The Lone Star Chapter’s efforts to stop a projected thirty year gas drilling campaign on Padre Island National Seashore were set back in April when a federal court ruled that BNP Petroleum could continue its drilling in the park.

The Sierra Club had filed suit against Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton and the National Park Service (NPS) in December 2002, arguing that NPS had violated the Endangered Species Act by opening 92% of the park to drilling without taking necessary precautions to prevent harm to the critically endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtle.

The court decision is an odd one because the court agreed that the drilling is likely to harm the turtles. For reasons that are hard to understand, the court ruled that the Park Service doesn’t need to do a full scientific review in order to determine how best to protect the turtles. An appeal of the decision will be filed.

In the decision, Sierra Club v. Gale Norton, issued April 18, the court found that BNP’s 18-wheeler trucks "create significant hazards for the Kemp’s ridley." Following is an excerpt from the opinion:

"There is the obvious danger that nesting sea turtles, hatchlings attempting to reach the ocean, and buried nests could be crushed by passing trucks. In addition, the wheel ruts left by BNP’s trucks can strand sea turtles on the beach. The trucks may also compress the sand making it more difficult for nesting females to lay their eggs and to consequently abandon the Seashore as a nesting site…Even mitigation measures, such as leveling the beach after a truck has passed, can bury or crush nests."

The heart of the Sierra Club contention in the case was that the Endangered Species Act requires federal agencies to request a formal biological study from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service when it determines that an activity like the drilling could have an adverse impact on a protected species like the Kemp’s ridley. NPS found that an adverse impact was indeed a possibility, but skipped the formal consultation. Therefore, Sierra Club argued that the drilling should be stopped until a formal biological review is completed in order to ensure the turtles would not be harmed.

NPS responded by telling the court that its mitigation measures, informal consultation with Fish & Wildlife, and its lengthy experience managing traffic on the beach were sufficient to ensure that it could prevent the turtles from being harmed by BNP’s trucks.

A major irony in the case is that the court found that that BNP trucks have, on numerous occasions, violated regulations established by NPS in order to protect the turtles. In spite of this, the court concluded, with little explanation, that NPS had not acted improperly in dodging a formal biological review.

The Sierra Club is disappointed by the decision, but there are good grounds for the appeal. The fact that the federal district court confirmed our contention that BNP’s trucks could cause serious harm to the turtles is heartening.

Petition Drive for Federal Buyout Launched

In the meantime, the Sierra Club will keep working towards a federal buyout of the privately owned and state owned mineral rights below the park and adjacent coastal waters. A federal buyout of those rights would give the federal government the ability to stop the drilling without incurring any potential legal action by private mineral interests or the State of Texas.

The Padre Island camp-in and sea turtle sand castle contest sponsored by the Sierra Club at the end of March helped demonstrate how strongly the public feels about the park. Now it’s time to take the message directly to President Bush and other elected officials through a petition drive in support of the buyout.

As of this writing, May 31 is the date for the kickoff of that petition drive. Location for the kickoff is Crawford, Texas, where President Bush has his second home.

The Sierra Club is urging its members and others to gather as many signatures as possible on petitions supporting the buyout. The petitions will be delivered to President Bush in Crawford in the fall.

In order to provide an extra incentive for signature gatherers, the Sierra Club is offering an all-expense paid trip to Crawford to the person who collects the most signatures. We'd like the contest winner to join us at a press conference in downtown Crawford to symbolically present the petitions to President Bush.

A petition is included in this issue of the Lone Star Sierran. It may be reproduced in multiple copies and given to friends and neighbors to circulate. The petitions should be returned to the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club by September 1, 2003. The mailing address is located at the bottom of the petition.

The Protect Padre Island Campaign is far from over. This will be a long-term struggle, but the Sierra Club has a long-term vision for Padre Island National Seashore and plan of action.

Most people are shocked when they learn that drilling is taking place on Padre Island National Seashore. Many people in Texas, however, are unaware of the extensive drilling effort that private interests with the approval of NPS are planning for this public treasure. The most important thing the Sierra Club can do right now is raise public awareness of this situation and gather more public support for a buyout.

A federal buyout of the mineral rights is the only way to guarantee that the drilling will be stopped once and for all and that the park will be protected for the creatures that live there and the people who love it and enjoy it.

The Sierra Club appreciates all the great people who have supported the Protect Padre Island Campaign. The Lone Star Chapter would like to offer special thanks to everyone who joined us at the camp-in at Padre Island National Seashore at the end of March and to those who made it possible. The camp-in was a great success, and helped show public officials in Washington and Texas how much Texans love Padre Island National Seashore.

Now is the time to move forward and prevent any further drilling on the Island.