ioneer Ltd – an emerging supplier of lithium-boron in the US – was fully expecting the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) announcement of a proposal to list Tiehm’s buckwheat as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and has factored this into project planning.
The company said this was in line with ioneer’s expectations and it fully supported the FWS decisions regarding the ongoing management and protection of Tiehm’s buckwheat populations, including an ESA listing.
The FWS announced in June 2021 that an investigation into an ESA listing of the plant was “warranted”. Tiehm’s buckwheat populations at ioneer’s Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron Project in Nevada were affected by a herbivory incident in September 2020 where rodents impacted by severe drought conditions destroyed some of the plants.
ESA criteria for listing a species as “threatened” and “endangered” include predation like herbivory as well as natural or man-made factors that could affect species’ survival.
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Central element of planning
According to the company, protection and conservation of Tiehm’s buckwheat, which is already classified as a Sensitive Species by the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM), is, and has always been, a central part of ioneer’s environmental planning and approvals process for the project.
The company says this has been factored into every aspect of Rhyolite Ridge’s project planning including its design, engineering, operational and environmental considerations.
“We welcome and fully support the decisions by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, and the work it and the BLM are undertaking to safeguard Tiehm’s buckwheat, managing director Bernard Rowe said.
"ioneer reiterates its commitment to preservation of this species. From the beginning, the Rhyolite Ridge operation has been designed and planned to incorporate the conservation and protection of Tiehm’s buckwheat.
"We have always firmly understood the need to protect this species, irrespective of its listing status, given its small population and limited geographic spread along the edges of the area we operate in.”
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Plans to expand populations
In supporting the FWS proposal, ioneer is backing its own environmental policies.
“ioneer has invested considerable funds into undertaking the most comprehensive studies and efforts into Tiehm’s buckwheat management strategies to date to ensure the species is not only protected but that its populations are expanded in the years to come,” Rowe continued.
“ioneer will ensure the necessary measures are in place to mitigate any potential impacts of its operations and natural threats to the plant in its environment. Core to our strategy is avoidance where possible and minimisation of any disturbance by our operations.
"Our propagation, transplant and translocation programs will not only see populations expanded, but reduce the risk to the plant from further climate-related impacts and herbivory.
“Based upon the best available science, we are highly confident that with a combination of avoidance, propagation and translocation, as has been successfully demonstrated with other mat buckwheat species in the region, we can achieve the successful coexistence of Tiehm’s buckwheat and our environmentally significant project, which will supply critically needed lithium products in the US.”
The final listing decision is expected by September 2022 as stipulated by the courts.