Kevin Emmerich
Kevin Emmerich enjoyed a career in the National Park Service for 20 years in 7 different National Parks and Monuments, including Death Valley National Park since 1991 (now retired). He has also worked as a field biologist for research on desert species such as the Panamint alligator lizard, desert tortoise, and Mojave fringe-toed lizard. He lives in the Mojave Desert and has followed desert conservation and land-use issues for many years. He and his wife Laura Cunningham co-founded Basin and Range Watch in 2008.
19
June 26, 2026
S5E19: Greenlink West Carves a Costly Path Through Wild Nevada
Join host Chris Clarke as he explores the environmental impacts of data centers on Nevada's deserts. Chris, along with guests Laura Cunningham and Kevin Emmerich from Basin and Range Watch, discuss the construction of Greenlink West transmission project and discuss its potential economic motivations and environmental consequences. Discover the startling link between renewable energy infrastructure and hyperscale data centers, and learn about the local ecosystems under threat. This episode offers a critical examination of energy development in Nevada, focusing on both the environmental and social implications.
Guests: Kevin Emmerich , Laura Cunningham
22
July 11, 2025
S4E22: Fighting GreenLink: The True Impact of Transmission Lines in the Desert
Join host Chris Clarke and guest Kevin Emmerich, Co-Founder of Basin and Range Watch, as they discuss the environmental implications of the Greenlink West transmission line projects in Nevada.
Guest: Kevin Emmerich
24
Aug. 20, 2024
S3E24: The Fight to Protect the Pahrump Valley
Utility-scale solar development can carry substantial ecological costs when projects are built across intact desert habitat. Chris Clarke talks with Kevin Emmerich of Basin and Range Watch about a proposal to protect thousands of acres in Nevada's Pahrump Valley as an Area of Critical Environmental Concern. They discuss threats to desert tortoises, habitat connectivity, and the cumulative effects of industrial development—and how an ACEC designation could give federal land managers another tool for directing damaging projects away from sensitive landscapes.
Guest: Kevin Emmerich