A Nevada church is suing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for diverting a stream used to perform baptisms.

Located in Amargosa Valley near Pahrump, Ministerio Roca Solida (Solid Rock Ministry) sits on 40 acres of land that included a desert stream that also flows through the nearby Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge.

In 2010, the FWS diverted the stream, causing water to no longer flow through the church’s property and interfering “with its exercise of baptisms and religious prayer and meditation,” according to the church’s lawsuit.

Furthermore, the church claims that the diversion was botched, resulting in flooding on its property during heavy rains.

The church seeks $86,639 in damages (due to the flooding), and it wants the agency to reroute the stream to its original path.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

To Learn More:

Church Claims USA Interfered With Baptisms (by Nick Divito, Courthouse News Service)

Ministerio Roca Solida v. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (U.S. District Court, Nevada) (pdf)