Conservation
| Cooperative Conservation |
|
CEHMM is dedicated to improving wildlife habitat with holistic management approaches that not only benefit two particular species of concern (the Lesser Prairie-Chicken, Tympanuchus pallidicinctus and the Sand Dune Lizard, Sceloporus arenicolus) but also provides environmental enhancements that are beneficial to all organisms in those habitats. The LPC is a prairie grouse species native to the southern Great Plains, including parts of Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. The DSL is a lizard species native to a small area of southeastern New Mexico and west Texas. As candidate species, both have been ruled warranted for listing as threatened or endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) but precluded from listing due to other priority species. In the event that either species is listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act, the listing triggers both a regulatory and a conservation responsibility for federal, state, and private landowners.
To address the needs of both species and the impacts a listing could have on other land users, in 2003, the New Mexico Lesser Prairie-Chicken/Sand Dune Lizard Working Group was formed to address conservation and management activities for the two species in southeastern New Mexico. The group was composed of local, state and federal officials, along with private and commercial stakeholders. The group worked for 2.5 years and published the “Collaborative Conservation Strategies for the Lesser Prairie-Chicken and Sand Dune Lizard in New Mexico” in August 2005. The strategy provided guidance in the development of the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) 2008 Special Status Species Resource Management Plan Amendment (RMPA) which also addresses the concerns and future management of the LPC and DSL habitats. Both the strategy and RMPA prescribe active cooperation among all stakeholders to reduce and/or eliminate threats to these species in New Mexico. As an outcome, the land use prescriptions contained in the RMPA now serve as baseline mitigation for both species as part of the Candidate Conservation Agreement (CCA).
Government and private entities have been vigilant in the structure and performance of the candidate conservation programs by encouraging and accommodating public input by way of public forums convened in strategic locales. These are typically in geographic regions that allow convenient attendance by participants either directly affected or with particular interest in the species of concern.
Notice of Request for Proposals RFP CEHMM-001-2012By Matt Mathis, 11 January 2012
6 Month Extension for Public CommentBy U.S. Fish and Wildlife, 1 December 2011
Exploring Maroon CliffsBy Carlsbad Current-Argus, 19 JUNE 2011 Conservation Information: |
