About a dozen Utah legislators on Monday visited the desert valley where Nevada water officials want to pump groundwater to Las Vegas, according to a rancher involved.

Meanwhile, in Salt Lake City, Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, neither confirmed nor denied a report heard by ranchers that Nevada's senior senator would hold a Washington County land bill hostage if Utah were to thwart the pumping project.

When Bennett visited with Deseret Morning News editors and reporters Monday, he was asked about a report the Snake Valley ranchers heard. The story was that Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., the most powerful Democrat in the Senate, was threatening to prevent passage of the Washington County land bill that Bennett and Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, are sponsoring, if Utah were to thwart the pumping project.

"We're having a conversation with Harry about both issues simultaneously," Bennett said.

Does that mean there is a connection?

"There's a connection that both issues are being talked about at the same time," Bennett replied, "but I don't know if it would be accurate to say something would not happen if the other didn't happen."

The Clark, Lincoln and White Pine Counties Groundwater Development Project could pump up to 176,000 acre-feet of underground water to the Las Vegas area. More than 50,000 acre-feet could come from Snake Valley, a long valley straddling the Utah-Nevada line.

Ranchers and conservationists fear that taking water from the valley could cause a disastrous depletion of water in the region.

Cecil Garland, a rancher from Callao, Juab County, and others who live in the region showed Utah lawmakers around the area on Monday.

"We had a really good bunch," Garland said in a telephone interview.

Those legislators also met with a resident of a California county where water was taken from Owens Valley for use in Los Angeles, he said.

"He gave us an excellent description of what happened," Garland added.

The Californian said that at the beginning of the project involving Owens Valley, people were assured only a little water would be removed and it wouldn't cause any disturbance.

"They took everything they could get their hands on," he said.

Garland showed legislators what could happen when vegetation is removed from the dry valley in Utah. Residents are worried that if the water table drops, plants will die.

"I showed them some springs that have been affected by the drought and by our own pumping," he added. "They were impressed. They're really an excellent bunch."

The legislators may meet with their counterparts from Nevada on Tuesday, he said.

Concerning the question about Reid's involvement in the groundwater and land bill issues, Bennett said, "Obviously Harry would be happier if both things got resolved at the same time."

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