Opinion ID: 2461173
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Public trust doctrine principles in Nevada statutes

Text: Another source of Nevada law that evinces the public trust doctrine is our statutory law, specifically, NRS 321.0005 and NRS 533.025. NRS 321.0005 provides, in pertinent part: The Legislature declares the policy of this State regarding the use of state lands to be that state lands must be used in the best interest of the residents of this State, and to that end the lands may be used for recreational activities, the production of revenue and other public purposes. (Emphasis added.) Thus, by its express language, NRS 321.0005 contemplates fiduciary-type duties with regard to the state's administration of state lands. NRS 533.025 provides that [t]he water of all sources of water supply within the boundaries of the State whether above or beneath the surface of the ground, belongs to the public. Notably, NRS 533.025 does not provide that Nevada's water belongs to the state; rather, it belongs to the public. Thus, as Justice Rose proposed, NRS 533.025 provides grounding for the Nevada public trust doctrine. See Mineral County v. State, Dep't of Conserv., 117 Nev. 235, 247, 20 P.3d 800, 808 (2001) (Rose, J., concurring). So too does NRS 321.0005. Both provisions recognize that the public land and water of this state do not belong to the state to use for any purpose, but only for those purposes that comport with the public's interest in the particular property, exemplifying the fiduciary principles at the heart of the public trust doctrine. In sum, NRS 321.0005 and NRS 533.025 effectively statutorily codify the principles behind the public trust doctrine in Nevada.