Protecting frog could cost $1.83 Billion

Protecting the California red-legged frog, enshrined in literature by Mark Twain’s “Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County,” could mean costs ranging from $44.8 million to $125 million or even as much as $1.83 billion, according to a report from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The FWS on Tuesday re-opened the public comment period on a proposal made last September to designate 1.8 million acres as critical habitat for the threatened California red-legged frog (“a frog so modest and straightforward,” as Mr. Twain described.) The new 30-day comment period coincides with the release of the estimate of possible economic impacts from designating critical habitat. The economic analysis looks at the range of incremental costs linked to the critical habitat designation. The direct incremental impacts include up to $44.8 million through 2030 to protect the frogs and their habitat in new developments. Delays due to further consultations with the FWS could cost up to $126 million through 2030, according to the analysis prepared for FWS under contract by Industrial Economics Inc. of Cambridge, Mass. The economic analysis says costs of protecting the frog unrelated to the designation of critical habitat could be up to $1.83 billion...CVBT