Over the past few weeks, storm after storm has rolled through the Sierra Nevada mountains and the Great Basin, dropping much-needed rain and heavy snow from Reno to Elko. But despite all the welcome precipitation, the state still faces drought conditions after back-to-back dry years.

Kristen Averyt has joined the White House's Council on Environmental Quality as director for drought and Western resilience, Daniel Lippman reports. She most recently was senior climate adviser for former Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak and is a research professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Kristen Averyt is now director for drought and Western resilience at the White House’s Council on Environmental Quality. She most recently was senior climate adviser for Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak and is a research professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Kristen Averyt has joined the White House's Council on Environmental Quality as the new director for drought and Western resilience. She most recently was senior climate adviser for former Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak and is a research professor at the University of Nevada Las Vegas.

Former Nevada climate official Kristen Averyt has joined the White House Council on Environmental Quality.

"You’ll see guys sleeping under blankets, and they won’t move for a few hours. So, you go to check on them and you realize ‘Oh, he’s dead,’” says Santiago, his face drawn, as he sits with a small group of other men on the sidewalk outside Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada’s main campus. He’s describing what being unhoused is like in Las Vegas — a city with increasingly extreme temperatures because of climate change and a growing homeless population, exacerbated by pandemic-related evictions and a rising cost of living. This combination of factors is leading to a startling increase of deaths among the unhoused: According to reporting done by the Review-Journal, Clark County saw an 80 percent increase in heat-related fatalities among the homeless community from 2020 to 2021.

Lake Mead’s receding water levels haven’t reduced Las Vegas visitation overall. But the outdoor recreation sector may not be so lucky

Some of Nevada’s top water conservation and climate science minds are coming together to help the state handle the worsening drought and declining levels at Lake Mead.