An unbridled environmental disaster is looming over the wildlife that call Oklahoma and northeast Texas home. Tucked away in southeast Oklahoma, heavily forested Pushmataha County is home to an astonishing array of biodiversity. But a proposed water reservoir and power transmission project is poised to drown nearly 1,500 acres of habitat that imperiled mussels, bats, birds and reptiles depend on.
It’s frankly astonishing that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has let the development come this far. Through every step of the application process, tribes, residents and community groups have consistently opposed the project.
But so far, the Southeast Oklahoma Power Corp. and federal government have yet to heed those calls and instead proceeded with the hydroelectric power storage facility proposal. If completed, the project would send its electricity across state lines into Texas’ unregulated power markets.
It’s easy to see why the people directly hurt by this ruthless environmental exploitation oppose it.