The blue pool is teeming with wildlife and greenery along the Crystal Spring as it winds its way within the Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge on May 9, 2023, in Amargosa Valley. The BLM rejected claims by Rover Critical Minerals to conduct exploratory drilling for lithium just outside of the refuge as it was likely to disturb the region’s groundwaters and cause “significant impacts” to the endangered and threatened species that live inside the refuge. (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @Left_Eye_Images