Nye County Water District advances Pahrump rapid infiltration basins plan

Nye County Water District has moved its Pahrump rapid infiltration basins plan from concept to engineering, selecting GCW Inc. to design up to three dual-purpose basins that would capture stormwater runoff, cut flooding and send water back into Nevada Hydrographic Basin 162.

The district chose the firm after a request for qualifications that closed Friday, April 17, 2026, at 1 p.m. PST and drew six companies. A five-person review panel evaluated the submissions before landing on GCW Inc., giving the project its first formal design team after months of planning work funded by a federal grant.

The work now ahead is more than a paper exercise. Under the district’s RFQ, the consultant will prepare final engineering design packages at the 90% level for up to three rapid infiltration basins in the Town of Pahrump. The Bureau of Reclamation grant that supports the effort, WaterSMART Planning and Project Design Grant R25AP00577, covers design only and does not pay for construction.

That leaves the district with a clear but incomplete path. Officials say the plan is meant to solve two long-running Pahrump Valley problems at once: floodwater rushing out of the Spring Mountains and groundwater depletion in a valley that depends heavily on Basin 162. The district has described the project as part of its broader mission to develop sustainable water sources vital to long-term economic development, environmental protection and resident well-being.

The grant-funded planning and design phase is scheduled to run through December 2027, with possible extensions if additional funding becomes available. In practical terms, that means residents should expect more engineering before any shovels hit the ground. GCW Inc. is expected to review proposed sites, identify which are most feasible and effective, and build construction cost estimates into the design package.

The next hurdles are technical and regulatory. The district’s bid documents say the consultant may need site-specific geotechnical testing, and the firm will also have to coordinate with federal funding requirements. District materials do not call for floodplain modeling, though officials said that work could still be useful as the project advances.

The idea itself is not new in Nye County. A 2017 groundwater plan evaluation included flood detention rapid infiltration basin conversion among the concepts under review, and in March 2016 the district’s governing board approved RIB construction in areas of declining water levels for flood control and aquifer replenishment. What has changed now is the funding and the structure: the county has a federal planning grant, a selected engineering firm and a defined design process.

Even so, the central question remains whether the basins will deliver measurable relief for Pahrump’s groundwater future or simply add another expensive layer of planning. That question matters even more as the water district has also advanced a separate ordinance proposal involving data centers in the Pahrump Valley because of water concerns, underscoring how tightly supply, growth and development remain linked in Nye County.