WildEarth Guardians

Monday, June 6, 2011
Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge Receives Stronger Safeguards through the Endangered Species Act

Government Designates Critical Habitat to Protect Water Quality for Bitter Lake Animals
Contact: Nicole Rosmarino (505) 699-7404

ADDITIONAL CONTACT: Robin Cooley, Earthjustice, 303-996-9611, rcooley@earthjustice.org

SANTA FE, N.M. Four rare aquatic species now have a better chance at escaping extinction due to Endangered Species Act protections. In tomorrow’s Federal Register, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) will designate portions of Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge (Refuge) as critical habitat for these four species, three of which are found nowhere else in the world.

Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge, located northeast of Roswell, NM, provides unique habitat for these rare species, including sinkholes, playa lakes, seeps, and gypsum springs fed by an underground river. The Roswell springsnail, Koster’s springsnail, and Noel’s amphipod (a freshwater shrimp), exist only on the Refuge. The Pecos assiminea snail is found on the Refuge and in limited areas in Texas. All are highly vulnerable to degraded water quality.

Tomorrow’s critical habitat revision includes habitat safeguards for all four invertebrates. In the original critical habitat rule (issued in 2005), the Service declined habitat protection on the Refuge. But conservation groups contended that these species needed critical habitat designation for their last remaining habitat within the Refuge to protect them from oil and gas drilling and possible water contamination. The revised critical habitat rule addresses that concern.

“We’re pleased that Bitter Lake will receive an increased legal shield, given the threat from oil and gas drilling to this unique biodiversity hotspot,” said Dr. Nicole Rosmarino of WildEarth Guardians. “Just one oil spill in their habitat could extinguish these fragile species forever, and the Service should guard against that threat,” stated Rosmarino.

The Service recognizes the threat from oil and gas drilling throughout the revised critical habitat rule. The main concern from oil and gas operations here is water contamination. Given their sensitivity, the snails and shrimp are “indicators” of water quality. In 1994, Yates Petroleum spilled brine in the Refuge, with a chloride content 20 times higher than state standards. Refuge staff called the spill a “tragedy” that imperiled springs, wetlands, underground waters, and wildlife.

There are at least seven oil and gas wells in the Refuge, all posing contamination hazards. In 2006, Yates Petroleum Co. filed applications for two more gas wells in the Refuge, one to be located just one-quarter mile from the visitors center and only 200-300 yards upstream of habitat occupied by the endangered invertebrates. After pressure from the state and others, Yates withdrew its applications. But the company could reapply.

The listing of the four invertebrates under the Endangered Species Act in 2005 and tomorrow’s critical habitat designation come as a result of lawsuits brought by WildEarth Guardians and the Center for Biological Diversity; the groups were represented by Earthjustice and the University of Denver Environmental Law Clinic.

“These species’ last remaining habitat in the world is under threat by oil and gas development,” said Robin Cooley, the Earthjustice attorney who represented the conservation groups. “The Service’s decision to protect that habitat is not only legally required, but it’s also common sense.”

Background

In a Federal Register notice to be published tomorrow (June 7, 2011), the Roswell springsnail and Koster’s springsnail will receive 70.2 acres of critical habitat in two areas on the Refuge in the Sago/Bitter Creek Complex and Springsnail/Amphipod Impoundment Complex. Noel’s amphipod will also receive these 70.2 acres, and an additional 5.8 acres along the Rio Hondo. Pecos assiminea will obtain 494.7 acres of critical habitat, including 50.2 acres at the Sago/Bitter Creek Complex and Assiminea Impoundment Complex, as well as 444.4 acres on lands owned by The Nature Conservancy in Texas.

Bitter Lake Refuge contains many unique features, including sinkholes, playa lakes, seeps, and gypsum springs fed by an underground river, and it provides habitat to rare invertebrates and plants as well as a total of 485 wildlife species. Additional endangered species that live there include the Pecos sunflower, Pecos gambusia, Pecos bluntnose shiner, and least tern. The refuge hosts a Dragonfly Festival every year to promote awareness of the 90 species of dragonflies and damselflies that occur at Bitter Lake.