NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The federal government designates nearly 1,900 square miles of Louisiana forest and nearby land in 15 parishes as critical habitat for the Louisiana black bear.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it won’t affect private landowners who don’t have federal contracts or need federal permits.
A federal analysis indicates that, over the next 20 years, the designation might add an average of $55,000 to $430,000 a year to the cost of exploring and drilling for oil and gas in Louisiana.
Deborah Fuller, the agency’s endangered species program coordinator, says most of that is the cost of analyzing the effects of clearing land to put in wells, pipelines and access roads.
She says that studies have found that timbering does not hurt the bears.
The rule takes final effect April 9.
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