Clark County Plans New Airport to Take Pressure Off Harry Reid International, Sparks Environmental Worries

Clark County is moving forward with plans to build a second major commercial airport in the Ivanpah Valley, between Jean and Primm, as Harry Reid International nears capacity. The proposed Southern Nevada Supplemental Airport would span nearly 23,000 acres, including a central terminal, connecting roadways, and two runways, with a 6,000-acre core site and an adjacent 17,000-acre buffer zone.

“The key thing here is that this is not a replacement for Harry Reid International. This is an addition to it,” Kessler said.

Public meetings in July 2025 highlighted support from trade unions but also drew concerns from conservation groups over habitat loss and water scarcity. Environmental advocates warned that the project could threaten threatened species like the desert tortoise and native wildflowers, while also facing engineering difficulties due to construction on a dry lakebed.

“This issue, generally, of sprawling down to Jean and Primm is one we've been fighting for a long time,” Spotleson tells the Weekly. “For the same reason that I-15 connects us across different valleys, it's also important for the animals who use it as a migratory corridor. The sprawl creates islands that are cut off from one another, which promotes inbreeding and makes it harder for these species to recover.”

“There simply isn't enough groundwater in Primm to have a whole commercial airport, and the fact that it's being built on a dry lakebed also presents a myriad of engineering challenges,” Spotleson says.

The project is currently in the environmental review phase, a three-year process involving the FAA, Bureau of Land Management, and public input, with completion anticipated by 2028. The FAA plans to release a draft Environmental Impact Statement by June 2027, followed by public hearings and revisions, leading to a final decision by May 2028. Construction could begin shortly after.

Harry Reid International Airport, opened in 1943, served more than 58 million passengers last year. Projections indicate traffic could rise to more than 63 million by 2030, prompting county officials to revisit long-discussed plans for a supplemental airport to handle future growth.