Save the Permian Basin's Endangered Species 24OKT24

PLEASE click the link below to sign the letter to Deb Haaland Secretary, Department of the Interior, Tracy Stone Manning Director, BLM and Martha Williams Director, U.S Fish and Wildlife Service asking them to create critical habitat for 3 endangered species in Texas' / New Mexico's Permian Basin. Add your personal comments to the letter if you can for greater impact ( I did, 'I urge you to enact the strongest possible critical habitat protections for dunes sagebrush lizards, lesser prairie chickens, and Texas hornshell mussels as soon as possible. Please ensure that the habitat designations are maximally protective in their extent and provisions to give these species the best chance at survival and recovery. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has long taken too much time to protect species in need. The whole process of listing species and designating critical habitat is supposed to take two to three years. On average it has taken 12 years — and often it takes decades — to protect species. At least 47 species have gone extinct while awaiting protection. These species do not have12 years to spare, not taking immediate action may condemn them to extinction. You can provide them the opportunity to survive if you take action to save them now. Please, don’t let extinction happen to lesser prairie chickens, dunes sagebrush lizards, or Texas hornshells. They can't afford to wait any longer. Act with urgency to ensure strong critical habitat designations by this year’s end.' )

The Permian Basin in western Texas and southeastern New Mexico is the highest-producing oil field in the country.   It's also home to three of the United States’ most endangered animals: lesser prairie chickens, dunes sagebrush lizards, and freshwater mussels called Texas hornshells. Without safeguards for their home, these species will go extinct.   Decades of relentless oil drilling — plus livestock grazing, mining and pollution — have pushed all three to the brink of extinction.    Dunes sagebrush lizards, native to a small part of the Permian Basin, have lost more than 95% of their habitat to oil and gas development and sand mining for fracking.   Lesser prairie chickens also now occupy a fraction of their historic range — even the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service admits that losing just a small amount of suitable habitat could send the species into a death spiral.   And Texas hornshells are down to only five known populations in the United States.     These three species are protected under the Endangered Species Act. The Act requires the Service to give these species critical habitat — but the agency is sitting on its hands.     Lesser prairie chickens, dunes sagebrush lizards, and Texas hornshell mussels urgently need federal officials to protect the places they need to survive and recover.    Tell the federal government to enact the strongest possible critical habitat designations now.   Take Action

Center for Biological Diversity P.O. Box 710, Tucson, AZ 85702-0710