Nevada Toad Gets Endangered Species Protection in Rare Emergency Ruling Due to Geothermal Plant

The population of the tiny, black-freckled toad that prefers hot springs is being threatened by the ongoing geothermal project in the Nevada desert. Due to this, the federal agency Fish and Wildlife Service temporarily declared the Dixie Valley toad as an endangered species via a rare emergency ruling.

The decision is subject to 60 days of public comment under the usual rulemaking process under the Endangered Species Act. But the emergency listing into endangered species is immediately put into effect and will continue for eight months while more permanent protections are considered for the toad. The ruling is the second time in 20 years the FWS has listed a species as endangered on an emergency basis.

(Photo : Unsplash/Ed van duijn)
Nevada Toad Gets Endangered Species Protection in Rare Emergency Ruling Due to Geothermal Plant

Ongoing Geothermal Project Pushes Dixie Valley Toad to Extinction

Nevada has the largest untapped geothermal energy in the US, with approximately 2,500 to 3,700 megawatts of electricity. Today, almost 400 homes use geothermal power for heat and hot water.

#DYK that Nevada has 309 species found nowhere else in the world? To name a few: Devils Hole pupfish, a variety springsnails and amphibians like the adorable Dixie Valley toad.

Here are 9 other things you didn’t know about Nevada's nature scene: https://t.co/5SAzeDT5ay 📷 USFWS pic.twitter.com/qWryU4XCbD
— U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (@USFWS) January 29, 2021

The Dixie Valley toad lives in wetlands and along the hot springs where the ongoing construction for the geothermal power plant is, according to Phys.org. Conservation groups are concerned that the project, along with groundwater pumping for human and agricultural uses and climate, are affecting the population of those toads.

FWS agreed in March to expedite the consideration of a federal listing of the toad as part of the settlement with the wildlife conservationists and Fallon Paiute-Shoshone Tribe suing the geothermal power plant. The toad has lived in the area for thousands of years and is considered a sacred animal for the tribe.

Before the emergency ruling, the Center for Biological Diversity has first petitioned for the road's listing in 2017. Patrick Donnelly, the center's Great Basin director, said that the ruling on Monday was just in time as the Dixie Valley toad is already on the brink of extinction.

Meanwhile, the officials from Ormat Technologies Inc. said that they do not see how the listing would affect the project because they have included a mitigation plan that will offset any potential environmental impacts that the power plant may have on the toad. Paul Thomsen, the Vice President of Ormat, said that the company has long recognized the importance of conserving the toad regardless of its legal status.

FWS added that protecting a small population of species like the Dixie Valley toad ensures the continued biodiversity to maintain climate-resilient landscapes.

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Dixie Valley Toads Love Lounging in Warm Water of Natural Hot Spring

According to FWS, the small toad can only be found in the Dixie Valley, Nevada, for which it was named. Its sole population lives in a hot spring-fed wetland where they lounge all day, like what most people have dreamed of staying in the warm water of a natural hot spring.

Scientists have always associated the toads with hot springs, but it was only recently that they realized Dixie Valley toads intentionally choose to be in the warmer water so they do not freeze during winter, an exception adaptation for their species. Most toads would stay underground in caves so they do not freeze.

Also, they found that living in the hot spring has an added benefit to the toad. It keeps the infectious disease chytridiomycosis at bay because the fungus cannot live in the warm spring water.