# Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council (2024)

> Briefs, arguments, decisions, and more.

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/tribal%3Apyramid_lake%3A7bc988dc604cd85f

## Record

- **Collection:** Tribal code
- **Document type:** Tribal code

## Text

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

Post Office Box 256
Nixon, Nevada 89424
Telephone: (775) 574-1000
Fax (775) 574-1054

WATER TEAM MEETING MINUTES
Tribal Chambers ~ Nixon, NV

November 20, 2024, WTM
Members Present:
Steven Wadsworth, Tribal Chairman Edward Ely Ill, Vice Chairman
Harriet Brady, Councilmember John Guerrero, Councilmember
Nicholas Cortez, Councilmember Della John, Councilmember
Judith Davis, Councilmember Genevieve John, Councilmember
Nathan Dunn, Councilmember Georgina Wadsworth, Councilmember

CALL TO ORDER

Chairman Wadsworth called the November 20, 2024, Tribal Council Water Team meeting of the Pyramid
Lake Paiute Tribal Council to order at 6:00 p.m.

ROLL CALL

Roll call was taken by Brenda A. Henry, Tribal Council Secretary. Councilmember Della John arrived at 6:10
p.m. All other Councilmembers were present at roll call and a quorum was established for this meeting. Note:
Councilmembers Brady, Davis and Guerrero attended via zoom, they were on official travel.

APPROVAL OF AGENDA

Councilmember Cortez motioned to approve the November 20, 2024, WTM agenda with changes.
Councilmember Wadsworth seconded the motion. Votes were eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with zero
(0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED

CONSENT AGENDA
Following items were presented on the Consent Agenda:

1. Approval of Kemp Jones October 2024 Invoice
2. Approval Stetson Engineers Inc September 2024 Invoices #1336-2409 and #1336-01-2409

Councilmember Dunn motioned to approve the Consent Agenda. Councilmember Cortez seconded the motion.

Votes were eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions. MOTIGN PASSED
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

MINUTES:
1. Approval of Minutes: August 21, 2024, WTM

Councilmember Geneveive John submitted corrections, mostly grammatical.

Councilmember Brady motioned to approve the August 21, 2024, WTM Minutes. Councilmember Wadsworth
seconded the motion. Votes were eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION
PASSED

PRESENTATION

1. DODGE FLAT II SOLAR PROJECT UDPATE. Kim Dow, District Manager Carson City District BLM,
Sierra Front Office

Ms. Dow brought two of her staff to introduce to the Council: Paul Fuselier, Acting Sierra Front Field
Manager and Michael Xavier, Project Manager for Renewable Energy.

A Notice of Intent was published on October 4, 2024, and it initiated public scoping for this project. They
had a virtual public scoping meeting on October 30, 2024, and the document she handed out to the Council
is a copy of their presentation. The scoping for the public ends on November 15, 2024, but the Tribe is a
cooperating agency on this project, so the public timelines don’t apply to any comments received. There is
also the government-to-government consultation. In 2023, there was a new federal law passed, the Fiscal
Responsibility Act which required all environmental assessments (EA) to be completed within one year
from initiation. The initiation is the Notice of Intent, which means they must conclude this project by
October 4, 2025; however, BLM Nevada has an even tighter time frame of six months. Her mandate is to
have this project completed by May 4, 2025. With the tight turnarounds, they plan to have the draft EA to
the Tribe by the end of the week. The draft EA will also include the cultural report, which was previously
forwarded to the Tribe in May, the biological report, visual resources report, aquatics resources report and
traffic analysis. The turnaround for these reports is 14 days for the Tribe’s comments before they move
onto the next step.

Councilmember Brady asked for clarification on the timeline. Ms. Dow said with the BLM Nevada Policy

they have six months to complete an EA and one year to complete the Environmental Impact Statements
(EIS). The Fiscal Responsibility Act is a federal law that applies to all agencies, which is one year for EAs

and two years for the EIS, the Nevada Policy cuts those requirements in half.

Ms. Dow said due to the tight time frame they are asking for comments within 14 days, but if the Tribe
submits comments beyond that date, they will still consider but to be transparent they will have to prepare
to move on to the next step. The cultural report was submitted in May to the Tribe and thinks it is still in
review by the Tribe, they would like to get comments back on this report the same as the draft EA. Speaking
about the concerns about the traffic, the existing road access through Tribal lands on Olinghouse Road will
be discussed in the EA. There is an appendix that is specific to traffic, Appendix L, Traffic Impact Analysis.
Once the Final EA will have a traffic control plan included, this will be in the next phase. They are working

-2-|Page
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

with the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to determine if they need to be a co-lead with them on the NEPA
document because of the access through Tribal lands.

Vice Chairman Ely asked when the EA was forwarded te the Tribe. Ms. Dow said she was informed it was
that day or the next day but the clock for the 14 days will start when the Tribe receives the report. Vice
Chairman Ely asked Ms. Dow if she was familiar with Katie Frayler with NextEra. They had a preconstruction meeting for the Wadsworth Bypass Road, and it will minimally affect their access but was
wondering if they visited with her on it. Ms. Dow said she hadn’t met her, but her team may have.

Councilmember Cortez asked about the aerial survey regarding the visual resources report. Mr. Fuselier
explained the visual resources were an assessment conducted by the contractor and they took a couple of
photos along the highway and submitted those as their key observation points on which they did their
analysis. Councilmember Cortez asked if they left the highway because anytime, they are on the
Reservation it’s good to ask for permission ahead of time, so the Tribe knows they are in the area. Ms. Dow
said with their solar proponents they require baseline surveys and a lot of times they must go onto Tribal
lands. They are told they must get the landowners, whether it is a private landowner or Tribal
Reservations, permission beforehand. Chairman Wadsworth said drones are not allowed now, but they are
trying to update the policy on it but the current policy in the regulations brochure states no aircraft taking
off or landing which is technically a drone. The process to use a drone would be to submit a request
through the Inter-Disciplinary Team (IDT) for approval.

Ms. Dow asked how the Council would like to hear from them on updates. Chairman Wadsworth said they
typically get their presentations during the Water Team meetings but in December there is none scheduled
but to keep things moving there is a Special Council meeting on December 20, 2024, they can schedule on.
Also, informed them the Tribe will be going through their Tribal Elections and there might be some new
faces on the Council for the January meeting. Ms. Dow said she can give an overview of the project at that
time.

NATURAL RESOURCES. Donna Noel, Natural Resources Director
1. Request for Approval of BIA FY25 Attorney Fees Grant with Resolution.

Ms. Noel explained this is her Attorney Fee grant from the BIA Regional Office which is typically added to
their 638 funds. The Council was provided with a copy of the narrative, budget, and resolution for review.
This grant is due December 10, 2024.

Councilmember Genevieve John noted on Section D, Anticipated Costs of the Requested Financial
Assistance, it states “The Tribe expects the following work and related costs for FY 2021 (the letter actually
states 2023),” wondering if this is correct? Ms. Noel said it is supposed to be for 2025.

Councilmember Brady, on zoom, couldn’t locate the files on her phone and requested they be resent to her.
At this time, the Tribal Secretary stepped out of chambers to email the documents to Councilmember Brady.
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

Vice Chairman Ely motioned to approve the BIA FY25 Attorney Fees Grant with Resolution with changes.
Councilmember Cortez seconded the motion. Votes were eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with one (1)
abstention (Brady). MOTION PASSED. RESOLUTION NO.: PL 112-24 BIA FY25 ATTORNEY FEES
GRANT

2. Request Approval to Purchase Alternate Backhoe. Donna Noel, NR Director

Ms. Noel said they were approved back in July for purchasing a backhoe for the irrigation program with the
Council approving the John Deere backhoe being the lowest bid. Come to find out, John Deere never had the
backhoe, and they still haven’t received it. They are requesting the Council approve the next bid which
Sonsray Machinery for $163,429.91 which has a backhoe ready on-site. They will use the same funding, the
BIA Irrigation Fund, the difference will come from their irrigation funding.

Councilmember Davis motioned to the purchase of the alternate choice for the Backhoe from Sonsray
Machinery. Councilmember Brady seconded the motion. Votes were nine (9) for and zero (0) opposed with
zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED.

Councilmember Della John said when you make these big item purchases you must negotiate with them to
have them delivered to the Tribe because of the large amount of the purchase. Ms. Noel said they will be
asking for them to deliver.

3. Request for Approval to use Truckee River Restoration Funds for the Pyramid Lake Fisheries
Hatchery Roof Repair. Donna Noel, NR Director

Ms. Noel explained when TROA was signed, the State of California and the State of Nevada put in $25,000 a
year each into the TROA Restoration Fund. This fund was developed to help restore areas on the river to
accommodate the fish, both LCT and the Cui-ui. The use of the funds is in three-year increments, with
California getting the first three years. California got the first three years; the Tribe got the next three years
and the State of Nevada the next. The Tribe’s first use of the funds was to start growing cottonwood for
restoration on the Reservation but have not used the other two allotments which are about $100,000. The
Water Master puts the funds in a CD to gain interest until the parties are ready to use. She asked the Water
Master if the roof on the Hatchery is an allowable cost for this funding. The funds were going to originally
be used as a match for projects on the river, but they have TRFMA funds now they can used for matches for
grants. The State of Nevada and California and the Water Master all said they would not oppose the use of
the funds for the Hatchery rook because it helps the fish. She is requesting that the $126,000 that is
available on the Truckee River Restoration Fund be used for the Hatchery roof for the fish.

Councilmember Cortez motioned to approve the request to use Truckee River Restoration Funds for the
Pyramid Lake Fisheries Roof Repair. Councilmember Genevieve John seconded the motion. Votes were eight

(8) for and one (1) opposed (Guerrero) with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED

DT Requests. Aaron Bill, Water Quality Manager

>
Ee)
@
2
Si
oD
w
er
Ll
S
fa
“=
so
=
¢€)
<
is
loam!
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

a. Approval NDOT Request to Map 1.5 miles of Hwy 447 and 0.25 miles of Hwy 446 using
Drones for Planning and Engineering Design. Adam King, Nevada Department of
Transportation (NDOT)

Mr. King explained he is requesting permission to operate a drone, to launch, recover and map the area site
on SR 446 and 447. After meeting with the IDT, he created a safety plan which he distributed to the Council.
In the plan is NDOT’s FAA registered drones and insurance on their equipment. Chairman Wadsworth
informed the Council with drones and government agencies, they must be licensed. This is only for
mapping which goes from the start of Basin Road off State Route (SR) Hwy 447 and ends by the dump
access road in Nixon, and from the Nixon store to the baseball field at the Pyramid Lake High School, SR
Hwy 446. Councilmember Brady asked what the intent was for the mapping. Mr. King said for
transportation planning and engineering design. Photos taken from the drones will be used to create a 3D
model for the engineers and planners to use to model roadways and storm water features.

Councilmember Brady motioned to approve the NDOT request to map 1.5 miles of Hwy 447 and 0.25 miles of
Hwy 446 using Drones for Planning and Engineering Design.

Councilmember Davis asked if this was for the Tribe’s Transportation Planning Department, NDOT, or are
they working together. Chairman Wadsworth confirmed it’s for NDOT.

Councilmember Davis seconded the motion. Votes were nine (9) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0)
abstentions. MOTION PASSED

Councilmember Della John mentioned the increased semi-truck traffic and asked them to keep that in mind.
There is increased traffic due to the lithium mind in Gerlach. Mr. King said he works for the survey
department but will pass the information on to the designers. Councilmember Brady asked they improved
the shoulders also. Councilmember Davis asked the Chairman to get these thoughts together and to pass
them onto NDOT because Mr. King is present for the survey request.

b. Approval Request for Temporary 1-acre Construction Yard for the Wadsworth Bypass
Project. Edward Ely, Project Manager, Wadsworth Bypass Road Project

Vice Chairman Ely stepped down at 6:37 p.m. to present this item.

Mr. Ely is requesting approval for a one-acre temporary construction yard for their general contractor to
store materials and equipment. They have an end project date of November 19, 2025, but may be done
before then, when done they will remove all temporary fencing and clean it up before turning it back to the
Tribe. Councilmember Della John asked if they would be paying the Tribe. Mr. Ely said they wouldn't, this is
something he is requesting, not the contractor, they are willing to work on the right-of-way and move
material back and forth. If they get too much material piled on the right-of-way, they are going to have to
stop.

-5-|Page
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

Councilmember Dunn motioned to approve the request for a temporary 1-acre Construction Yard for the
Wadsworth Bypass Project. Councilmember Davis seconded the motion. Votes were seven (7) for and zero
(0) opposed with one (1) abstention (Della John). MOTION PASSED

Vice Chairman Ely returned to his Council seat at 6:39 p.m.

c. Approval Request Pyramid Lake (PL) Fisheries use of the PL License Plate Funds. Dan
Mosley, PL Fisheries

Mr. Mosley explained the first request by Ms. Noel was for the Numana Hatchery, there was leaking over
the museum, the machine room, and the incubator room where the eggs are stored. This request is for the
outside pools. The Hatchery was built in the mid-eighties making it about 39 years old. This request is to
retrofit the support beams that support the roof and outside pools. This Hatchery is the only hatchery they
have now because the Dunn Hatchery is closed due to lack of funds and was funding using US Fish and
Wildlife Service (USFWS) funds, but they lost that funding when budgets were cut. Numana is the only
Hatchery to raise their eggs now. All the facilities at Numana are important for the fishery which produces
the Trout that goes into the river, and into the Lake. They are requesting to use the Pyramid Lake License
Plate Funds to help with this project. Councilmember Della John asked what the dollar amount was. Mr.
Mosley said they received a bid for $98,000 which goes through tax, for which there will be added funds for
materials. The contractor is McHainey Structural Engineers, who has a subcontractor who will do the
project. The PL Fisheries Board approved the proposal from the contractor, and they also approved this
request to the Council. This same contractor has done the same type of work on their two other outside
pools and already has structural engineering in place and knows what needs to be done. The request is for
$100,000, he could use more but this is a start.

Councilmember Brady motioned to approve the request to Pyramid Lake License Plate Funds for the Pyramid
Lake Fisheries Roof Repair at Numana Hatchery. Councilmember Davis seconded the motion but for
clarification this request is for the 638 grant that wasn’t allocated, so they are putting funds into the grant
to finish the project. Mr. Mosely confirmed Councilmember Davis’s question. Votes were eight (8) for and
one (1) opposed (Guerrero) with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED

5. Discussion and possible action to Block the Boat Access at Popcorn Rock Beach to Prevent AIS
with Resolution. Adrienne Juby, Environmental Specialist AIS and Justin Jackson, Field Supervisor AIS

Ms. Juby explained on November 8, 2024, they received notice of a new invasive species, first time found in
North America, it’s a gold mussel and it’s been found down in the Sacramento Bay Area Delta. It’s being call
a quagga mussel on steroids; it has a higher tolerance to environmental conditions with a much broader
range. It is a concern and based on the quagga mussel study conducted in 2022 on Pyramid Lake in the
Truckee River, the Truckee River in the Nixon zone is the area most susceptible to invasive species, it’s the
highest risk area of the entire Lake and they have found boaters are launching at Popcorn Beach area when
they are open and not receiving inspections. Boaters are turning right at the Y instead of going through
their inspections on purpose or they will come from the other direction and just not even bother going to

-6-|Page
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

the station. That is a reason for wanting to block the Popcorn Beach area for launching, and it’s not an
official launch area in the Regulations Brochure.

Councilmember Brady said this was something they talked about before and weren't they going to cite
them? Ms. Juby said failure to stop and get inspected when the inspection station is open is $250 fine, but it
needs to be enforced which is difficult because of the limited resources. Mr. Jackson said they can only cite a
person if they are at their truck trying to launch, so people can be on the Lake all day, with no inspection
and nobody is going to get cited. There are only two Rangers and only one is on shift at a given time. Ms.
Juby said the plan is to have six-foot concrete blocks with rebar installed in the area with a big chain linked
across with a code lock attached. This lock code would be accessible to emergency personnel for removing
and launching in the area. Councilmember Brady said they need to consider their Tribal sovereignty for
those individuals who continually bypass the stations and banish them because they are putting the
Fisheries in danger.

Chairman Wadsworth asked what type of signage is there from Wadsworth about stopping and getting
inspected. Ms. Juby said there are open and closed signs and before those signs, there are another sign.
They may be hard to read if they are driving fast but there is a sign that says, “Attention Boaters, it is
mandatory to stop when the Station is open. It is a citable offense if you launch with potentially
contaminated Aquatic Invasive Species. Could be a fine up to $5,000.” It’s a part of the regulations; it’s on
the Tribe’s website and readily available for people if they look. Councilmember Della John asked how
many citations have been issued? Ms. Juby said they don’t know how many people have been cited, that
would be up to the Rangers. Mr. Jackson said with the blocks they want to put in place at Popcorn Beach,
small watercrafts such as float tubes, kayaks, canoes, stand-up and paddle boards, they don’t need a trailer
to launch. People can still park there and carry those vessels to the water. These vessels tend to be at the
lowest risk for carrying invasive species because they don’t tend to hold water and don’t have a motor. The
high-risk vessels would be the large ones that launch from a trailer. Vice Chairman Ely asked if they would
have signate informing them paddle boards and float tubes can launch but no boats and do they give a
parking pass to put on their dash boards? Ms. Juby said they receive an inspection receipt with the dates
valid with their permit number for that trip. Mr. Jackson said with the documentation they do advise them
to take a picture of it on their phone and put the hard copy on their dashboard, so they have a copy with
them and in their vehicle. Vice Chairman Ely asked if the Ranger could drive through the parking lot and if
they don’t have a receipt on their dash, they could cite them and let them go to court to prove they stopped
at the decontamination station. Chairman Wadsworth thought they had to sign the citation so they must be
present, but they can have this confirmed with law enforcement. Councilmember Brady agrees with the
Vice Chairman that if there is a trailer there, it’s fair game and they should have a receipt on their dash but
there must be a better system, they need to do some research and start citing them.

Councilmember Cortez motioned to approve the request to Block the Bloat Access at Popcorn Rock Beach
because this is not an approved boat launch area. Councilmember Dunn seconded the motion.

Councilmember Davis asked if they spoke with the Rangers about the closing of the beach. Ms. Juby said they
did not.
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

Councilmember Cortez withdrew his motion after learning they did not coordinate with the Pyramid Lake
Rangers.

Councilmember Cortez motioned to table the request until after coordination with the Pyramid Lake Rangers
and to bring back to the Council at the December 20, 202,4 Special Council meeting. Councilmember Davis
seconded the motion. Votes were nine (9) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION
PASSED

Councilmember Della John would like to see a report on how many people were cited by the Rangers and
how many went to Court. She would also like to know how many times something was found on a boat, and
they were not allowed access to the Lake. Ms. Juby said since January 1, 2024, they have had 1,288
inspections, twenty-two previously launched in infested areas, of those eight required decontaminations and
fourteen of the twenty-two had launched in those areas within 30 days. They have not found any mussels on
any boats; they mostly see boats with standing water from infested waters which could have microscopic
larva of the invasive species onboard. They have found invasive species of plants on board.

WATER TEAM
1. Kemp Jones LLP Attorneys at Law Monthly Report. Chris Mixson. Report Submitted

Mr. Mixson requested an Executive Session for a discussion on CEMEX.

Navy Water. The Water Team has a meeting with the Federal negotiation Team tomorrow morning to get
their next counter proposal. They are trying to determine how much the Navy water rights will be
permanently retired to benefit Pyramid Lake versus how much it can continue to be used by Stillwater
National Wildlife Refuge. More information in closed session.

CEMEX Gravel Mine. He is presenting a resolution for a four-year lease extension by CEMEX for the
purpose of completing the reclamation of the mine, primarily the Area A pit wall repairs. The lease
extension does two things, it extends the lease by four years, but it also completes the asset transfer. There
are two exhibits, H and I, to the lease. One of them is a list of the assets that the Council already approved
they wanted to receive, and then exhibit I is showing where those things are on the map. The four-year
extension only allows them to complete the reclamation, obviously there is no mining allowed under this
lease extension. They will develop a timeline of the Area A pit wall repair plan in consultation with the
Tribe, mostly the Water Team, Donna Noel and Allan Richards. They can only occupy Area A and a portion
of what is called Area B which is north of where their office is now and then an access road connecting the
two. Exhibit F and F1 is an area they will continue to lease.

Councilmember Brady asked since there is an extension, the Tribe can still collect money since they are still
on the Tribe’s property. Mr. Mixson said on the draft lease extension there is a table that shows the rent
under the extension. Year one would be $250,000 starting January of 2025, in year two, $275,000, in year
three $400,000 and in year four $750,000. There is a big jump in years three and four as the Vice Chairman
called it liquidated damages. Can the Tribe make it more expensive the longer they are there? That is what
this is intended for. According to CEMEX, they think they will only need two years to complete the repairs

-8-|Page
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

and that is why there is a big increase in years three and four. They are not expecting to be there that long
but if they are they are going to have to pay a lot more. This is an annual amount; they will pay it in annual
installments with no refund. They will also pay all taxes that are owed because they are importing gravel
materials, and they will also pay any business license fees to include their subcontractors. Councilmember
Wadsworth asked how they would be sure they would pay the correct taxes. Speaking as tax employees,
they have noticed with their construction companies who say this material is from their Reno company and
they weigh it themselves and bring it out so there are no taxes. Mr. Mixson said the Tribe is getting a new
scale from the asset transfer and they could include that as a provision they have to weigh it when they get
on site instead of relying on little slips or whatever they get when they leave Reno. They don’t know where
they will be getting the materials. Councilmember Dunn commented that when they talked about the rent
previously, he thought they were going to double it each year. Mr. Mixson said the original proposal was
$300,000 in year one, $600,000 in year two, $1.2 million in year three and $2.4 million in year four. They
knew those numbers were high and it was going to be a negotiation. They worked on the numbers with the
Chairman and based on the $1,100 an acre for the gas pipeline right-away applied to this acreage with a
little bit added on top to represent the time the staff and consultants have to spend over the two to four
years working with CEMEX, that is where the numbers came from. His opinion is that these are fair rental
amounts because they want them to get this done in two years, and it makes sense to increase in years
three and four. There has been discussions and negotiations with CEMEX back and forth and this is where
the Water Team and the Chairman have agreed upon. Don’t know if this would be acceptable to CEMEX, he
told them he was taking this to the Council for approval. The amounts are higher than what CEMEX
proposed, they wanted $125,000 in year one, $150,000 in year two. Councilmember Brady recommended
they start at $300,000 for the first year and $350,000 the second year, the Tribe can never get the land back
the way it was, it’s damaged, and the water is not good.

Councilmember Cortez asked about the area where they will be continuing to lease, does that mean they
have no accountability for everything marked green on the map. Mr. Mixson said everything in green is
already reclaimed. CEMEX has requested a site meeting on December 20, 2024, with the Tribe, the BIA, the
BLM, and CEMEX to do a site visit and confirm they have completed reclamations on what is shaded green.
Councilmember Cortez asked if Mr. Mixson was confident in the fact they had reached a satisfactory level of
reclamation. Mr. Mixson said from what he has seen so far, yes, they are done with the caveat he can’t
confirm the slopes are three to one but that is the point of the meeting is to get all the technical people out
to the site to confirm. Mr. Richards said there are still areas that are a work in progress. Councilmember
Della John asked if when they do the reclamations is the Tribe’s TERO Ordinance going to apply so they hire
Tribal members and pay the fees. Mr. Mixson said it is not set up that way because this is an extension of
the existing lease, and the existing lease didn’t require it either. This is just giving them more time and
making them continue to pay rent to finish what they were supposed to do under the existing lease. There
were no TERO requirements under that lease. Previously they hired Tribal members, but he thought
Councilmember Della John was asking about a Tribal monitor.

Vice Chairman Ely asked how they came to the $1,100 a day. Chairman Wadsworth said they went to the
historical records for the Great Basin Natural Gas Pipeline. They had the acreage and how much the Tribe
weas earning per year off that from Ms. Thomas, Quarles Legal Counsel who said they were paying the
Tribe $1,100 an acre for the easement that Great Basin is using. They applied the same amount to the

-9-|Page
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

acreage that CEMEX is needed and then added the time for Mr. Mixson, Mr. Richards, and Ms. Noel, which is
what the extra funding is for. Mr. Mixson said this is when the lease ends at the end of this year’s calendar.
CEMEX knows he is presenting this proposal to the Council for approval, but they haven’t commented on it
on whether it is too high. Councilmember Dunn asked if there was a comparison of the rates they can see.
Mr. Mixson said Ms. Thomas commented that BLM was substantially lower for easements for the natural
gas pipelines. Mr. Mixson said she also stated that the statutory rate for mines that BLM has is lower, too
low.

Councilmember Cortez asked what the amount they did last year? Mr. Mixson said he thinks the average
came to around $250,000 to $300,000 a year.

Councilmember Brady moved off topic and asked if the Finance Department has been billing them because
there was a comment made regarding trespass on the leases and Ms. Thomas was checking into it. Is this
one caught up? Chairman Wadsworth said he was not sure; they were just discussing the two easement
payments for Olinghouse with Dodge Flat Solar. He doesn’t have a response, but they are looking into it. He
is in the process of documenting all the leases, but he still must research how much they owe the Tribe per
year because they are not sure who keeps track of the invoices, but it is something on which he is actively
working. Councilmember Brady noted it is money in the back, and it should be gaining interest.

Vice Chairman Ely asked if CEMEX is current with their taxes, weren't they in arrears for some time and
owed royalties. Councilmember Wadsworth, speaking of her full-time position in the Tax Department, said
there is nothing to tax them on when it comes to royalties that would be through the BIA. Councilmember
Della John said they would need an audit; the Tribe’s Finance Department can go through their office.
Chairman Wadsworth confirmed their taxes are caught up, but the royalties go through the BIA.

Councilmember Dunn said CEMEX should have no problems since they paid for it in the past. Mr. Mixson
said their argument could be they were paying that when they were paying royalties when they were
mining and now, they are just paying rent to complete reclamation.

Vice Chairman Ely asked what happens if the Council doesn’t approve of the extension or if CEMEX doesn’t
accept the numbers? Mr. Mixson said if they don’t approve the extension by December 31, 2024, or January
14, 2025, or before the January 2025 Water Team meeting, then it’s a mess because CEMEX doesn’t have
legal permission to be on the site until they have a lease.

Councilmember Della John asked if they approve then the Tribe can use the reclaimed land? Mr. Mixson
said yes, the area in green on the map. The yellow area is for CEMEX to use if they are a tenant.
Councilmember Brady reminded the Council, this is an international company, and they are making money.

a. Approval Extension of the 2014 CEMEX Mineral Materials Lease with Resolution.

Vice Chairman Ely motioned to approve the Extension of the 2014 CEMEX Mineral Materials Lease with
Resolution as presented. There was not a second. MOTION FAILED.

-10-|Page
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

Councilmember Brady motioned to approve the Extension of the 2014 CEMEX Mineral Materials Lease with
changes to the annual rent for $300,000 for the first year and $350,000 for the second year with Resolution.
Councilmember Dunn seconded the motion. Votes were nine (9) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0)
abstentions. MOTION PASSED. RESOLUTION NO.: PL 113-24 EXTENDED 2014 CEMEX MINERAL
MATERIALS LEASE

TROA Joint Program, Fish Credit Water. They are working on a memorandum of agreement with the State
of California on management of the Joint Burner Fish Credit Water under TROA. When the Tribe establishes
Fish Credit Water, the Tribe holds back water in Stampede Reservoir to create the Fish Credit Water which
is one of two categories of water that Tribe has, the Tribe also has Fish Water which is different from Fish
Credit Water. The water types were created in different ways, but they are both for the fish. A certain
percentage of the Fish Credit Water, up to a point, is called Joint Program Fish Credit Water. There is a Joint
Program between the Tribe and the State of California, where California gets to manage the release of the
Joint Program Fish Credit Water for their own recreational purposes on the north upstream part of the
Truckee River in California for the brown trout and recreation. When it was negotiated in TROA, they are still
releasing it as instream flow, hitting the Truckee River and flowing to Pyramid Lake. It’s a small amount of
water the State of California gets to manage for their own instream flows and recreations carved out of the
Tribe’s water and still comes to Pyramid Lake. Instead, the State of California was managing this water by
not letting it get to the Truckee River, they were exchanging it around all the TROA upper reservoirs, and it
was never getting to the Truckee River and therefore never getting to Pyramid Lake. A couple of years ago,
the Water Team complained to them about it, it was alleged to be a grey area in the TROA about whether
they could do that. The Tribe’s position was that it’s a joint program between the Tribe and the State of
California. It’s the Tribe’s water; it was carved out of the Tribe’s water and the deal was for it to come down
the Truckee River. Instead, they are recycling it around and eventually it evaporates from the reservoirs, or
it gets treated like junior water and gets spilled when the reservoirs get too full. This happens in the winter
and still comes to the Lake but not when the fish need it. The Water Team said to the State of California, if the
keep doing this and not work with the Tribe, the Tribe is going to stop establishing the Joint Program Fish
Credit Water and they will have zero water which is what has been happening for the past couple years. That
was an incentive for them to work with the Water Team and they have been collaborating with them for the
past six-nine months. He has been collaborating with their attorney instead of their Water Managers who
were the ones doing this in the first place. Since these are settlement discussions, he will talk more about
them in closed sessions. They are still working on the MOA and may have something ready for Council
approval in late February or early March. Councilmember Brady commented that what she heard, while on
zoom is there is a MOA which was disregarded, and they shuffled water around which ended up evaporating
and didn’t make it to the Truckee River and now we're talking about another agreement with this group who
will probably do the same thing. Chairman Wadsworth reminded Mr. Mixson those on zoom are not allowed
to participate in Executive Sessions and won't get his update. Mr. Mixson said the MOA is to prevent them
from doing the same thing they have been doing up to now. Councilmember Brady asked if they had an MOA
with them? Mr. Mixson explained the Tribe has TROA and it was not anticipated California would do this with
the water. Councilmember Brady said it’s not only California but upstream groups since the Tribe is always
at the bottom of the stick. Mr. Mixson said it’s important to put into perspective, they are talking about 2,000
acre feet of water per year, out of the 10s of 1,000s of Fish Credit Water and out of the hundreds of 1,000s of
the combination of Fish Credit Water and Fish Water, it’s a relatively small amount of water. The point of the

-11-|Page
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

MOA is to lock down California, so they are not allowing it to get wasted like they have in the past. He is not
asking for approval; the MOA will come back to the Council.

Sparks Apartment Complex Dumping Sewage into the Water System. The Water Team was made aware
of a new apartment complex being built around Victorian Square in Sparks. This is all based on local news
reporting. They are still investigating it but according to the news reports the complex hooked up their
sewage pipe to the storm water system instead of the sewer system and they were discharging raw sewage
directly to the Truckee River for approximately 16 months from June 2022 to October 2023 when they caught
it and fixed it. The Water Team is taking this very seriously and investigating it. Councilmember Brady asked
if this would extend to a violation of the Clean Water Act. Mr. Mixson said it’s a clear violation of the Clean
Water Act and under federal law the penalty the EPA can levy, which goes to the Treasury and not the Tribe,
would be $25,000 per day, per violation. Chairman Wadsworth said there is a cap which is about five years.
Mr. Mixson said they ran into this same situation with CEMEX so maybe the cap won’t come into play since
it’s 16 months. Ms. Noel is reaching out to NDEP, they are conducting their own investigation of this and only
found out through the new reporting. This should have been reported when they discovered a violation like
this, it’s supposed to be reported to the State, EPA and to the Tribe, which none of that happened. According
to the news reports, the City of Sparks thought the owner developer was going to report it, and the owner
thought the City of Sparks was going to report it, so there is this back and forth going on which is not an
excuse. The State and EPA will fine them, and they can talk in closed session about what the Tribe can do.

Mr. Mosley said the last time they saw this with TMWF, their identification towers went down, and they were
releasing nutrients into the river. When he went to the river, he observed dead crayfish and Asian clams,
wondering what was going on. They had a long-term monitoring instrument in the river and the DOIS were
crashing because of the nutrients in the river producing algae. He mentioned it to Justin Jackson, and he said
he saw dead Asian clams or the absence of Asian clams, those clams are tolerant to bad water quality
conditions. When you see them start to die, you know it’s affecting other aquatic life also. This is a serious
issue because the trout in the river could be affected, it’s not just water quality, it’s aquatic life also.

Councilmember Brady suggested when the Council goes into closed session, they could discuss not only
monetary but to ensure they are monitoring the water quality for the next 10 years.

Stetson Engineers Inc. Monthly Report. Allan Richards. Report Submitted

Mr. Richards said this report covers the month of October. They had two check-in meetings with CEMEX,
one to talk about the documents they presented to the Council during the October 16, 2024, Water Team
meeting. They had another meeting on October 29, 2024, to talk about their reclamation obligations in the
lease for Areas B, D, and D and the work they currently are undertaking. They had a meeting with BLM on
October 15, 2024, to talk about their plans for repairing the Area Pit Wall. A couple of reminders, on
December 9, 2024, they are scheduled to do the ground penetrating radar survey around their shop and
office looking for potential buried storage tanks and will also be doing the soil boring and soil and water

representatives, BLM, himself and Tribal representatives to look at the reclamation activities and sign off
on all the reclamation work that they are doing in Area B, C and D, that doesn’t have anything to do with the
Area Pit Lake work. He provided an updated reclamation action summary for Areas B, C and D to the
Council. It’s updated for when the work was started and for when it is anticipated to be completed. It also

-12-|Page
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes

contains the trimming and shaping of the berm along Hill Ranch Road which they requested be added to
the list. Half of the reclamation obligations are complete, what is remaining is grading, scarifying, and
revegetating the larger open areas in Area B, C, and D and the berm work along East Hill Ranch Road. He is
not going over the complete list, but they are required to be completed by the end of the year, and they will
be inspecting by the 20*.

Mr. Mixson mentioned in his report they had a meeting with the US Fish and Wildlife Service on October 9,
2024, and have a follow-up meeting tomorrow. They had a TROA MOA conference on October 18, 2024, and
a TROA scheduling meeting on October 24, 2024. The Truckee River is coming up, it started in October,
about 370 CFS on average, it’s a little more than 520 CFS today. The Lake elevation was at 3803.4 at the end
of October and will start rising at the end of this month. The total monthly flows at the Truckee River gauge
at Nixon through 2024, reminder 2024 is their base line average or normal water year, referencing
previous years and future years. About 422,000-acre feet went to the Lake in 2024 and they received
22,600 in October. They have an atmospheric river coming in, it’s already in California, and will see river
flows increase at peak on late Friday or Saturday morning. He provided a scale from the Federal Water
Master's website which shows the travel time for the time it takes water in the Truckee River to travel from
one stream gauge to another. It takes 19.4 hours for the water to travel from the Trucke River gauge at
Farad to the Truckee River gauge below Derby Dam. It takes about 24 hours for the water to travel from the
State line to the gauge in Wadsworth. This is good to know for advanced warning when floods occur, it’s
not a big warning but gives the Tribe the ability to know when events are coming. These are just averages
so it will vary dependent upon the volume coming down.

EXECUTIVE SESSION

Councilmember Cortez motioned to move into Executive Session. Councilmember Dunn seconded the
motion. Votes were nine (9) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED. Tribal
Council moved into Executive Session at 7:54 p.m.

Per Tribal Council policy, Councilmembers Brady, Davis, and Guerrero who were on zoom were placed in the
zoom meeting room.

Vice Chairman Ely motioned to move out of Executive Session. Councilmember Cortez seconded the motion.
Votes were six (6) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED. Tribal Council
moved out of Executive Session at 8:28 p.m.

ADJOURNMENT

With no further business before the Tribal Council, Councilmember Cortez made a motion to adjourn the
meeting. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Wadsworth. Votes taken were all in favor, motion
carried.

The meeting adjourned at 8:29 p.m.

Submitted by,

-13-|Page
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
November 20, 2024, Water Team Minutes
Brenda A. Henry Hey

CERTIFICATION

The foregoing minutes were adopted by the Pyramid Lake Tribal Council, governing body of the Pyramid
Lake Paiute Tribe, at a meeting duly held on the 15% day of January 2025, having nine (9) members present,
constituting a quorum, by the vote of eight (8) FOR and zero (0) OPPOSED, with zero (0) ABSTENTIONS.

Minutes attested and concurred by:

a
Steven Wadsworth, Tribal Chairman

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council
//

-14-|Page

---

Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/tribal%3Apyramid_lake%3A7bc988dc604cd85f. Public record. Not legal advice.