagine having videos like this during school when you had to write a report on Nevada or any of his other videos.

[@wingingittracy8508]

by the us constitution the federal government may not own more than 10 squaremiles per state , Art I, Sect. 8, Clause 17 .

[@danstrayer111]

totally wrong

[@fredharvey2720]

Waiting to get my official notification of getting on the list to tour the Nevada Test Site. YEAH BABY

[@ZenHulk]

I use to like you, but when you did my home state, Nevada you hit me. First being a 3rd generation local of northern Nevada, we only accept Vegas as part of Nevada as far as it keeps people from coming north. My mother grew up on an Indian Colony/Reservation they call it now in Winnemucca in the 50s and she watched Nevada grow until her death in 2019. Northern Nevada was stuff of dreams in the 70s when i was growing up until people in San Francisco discovered that dream and Reno where we lived exploded from 70,000 to 400,000 in my high school years. I think the one thing you really left out which Nevada is most known for is the wild mustangs running all over the state, its beautiful and dangerous to see them out there. Also Burning Man is a hippy scourge on our state, that leaves more destruction than its worth. Also i don't know how you do a show like this without experiencing it, so you're pretty much reading WIKI whatever its called now, and making a video. I challenge you to drive hwy50 from Tahoe in Nevada to hwy95 and south and experience it. I will let you know in HIKE Nevada i have witness a UFO while traveling to Disneyland from Elko as a child, but we found out a decade later they were testing flying the F117 Stealth fighter and F14 out of Groom Lake. Nevada needs to be experienced not at 80mph or sitting on a chair playing slots. North of Austin Nevada about 30 miles there's a place names Skull Creek, a farm in my family, that i have not been to in decades can you believe in the middle of a hostile desert, there are 50,000 Hereford Cattle and several thousand acres of Alfalfa, and so many miles of fencing, it took more than a day to drive it, that's where i learned to drive, driving a Swather or Alfalfa cutter, avoiding snakes and other things that wanted to hurt us. That ranch due to a very old man has a cement bunker in it, with mounts for a world war 1 machine gun, because he thought in World War 2, the Japanese were going to attack the middle of nowhere Nevada. Its peaceful, its wild, and its Nevada.

[@daetsmaj]

I really appreciated your comment. You’re right about Nevada needing to be experienced. It really is one of a kind in natural beauty. And hidden treasures all across the landscape

[@CandycaneBeyond]

Its also one of the most popular places to go in the winter for RV'ers.

[@sjsupa]

I am not sure I get the answer of " Why The VAST MAJORITY Of Nevada Is Owned By The Federal Government". Can someone tell me which portion of video gives the legal reasons?

[@gregorylincoln4328]

I always thought Ben and the Cartwrights owned most of Nevada. 😉

[@Robert-fx1lr]

They own nothing that will help them in the end

[@edgarsnake2857]

News to me. Great video. Thanks.

[@mybirds2525]

The reason is that The Homestead Act did not set up for getting land to people except by farms.

[@kurtru5selcrowe607]

I just wanted to know why the Federal government owned so much land in Nevada. Instead a got a Wikipedia article regurgitated at me for 10 minutes…

[@danstrayer111]

the feds own it because they fought the war from which it was gained...the Mexican American war. Nevada was NOT a state at that time.

[@robinboyle5667]

I had an incredible UFO experience in Nevada in 1958. I'll never forget it.

[@f42un84u]

Land is not owned by the federal government. It is managed as a trustee for the American citizens. US citizen taxpayers own all land managed by the federal government. See US Constitution.

[@cometcal2]

What you say is the way it should be.

[@theontologist]

False. According to the state government of Nevada, the federal government owns the land. www.leg.state.nv.us/Division/Research/Publications/PandPReport/35-PLGNR.pdf

[@theontologist]

And the federal government IS the people of the United States. Your problem is that you hate representative republicanism. You think your vote matters more than that of fellow Americans.