Wildlife agency raises concerns over proposed Lordsburg Playa lithium drilling project

Wildlife officials said a proposed lithium drilling project at Lordsburg Playa could put birds, bats and other wildlife at risk, putting fresh pressure on a plan that would cut six bore holes across BLM land just west of Lordsburg.

In a May 5 review letter, the New Mexico Department of Wildlife warned that mud pits tied to drilling can trap terrestrial wildlife, birds and bats. The department recommended fencing, solid covers or netting over those pits, while warning against monofilament netting. It went further still, strongly urging a closed-loop drilling system because it would reduce surface disturbance and use significantly less water.

The project, listed as HI025EM and identified as Lordsburg Playa Lithium Exploration 2, is tied to operator Frank Bain. Bain’s application calls for six exploration bore holes reaching about 500 feet from six drill pads. State estimates put the disturbance footprint at about 2.7 acres on land administered by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in Township 23 South, Range 20 West, Sections 7, 8, 9, 17, 18 and 20.

The wildlife department’s letter did not reject the proposal, but it did sharpen the scrutiny around it. Staff said a site inspection on April 30 brought together the Department of Wildlife, the Mining and Minerals Division, the New Mexico Environment Department and the operator. That visit now appears to be the hinge point in the review, with Bain and the state agencies needing to answer whether the project can move ahead with fewer impacts, added safeguards or a more difficult permitting path.

One detail in the letter stood out: the department said the application incorrectly treated its November 20, 2017 comment letter as a wildlife survey. That earlier 2017 Game and Fish letter on the predecessor project said the playa lakes provide an important stopover and wintering site for migratory shorebirds and waterfowl, and that Lordsburg Playa should be managed as important wildlife habitat.

That history matters in Hidalgo County because Lordsburg Playa is more than a mineral target. State transportation officials describe it as a 25- to 30-square-mile dried lake bed linked to more than 40 dust-related highway deaths since 1965, including 21 deaths, 39 Interstate 10 closures and 120 dust events since 2012. A 2014 crash near Lordsburg helped drive a multi-phase dust mitigation program.

The area is also being viewed as a sensitive wetland landscape. In May 2025, the New Mexico Environment Department’s Surface Water Quality Bureau funded a Wetlands Action Plan for the Lordsburg Playa Watershed with input from University of New Mexico natural heritage staff, Natural Resources Conservation Service staff, state wetland experts and local ranchers. Together, the reviews show the playa is facing a tougher standard: any new lithium drilling will have to prove it can coexist with wildlife, scarce water and one of southwestern New Mexico’s most closely watched landscapes.