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Groups sue to protect sand dune lizard (Oil drilling areas in NM, TX)
The Albuquerque Journal ^ | October 1, 2019 | Theresa Davis

Posted on 10/04/2019 10:58:35 AM PDT by CedarDave

Two environmental groups are suing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in an effort to protect the dunes sagebrush lizard, also known as the sand dune lizard, under the Endangered Species Act.

The Center for Biological Diversity and the Defenders of Wildlife filed a lawsuit in federal district court on Tuesday.

The small lizard only lives in southeast New Mexico and west Texas. It thrives in sand dunes and shrubs called shinnery oaks.

In May 2018, the groups asked Fish and Wildlife to list the species as threatened or endangered. The lawsuit argues the agency should have responded within 90 days with a decision as to whether the lizard and its habitat warrants protection.

A Defenders of Wildlife study shows more than 1,600 acres of the lizard's habitat had been destroyed in the 18 months prior to the petition to list the lizard.

“What habitat remains has many threats, including herbicides, oil and gas development on public and private lands, and increased frac-sand mining operations,” Tuesday's lawsuit reads.

In 2010, Fish and Wildlife found the lizard needed federal protection because industry was threatening its habitat. But after then-Texas Comptroller Susan Combs worked with the oil and gas industry to create a voluntary conservation plan for companies, the agency backed away from listing the species.

The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish considers the lizard endangered. Game and Fish estimates that the lizard's current fragmented habitat in New Mexico is less than 700 square miles.

(Excerpt) Read more at abqjournal.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; US: New Mexico; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: climate; endangeredspecies; energy; envirowhackos; lawsuit; lizard; naturalgas; oil; texas
The enviro-facists are using the Endangered Species Act in an attempt to shut down oil/natural gas drilling/production. Secondary objective - prevent "global warming" from fossil fuels.
1 posted on 10/04/2019 10:58:35 AM PDT by CedarDave
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To: LegendHasIt; leapfrog0202; Santa Fe_Conservative; DesertDreamer; OneWingedShark; CougarGA7; ...

NM list PING!

I may not PING for all New Mexico articles. To see New Mexico articles by topic click here: New Mexico Topics

To see NM articles by keyword, click here: New Mexico Keyword

To see the NM Message Page, click here: New Mexico Messages

(The NM list is available on my FR homepage for FR member use; its use in the News Forum should not be for trivial or inconsequential posts. Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from the list.)
(For ABQ Journal articles requiring a subscription, scroll down to the bottom of the page to view the article for free after answering a question or watching a short video commercial.)

2 posted on 10/04/2019 10:59:20 AM PDT by CedarDave (Google has blacklisted Free Republic in its search engine. Use duckduckgo for searching.)
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To: CedarDave

3 posted on 10/04/2019 11:00:33 AM PDT by CedarDave (Google has blacklisted Free Republic in its search engine. Use duckduckgo for searching.)
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To: CedarDave

The enviro-facists are using the Endangered Species Act in an attempt to shut down oil/natural gas drilling/production. Secondary objective - prevent “global warming” from fossil fuels.
*****************************************
Their overarching goal is to damage/impede the American economy.


4 posted on 10/04/2019 11:02:22 AM PDT by House Atreides (Boycott the NFL 100% — PERMANENTLY)
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To: CedarDave

OPEC can do billions of dollars worth of damage to their competition in the US just by kicking a few million to these “environmental groups.”


5 posted on 10/04/2019 11:02:23 AM PDT by Steely Tom ([Seth Rich] == [the Democrat's John Dean])
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To: CedarDave

Delicious


6 posted on 10/04/2019 11:06:09 AM PDT by Vaquero ( Don't pick a fight with an old guy. If he is too old to fight, he'll just kill yo u.)
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To: CedarDave

They’ll move. Or, maybe this is their swan song. It happens.


7 posted on 10/04/2019 11:06:56 AM PDT by rktman ( #My2ndAmend! ----- Enlisted in the Navy in '67 to protect folks rights to strip my rights. WTH?)
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To: rktman

It looks like you can spray the shinnery oak plants with herbicides and the lizards will die off. This seems to me to be the most logical and economical way to solve the problem. Just make the critters extinct.


8 posted on 10/04/2019 11:09:03 AM PDT by VietVet876
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To: CedarDave

The spice must flow.


9 posted on 10/04/2019 11:10:48 AM PDT by Boogieman
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To: rktman

Either the lizards inhabit an area much larger than the tiny 1600 ac (2.5 square miles) area in question or they don’t. If that’s their entire habitat in the world, and the greenie weenies that are suing will stipulate to that and legally agree to no further legal action on other lands, then fine, 2.5 mi^2 is nothing, and the feds can buy the land, do a land swap, whatever and everyone can get on with their lift. OTOH, if the 2.5 sq mi is a tiny fraction of their habitat, then so what? That entire area is alive with drilling and in all this time they’ve only managed to run across this guy on 1600 acres? Doesn’t sound like much of a hazard to me.


10 posted on 10/04/2019 11:20:40 AM PDT by Still Thinking (Freedom is NOT a loophole!)
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To: CedarDave; All

Is lizard on state-owned land?


11 posted on 10/04/2019 11:30:06 AM PDT by Amendment10
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To: Still Thinking

Round ‘em up and ship them south of the border. They’ll end up as a lizard on a stick.


12 posted on 10/04/2019 11:30:25 AM PDT by rktman ( #My2ndAmend! ----- Enlisted in the Navy in '67 to protect folks rights to strip my rights. WTH?)
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To: Vaquero

Shoot, shovel and shut up!


13 posted on 10/04/2019 11:32:57 AM PDT by 9422WMR
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To: CedarDave
I have never pondered what my life would be like without the sand dune lizard.

However, after giving it some thought, I think I'd rather have the oil and natural gas. ;-)

14 posted on 10/04/2019 11:38:37 AM PDT by ken in texas
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To: Amendment10
Is lizard on state-owned land?

In Texas mostly private with some state (university) lands; in New Mexico mainly federal BLM with state land and minor private land.

15 posted on 10/04/2019 11:42:08 AM PDT by CedarDave (Google has blacklisted Free Republic in its search engine. Use duckduckgo for searching.)
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To: VietVet876

A half dozen cats could eliminate the problem in a couple days.


16 posted on 10/04/2019 12:00:09 PM PDT by bgill
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To: ken in texas

[[I have never pondered what my life would be like without the sand dune lizard.]]

LOL- Since developing eggs aren’t lizards yet- according to abortion supporters- they can’t be put on the endangered list- only the lizards can- so if enough people eat Sand Dune Lizard egg omelettes, the problem will be solved in a decade or so- to add variety- have a spotted owl egg omelette too- mix it up


17 posted on 10/04/2019 12:10:37 PM PDT by Bob434
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To: CedarDave
Just prove that the lizard is NOT "endangered" or isolated to that area.

Most all of these claims and categorizations are bogus.

18 posted on 10/04/2019 12:55:48 PM PDT by G Larry (There is no great virtue in bargaining with the Devil)
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To: CedarDave

If you eat them all, they won’t be endangered anymore.


19 posted on 10/04/2019 12:58:34 PM PDT by fruser1
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