This is the month the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is scheduled make the final decision on whether to list the Lesser Prairie Chicken as Threatened or Endangered. The PBPA endangered species committee and I have worked constantly for the last fifty years to prevent this potentially devastating decision from occurring. Well, maybe it just seems like fifty years but seriously, it has been a primary focus for PBPA and our members.
We believe that the best scientific information does not support a listing decision and we have stated that repeatedly in our official comments on multiple occasions.
In addition to the scientific arguments, we have worked tirelessly with our state wildlife agency friends throughout the five-state region to help them establish reasonable, voluntary conservation efforts designed to keep the states in the driver’s seat on these issues.
Several PBPA member companies have enrolled approximately two million acres of land under an innovative plan to conserve the lesser prairie chicken.
Continental Resources, Devon Energy, Apache Corp., Occidental Oil and Gas Corporation, Samson Resources, and others have committed to develop enrolled land in ways that minimize impacts on lesser prairie chicken habitat. They will also mitigate development impacts that cannot be avoided by providing funding for conservation on private land throughout the region. Other companies in various industries, including oil and gas, pipeline, electric transmission and distribution, and wind energy, have now enrolled in the plan.
These companies believe this plan offers the best, most comprehensive approach available to conserve the lesser prairie chicken and its habitat, while providing assurance for participating companies to help them to continue to do business.
The USFWS endorsed the range-wide plan in October and verified that companies who enroll would get legal assurances that their business activities could continue if the bird is listed under the federal Endangered Species Act.
Under the range wide plan, mitigation fees are based on actual costs for habitat management and restoration. Fees range depending on such factors as the number of acres impacted, the quality of habitat affected, and the costs of habitat management. Basically, developing in higher quality habitat costs more, and working in lower quality habitat and cropland costs less.
This landmark program allows for industry development within the region and incentivizes farmers and ranchers to conserve and restore habitat for this species.
Mitigation fees will help fund proven habitat management activities, such as voluntary agreements with landowners to protect or restore native grassland habitat. Already in Texas, as of today, 73 landowners across the Texas Panhandle and Rolling Plains have enrolled 594,253 acres in a similar-though-separate strategy, voluntary Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances, or CCAAs, for the lesser prairie chicken. Texas CCAA acres have grown more than five-fold since September 2010. New Mexico has more than 800,000 acres of oil and gas leases enrolled in their CCAA, plus 1.5 million acres of ranch land. Oklahoma has submitted 200,000 acres of ranch land for approval in their CCAA and has requested USFWS to allow enrollment of an additional 200,000 acres.
Besides industry enrollment, landowners are also able to voluntarily enroll in the plan to help conserve and restore habitat for the bird on private land in Texas and other states. In exchange for management practices such as prescribed grazing, burning, and brush management, landowners are assured they can continue to operate under provisions of a management plan if the bird is listed.
Of course, PBPA is in the forefront of a number of other issues. Last month, Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst issued his interim charges for committees. Of particular interest are those for the Senate Natural Resources Committee.
These include:
- Study and make recommendations to encourage the use of brackish water including but not limited to Aquifer Storage and Recovery and Desalination.
- Study and make recommendations on what state and federal environmental regulations most affect implementation of water supply strategies in the State Water Plan, including recommendations to reduce state barriers.
- Examine current processes for environmental permitting, including the impact of permitting delays on economic development. Consider what environmental regulations and permitting procedures are most challenging for small businesses and make recommendations to reduce those burdens. Study and make recommendations on changes to the permitting process that could speed job creation while continuing to protect the environment.
- Monitor implementation of legislation passed during the 83rd Legislative Session, including monitoring implementation of House Bill 4, creating the state water implementation fund.