Biden Administration Uses Endangered Species Act to Slow Nevada Geothermal Energy Project

December 5, 2022

Last week, the Biden administration listed Nevada’s Dixie Valley Toad as an endangered species, hampering the construction of a planned geothermal plant east of Reno. 

Fox News reports, “Nevada’s Dixie Valley toad has been declared an endangered species. Last spring, wildlife officials had temporarily listed the speckled, black-eyed toad on a rarely used emergency basis. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Friday that the ruling makes the final listing.”

The final ruling comes after environmentalist groups had sued to block the geothermal project. The Endangered Species Act has been weaponized by environmental groups and progressives in order to stop energy production across the country. This causes energy producers to spent millions in legal fees and for projects to be tied up in red tape for years. Plans for this Nevada geothermal plant are now being completely reworked.

Fox News continues, “Ormat Technology, which had planned to build the plant, said that the decision was ‘not unexpected’ and that it had been working with the agency and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to modify the project to increase mitigation for the toad and reduce any threat to its survival.”

It is important to protect species, however, it is clear that ENGOs know they could use this law to the extreme to stop needed American energy projects. The Biden administration is happy to oblige.