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Randy Watkins

@bluetortoise3.bsky.social
2.9K followers 1.8K following 617 posts

Lead Field Biologist on large water and power projects in the Eastern Mojave, from 1999-2010 for the Southern Nevada Water Authority. Link: www.snwa.com/infrastructure-improve…

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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 43m
Midterm election stress is wearing on people.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Sometimes I want to cry or fall apart. It is so hard to fight back.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Oh, you stayed at the bad place. 😬 It was all bad. Yes Las Vegas has to follow federal and state law regarding Endangered or Threatened species protection. Is it easy for them to do? To follow state and federal Endangered or Threatened Species Management guidelines? No. It’s cheaper to fight.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
A combat medic is a hard job. I heard a lot about it during Vietnam, through the AFRN radio network and their newsletters. My dad, a career officer who was a Navigator and Electronic Warfare Officer on B-52 D aircraft refused to serve overseas. Props to him.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
I remember Frank (Lefty) Rosenthal, who was the basis for Robert De Niro’s character in Casino. He was a prominent figure in Las Vegas. A major promoter of sports gambling, Rosenthal secretly ran the Stardust, Fremont, Marina, and Hacienda casinos when they were controlled by the Chicago Outfit.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
My dad was a career Air Force officer and stationed Nellis AFB. I am involved with a whole different side of Las Vegas my friend.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
I’m glad you find it interesting. Please enjoy a few more photos of the Lake Mead Bighorn Sheep herd:
A young male bighorn  ram at Lake Mead National Recreation Area Female bighorns grazing on the ROW for the SNWA water projects.A male and female bighorn on the SNWA ROW projects at Lake Mead.One of the herds of bighorn sheep at Lake Mead.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Check out the map that the Center for Western Priorities created, which shows every project that the National Park Service has downgraded or canceled. 🌍 @westernpriorities.org
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
“Meanwhile, White House priorities, including projects tied to President Donald Trump’s Freedom 250 initiative, were given a new, top-priority status. That list included the $16 million botched effort to paint the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool blue”. westernpriorities.org/resource/map...
westernpriorities.org
MAP: The national park projects the Trump administration labeled "low priority" - Center for Western Priorities
Earlier this year, National Park Service headquarters in Washington shifted about 1,500 projects, many already approved, to a new “low priority” list, the Associated Press reported in August. The proj...
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Today is the Power To The People music festival, a celebration of peace, love, justice, music and community action. MS NOW LIVE EXCLUSIVE: "POWER TO THE PEOPLE" with Springsteen, Foo Fighters, Tom Morello and more! powertothepeoplefest.com/livestream
powertothepeoplefest.com
Power To The People
October 3, 2026 • Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD • A Day of Peace, Love, Justice, and Music
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
The wildlife in the River Mountain includes badgers, skunks, desert tortoises, kit foxes, Gila monsters, and a few mountain lions. It’s an interesting area, and one of the main reasons the trail system was built.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
We also worked on the construction of the River Mountain LoopTrail.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
I was 1 of ~ 14 wildlife biologists who worked on the construction of the water supply system between Lake Mead and the Las Vegas Valley. The River Mountain, which sits between the two, has one of the biggest herds of bighorn sheep in the state, ~200, that wandered through. rivermountainstrail.org
The River Mountain Loop Trail.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
I worked out there from 1999 to 2010.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
A Ram scrapes his horns to clean them in Lake Mead.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
These are from Lake Mead, when I worked out there,
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Happy birthday!
They say it’s your birthday!
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Reposted by Randy Watkins
Western Environmental Law Center @westernlaw.org · 02/10/2026
150 days for public review not being enough time IS THE POINT in order to kill any resistance to data centers, fossil fuel pipelines/power plants, or anything else oligarchs want to put within spitting distance of your home, water supply, whatever. This is billionaires saying shut up and take it.
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Erik Schlenker-Goodrich @riogranderift.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Listen, @adamjentleson.bsky.social, you willfully ignorant fool. The idea that a bill that radically transforms the entire domain of energy & environmental protection should not be assessed on a single reductionist metric that hides massive fossil fuel entrenchment should not be in dispute.
Jentleson: "It’s instructive to see groups ostensibly dedicated to fighting climate change say they don’t think a bill should be judged by whether it reduces carbon emissions" quote posting an excerpt of from a leaked transcript of a call as follows: "Yeah. So we we made. We made the point that this bill should not be judged just
based on a net emissions analysis, and that that sweeps aside ecological and
community values. So there was an ask about what that. look like? So that would be a
good thing for folks to ponder as they're engaging in offices. Like, we'd like to
see… and what we… and then, so as an example, we said we'd love an assessment to…
we'd love an assessment to see what this means for public lands. You know, how many
data centers would this open the doors to? How much additional fossil fuel
development would this open the door to? How would this impact habitat quality on
public land? So focusing on that public land side of the equation and the
infrastructure that would be built on public lands. But that's that's just one
domain, you know. You could see it also with imperiled species or environmental
justice. I don't know what those analyses look like at that level. But I think
that's something that we could push."
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Tour the historic Walking Box Ranch, the former Nevada home of silent-film stars Clara Bow and Rex Bell. Located near Searchlight, Nevada, the ranch was purchased by Rex Bell in 1931 and became a working cattle ranch and a retreat for the famous couple. www.friendsofavikwaame.org/events/tourw...
friendsofavikwaame.org
Tour of Walking Box Ranch (10/14/26) — Friends of Avi Kwa Ame National Monument
Join us for a tour of the historic Walking Box Ranch on 11/6/26 - home to silent film stars Clara Bow and Rex Bell.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I’m looking forward to your SiriusXM channel and whatever special goodies you have in store. www.siriusxm.com/blog/talking...
siriusxm.com
Talking Heads Radio: Listen to the New SiriusXM Channel
Talking Heads Radio launches October 1, featuring music, stories, and a rare conversation with all four band members.
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Desert Research Institute @driscience.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Where does a DRI archaeologist go when they want to hit the trail? 🥾 For #PublicLandsDay, Megan Stueve shares three of her favorite hikes on public lands! Explore Nevada from wherever you are with DRI’s Virtual Outdoor Experiences: dri.edu/voe #VirtualOutdoorExperiences #DiscoverDRI
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Grist @grist.org · 24/09/2026
Trump cut their climate jobs. This secretive network found them new ones.
dlvr.it
Trump cut their climate jobs. This secretive network found them new ones.
Climate Reserve is quietly building a lifeline for America's lost climate workforce, one job at a time.
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Dr. Lucky Tran @luckytran.com · 24/09/2026
Joining global advocates for clean air at the UN today! ✊
Lucky at the Healthy Indoor air event at the UNAdvocates at Healthy Indoor Air in schools at the UN
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Anything worth doing is worth doing over and over until its soul is sucked out, leaving an empty hole.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I’m waiting for the opportunity to bet my first born against the house.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
We will trash talk leaders, especially our own leaders, that’s why we are Americans, so we can trash talk them in particular.
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Christy Wagner @com1ty.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
The Nation, Oct 2026 A Letter From Hell Locked in an ICE detention Center "If this could happen to us, a law-abiding family of two professors and a young boy, it could happen to anyone." www.thenation.com/article/soci...
thenation.com
One Woman’s Message From the Hell of ICE Detention
My husband, son, and I have been locked up for months—despite being permanent residents with no criminal record. It is an unendurable, unending nightmare.
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Lee West @whodat35.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
A journalist once barred from the White House says this media ban is different "Jim Acosta knows what it is like to be kicked out of the White House." | NPR www.npr.org/2026/09/22/n...
npr.org
A journalist once barred from the White House says this media ban is different
Jim Acosta has already been through a White House press-pass fight. Now, three news organizations are barred, and he says the press is showing solidarity that should have come sooner.
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Mark Hamill @markhamillofficial.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
After banning CNN, MS NOW & Politico from the White House, he installs State-Run television, just like they have in so many other countries... Sieg Heil, ya'll. #38Days 🌊
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Charlotte Clymer @charlotteclymer.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Day One of the 2026 Clinton Global Initiative — started off at the Narrative & Storytelling Working Session. Loved seeing all these great leaders gather together and exchange notes. @clintonglobal.bsky.social
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Uh, yeah, we did that already… and they are CONTRAILS www.epa.gov/regulations-...
epa.gov
Information on Contrails from Aircraft | US EPA
Fact sheet on Contrails from Aircraft from EPA and the U.S. Air Force.
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Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility @peer.org · 17/09/2026
Under Lee Zeldin’s leadership, EPA has instituted a culture of fear, destroyed its science and environmental programs, and betrayed its mission. From defending fired EPA staff to fighting PFAS pollution in court, learn how PEER is fighting back. ow.ly/OxTt50ZNAnY
ow.ly
EPA Turns Against Its Own Mission — How We Fight Back - PEER.org
Under Administrator Lee Zeldin’s leadership, EPA has betrayed its basic mission in order to please a few select powerful industries.
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DrArchivalGenomics @ehekkala.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
🧪🌏🧬🦠😡👇🗳️
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Acyn @acyn.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Kaepernick says Trump tried to get him to the White House after publicly attacking him. “What was relayed to me was the outreach that came from Van Jones… it was immediately rejected. Again, this is after him going out publicly and trying to target me and my employment.“
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Ed Maibach @maibached.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
What goes up... 👇
open.substack.com
The Atmosphere Just Set a Water Vapor Record
More water vapor means more rocket fuel for extreme rain — so this record is not good news
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
“The changes appear to most affect Joshua Tree National Park, which had at least 10 planned partnership agreements blocked. That park’s partnership agreements would have hired at least 16 people, helped recover areas in the park burned in wildfires.” wapo.st/4xLRrfP
wapo.st
Trump administration blocks $25 million in funding for national parks
The Interior Department did not give approval to more than 130 partnership agreements covering activities like tending to sled dogs and preventing damage to burial mounds.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
On Sept 11, 2001, my work for the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) as an Authorized Biologist overseeing construction of new facilities at Lake Mead changed. It was reclassified as critical water infrastructure and a potential terrorist target. Still is. www.nevadaappeal.com/news/2026/se...
nevadaappeal.com
Terrorists strike on American soil
On an early September morning on the East Coast, 19 Arab hijackers commandeered four passenger jets and then crashed two into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, another into the Pentagon and t...
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
We must build a broad coalition to defeat Trumpism, I don't care what some Bluesky weirdos have to say about it. I've worked with federally protected wildlife, some of them really unpopular to protect because they were in the way of development, since 1990. I know the need to build broad coalitions.
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Tom Nichols @radiofreetom.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
I promise to be different! I promise to be unique! I promise not to repeat things other people say! Trump's vow was....weird. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
theatlantic.com
Trump’s Weird Loyalty Pledge
In a night of wild emotions and odd ideas, one moment stood out.
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James Talarico @jamestalarico.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
This is the interview Trump’s FCC doesn’t want you to see. We’re not just going up against the most corrupt politician in Texas. We’re going up against this entire corrupt system.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
He’s getting worse.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
I am an Authorized Biologist (A.B.), meaning I am authorized by the USFWS to handle threatened and endangered species; in particular the Mojave desert tortoise. This subadult (< 8 inches in length) was trying to get into a construction area, so I physically blocked her from getting past me. 🌎
A sub adult Mojave desert tortoise, meaning it is less than 8 inches in length, this one is ~ 5 inches, so its age is probably ~5 to 8 years old. An adult takes 15 to 20 years to reach maturity of at least ~8 inches in length in the wild.I had to physically block this subadult Mojave desert tortoise from wandering into a construction site.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
I‘m back at the NV Energy Greenlink West project. Greenlink West will be a 525 kV line that spans ~ 350 miles from Las Vegas to Yerington, Nevada, and will connect solar fields and other green energy projects being constructed throughout Nevada to the grid. www.nvenergy.com/cleanenergy/...
Two crew men are suspended under a helicopter as they place spacers in the transmission line cables.A crewman stands on the outside, landing gear of the helicopter to help with placing the transmission line cables.
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
“This will remove protections for virtually all streams in the West and other arid parts of the country,” Jim Murphy said in an email, noting that few, if any, streams flow every day in the Southwest, where a mega drought has persisted for more than two decades. 🌍 lasvegassun.com/news/2026/se...
lasvegassun.com
Trump administration moves to drop protections for more wetlands
The Trump administration on Friday took another step toward stripping federal protections from millions of acres of wetlands, which help filter drinking water for many communities and provide critical...
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
I've worked in the BCCE many times. The proposed Townsite Data Center in the Eldorado Valley is located directly adjacent to the Boulder City Conservation Easement (BCCE) and sits within designated Mojave desert tortoise habitat. 🌎 www.ktnv.com/news/environ... nevadacurrent.com/briefs/devel...)
ktnv.com
Environmental groups file federal appeal against data center planned just outside Boulder City
The appeal filed by The Center for Biological Diversity and Sierra Club asks the Interior Board of Land Appeals to halt the project immediately through a stay order while the case proceeds.
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Lyn Heideman @heidelyn.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Judges rule! The Interior Board of Land Appeals, an appellate body in the US DoI, put a temporary stay on the BLM's approval of an 80-acre data center on public lands near Boulder City, NV. The board sided with the city, @sierraclub.org, and @biologicaldiversity.org, which argued that the BLM...
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Princeton University @princeton.edu · 04/09/2026
As we bid farewell to summer, we will feel the heat from some of the hottest days again this winter due to our extensive geo-exchange system. Here's how it works: bit.ly/4i6ST7I
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Randy Watkins @bluetortoise3.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
The ugliness and juvenile mentality of this administration is really disturbing. 
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Desert Research Institute @driscience.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
DRI's Dan McEvoy was featured in Bloomberg Television where he shared his thoughts on how a record-low snowpack could be detrimental to the Colorado River and the Western U.S. Learn more and watch the video here: youtu.be/JjrW88M58jA?si=zHlfUD2h8oI… #ColoradoRiver
youtu.be
What the Colorado River Crisis Means for the American West
YouTube video by Bloomberg Television
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