The groups are asking a U.S. District Court judge to let them take part in a lawsuit over the toad’s federal protection status. The case was brought by geothermal company Ormat, which is trying to remove Endangered Species Act protections for the species.
Dixie Valley toads live in just one place — a small hot spring-fed wetland in Churchill County. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed the toad as endangered in 2022 after finding it faced serious threats.
The groups say Ormat’s proposed Dixie Meadows Geothermal Project could dry up the springs the toads depend on to survive. Scientists working with the Fish and Wildlife Service have also found the toad and its habitat are at risk.
“It’s appalling that a geothermal energy company would thumb its nose at independent scientists, and that’s why we’re fighting back,” said Patrick Donnelly, Great Basin director at the Center, in a statement. “This industry-backed lawsuit ignores what scientists have been clear about from the start. Ormat’s power plant puts the Dixie Valley toad in the crosshairs of extinction.”
If the judge approves the motion, the Center and the Tribe would be allowed to join the federal government in defending the toad’s protections in court.
As a note of disclosure, Ormat is a financial supporter of KUNR.
