BRETT FRENCH
A Mexican-based companyâs proposal to explore for gypsum along the base of the Pryor Mountains, if approved, could threaten a rare plant species â the thick-leaf bladder pod.
Thatâs the contention of several conservation groups that have petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to declare the species threatened or endangered, thereby protecting its habitat from the project.
The Bureau of Land Management issued a Finding of No Significant Impact for the four-acre drilling plan near Gyp Springs last year, meaning it didnât believe the work merited more intensive scrutiny under an environmental impact statement. But the drilling has not yet been authorized.