Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration, alleging that officials violated the Endangered Species Act by designating the dunes sagebrush lizard under it. Paxton claims the reptiles have been “unlawfully” classified as endangered, a move he says is designed to limit oil and gas development in Texas, where the lizard’s habitat overlaps with key energy production sites.
“The Biden-Harris administration’s unlawful misuse of environmental law is a backdoor attempt to undermine Texas’s oil and gas industries which help keep the lights on for America,” Paxton said in a statement. “I warned that we would sue over this illegal move, and now we will see them in court.”
The lawsuit targets the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Department of the Interior, and other federal authorities. Paxton argues that Texas is already managing conservation efforts for the species at the state level, and that federal intervention leaves private landowners and businesses uncertain about what areas fall under protection.
“Because of this, the federal government’s action would unduly undermine vital economic development in the Permian Basin, subjecting Texas industries and private landowners to regulatory uncertainty and ambiguity about what they can do with their own land,” Paxton’s office said in a statement.
The federal government’s decision to list the lizard as endangered has also faced opposition from other Texas officials, with Sen. Ted Cruz introducing a bill in July to remove the species from the endangered list, though the effort failed.
The dunes sagebrush lizard, which has seen its habitat decline by nearly 50% since 1982, was officially listed as endangered in June. The USFWS states that this decline, accelerated by oil and gas activity, has left the species “functionally extinct” in 47% of its known habitat.
The species’ range sits atop one of the busiest oil fields in the U.S., and opening new wells in this region could reduce the lizard population by half within a 250-meter radius of drilling sites, according to federal data.
The USFWS, however, contends that horizontal drilling provides a way for companies to access oil and gas deposits without disturbing the lizard’s habitat. The agency highlighted that 100 oil and gas operators have also agreed to adopt conservation practices to minimize harm to endangered species in the region.
USFWS said in a statement: “Conservation efforts for imperiled species can be greatly expanded through collaborative approaches that foster cooperation and the exchange of ideas among stakeholders.”
The lawsuit comes as the federal government is still working to clarify which areas of Texas will be subject to the new endangered species protections. If the protections remain in place, oil and gas operators could face fines up to $50,000 for violations, and individuals could face criminal penalties and jail time for conducting activities in restricted areas.
