Gold mining is still big business for Nevada, especially now the price of the precious metal is around $500 an ounce. The legacy of that industry is painted in stark and scary terms in a New York Times report on its environmental impact.

The open-pit mining method that made once-barren hills very valuable, will leave a disastrous environmental impact. With as few as 1o years left at Barrick’s Elko mines, the aquifier is being permanently compromised say some water experts. The company counters that at most, it will take a few decades for nature to repair the damage.

If Las Vegas ever needs that water, it may not be there. And neighboring states are complaining that gold mining is adding a tenfold increase in mercury levels.

“If you look at the gold industry today, most of it is Nevada, and Nevada is mostly not prized by environmentalists,” John D. Leshy, who was the top lawyer for the Department of the Interior in the Clinton administration, tells the paper. “Nevada is being written off as a sacrifice area for gold.”

That’s a scary thought.