Who Will Win The Sand Dunes Sagebrush Lizard Or The People Of Texas?!

God blessed them, saying: "Be fertile and multiple; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air and all the living things that move on the earth.” - Genesis 1:28

Texas is the leading oil producing state in the United States and is facing its most fierce adversary, the sand dunes sagebrush lizard. Between the environmentalists who are itching to put this little three inch lizard found in the Permian Basin on the endangered list and Obama’s Administration which has a disdain for domestic oil production, the little lizard could come out the winner.

Michael Welch of the NY Post writes: "Obama having lost the House of Representatives, the Obama Administration is now imposing ‘fun damental change’ via Executive Order and regulatory fiat and political pressure." With gas prices skyrocketing, Obama’s war on domestic oil production and the already tempestuous teachers fight for the Rainy Day fund and the wildfires taking their toll on a very dry Texas, Texas could have a very rough economic road ahead. Did I mention Obama’s total contempt for Texas?

The Permian Basin includes Andrews, Borden, Crane, Dawson, Ector, Gaines, Glasscock, Howard, Loving, Martin, Midland, Pecos, Reeves, Terrell, Upton, Ward, and Winkler counties. And guess which counties in Texas produce the most oil? Gaines, Andrews, Yoakum, Ector, Hockley, Upton, Midland, Scurry, Martin and Pecos are the top ten oil producing counties. The Railroad Commission in its 2011-2015 Strategic Plan expects that the oil production in the Permian Basin will increase with the years to come and this in turn will boost the West Texas economy. So unless the environmentalists decide otherwise, the lizard wins and Texas loses.

Texas Parks and Wildlife have a list of individuals that speak for different environmental groups. The Aquatic Working Group, Bird Working Group, Herpetofauna Working Group and the Mammal Working Group makes up the Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy Working Groups. I have enclosed the website so that you can acquaint yourself with these groups and the people that head them.

Organizations like the Sierra Club and the Nature Conservancy are among the many taking care that no harm comes to our habitat. After looking at the long list of individuals representing their respective organizations it occurred to me that there is not a Humans Working Group. Despite the fact that opponents argue that the small lizard is not a problem, the environmentalists persist on placing this lizard on the endangered list. I am certain they will work hard to strike a balance, otherwise why would the sand dunes sagebrush lizard have preference over the economy and the people of the great state of Texas?

Sand Dunes Sagebrush Lizard

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 17
[Docket No. FWS–R2–ES–2010–0041; MO
92210–0–0008]
RIN 1018–AV97
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife
and Plants;
Endangered Status for Dunes Sagebrush Lizard
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Proposed rule.