Results of Development by Design in the Tri-County Region 

Development by Design is a strategic process that communities can use to evaluate the impacts of future energy development on nature and their way of life. The Stakeholder Advisory Group used this process to develop recommendations on how best to balance conservation goals and energy development in the Tri-County region.

Development by Design Process

Step 1 – Conservation Values

Develop a conservation vision that captures what people value and want to preserve in their community, way of life and natural resources. 

The Stakeholder Advisory Group identified historic ranching heritage as the defining feature that supports the other important values of the Tri-County region. Vast, intact properties contribute to the area’s scenic vistas, dark skies, clean water, wildlife corridors and other unique traits. 

The conservation values identified by the SAG are:

• Ranching heritage and private property rights

These characteristics shape the culture and economy of the Tri-County region. Many of the ranches established in the late 1800s and early 1900s still exist today. Keeping these working lands intact is important to the community, because they produce food, provide large intact habitat for wildlife and support ecological processes, including water filtration, carbon sequestration and dust control. 

• Vistas, dark skies, remoteness and quietness

Cumulatively, the Tri-County region encompasses over 12,000 square miles, an area larger than the state of Maryland, but only about 18,000 residents call the area home. This makes it one of the least populated expanses of land in the United States. The resulting vistas, remoteness and quietude make it a destination for those who want to escape crowds and noise and view nature in all its splendor. 

Despite increasing industrial activity nearby, the area still boasts some of the darkest skies in North America. 

• Sky islands, water resources and grasslands

The diverse topography that characterizes the Tri-County region makes it one of the most unique and varied ecological areas in the United States. With desert scrub, grasslands and sky islands, the area supports a diverse biological community, all of which rely on scarce water resources. 

• Tourism and hunting

The Tri-County region abounds with outdoor adventure opportunities. Ecotourism has become an important economic driver in the region, supporting businesses and providing employment for many of the residents of the area. In addition to camping, hiking and birding, hunting has become a source of revenue for both landowners and local businesses. 

• Community, safety and quality of life

The unique character of small West Texas towns attracts residents and visitors alike. Smaller communities like Marathon, Terlingua and Valentine, along with the slightly larger towns of Alpine, Fort Davis, Marfa and Presidio provide vital services, gathering places and a distinctive quality of life. 

• Culture, music and the arts

The Tri-County region boasts a strong appreciation of music and arts. The mesmerizing landscapes of the region have captured the attention of artists for decades. Most famously, Donald Judd moved to Marfa in the 1970s, catalyzing the transformation of the sleepy little town into a premier art destination. But galleries and events celebrating the arts are commonplace in other area communities too, as is live music of all genres. 

• Wildlife and migratory corridors

The Trans-Pecos supports over 500 species of birds, some 170 species of reptiles and amphibians and more than 120 species of mammals. Many of those species are found in the Tri-County region. The region is also home to several iconic species, such as pronghorn, bighorn sheep and black bear, which rely on healthy, intact and connected corridors for their survival. 

Read more about developing a conservation vision in the technical report.

Step 2 – Mapping 

Map the values to the landscape using an interactive, visual tool.

RBB scientists took the values identified by the Stakeholder Advisory Group and depicted them on the landscape to highlight areas of greatest value. While the SAG members came from the Tri-County region, the RBB team developed spatial map layers to show the concentration of values across the 18-county study region.

Areas where values overlapped – because they represent multiple important features – are places where development should be avoided. In addition, some areas that contained only one or two features were highlighted, because they represent unique or irreplaceable features.

Read more about how the maps were developed in the technical report supplement.

Step 3 – Energy Projections

Project future energy development by exploring where and why it is occurring today, and estimate where, how much and what types of development may occur in the future. 

RBB scientists estimated future energy development patterns to determine the likelihood that oil and gas, solar and/or wind development would occur at a particular location sometime in the next 30 years. The analysis involved for each energy source included:

• mapping existing energy-related infrastructure, excluding areas that will not be developed (e.g., cities, roads, already-developed areas);

• evaluating the energy resource potential (i.e., wind speed, reservoir quality, solar radiance and slope);

• projecting the amount of energy production under different scenarios; and

• estimating the location of new production facilities, based on certain criteria. 

Modeling provided future estimates of both solar and wind generation measured in gigawatts (GW) for each ERCOT region and ultimately for each county in Texas.

RBB scientists met with representatives of the oil and gas, wind and solar industries to discuss and solicit comments on the methodology and findings. 

Read more about the energy projections in the technical report.

Step 4 – Estimated Landscape Impacts of Energy Development

Estimate the impacts of current and projected future development on the landscape and consider those impacts in the context of community-based priorities.

• Oil & Gas. There is little oil and gas development expected in the Tri-County area between now and 2050, because of the geology of the region. In the 18-county study area, forecasts for development were highest in Pecos, Culberson and Midland Counties. In those counties, most of the projected development is expected to impact areas that show up on the map as low conservation value. However, 25 percent of the forecasted development would impact areas with high conservation values.  

• Renewables. Scientists also evaluated the siting potential for wind and solar facilities across the 18-county study area. In the Tri-County region, there are potential development sites in areas that are classified as of high conservation value. 

Outside the Tri-County region, areas of high conservation value could also be impacted in Culberson, Hudspeth, Pecos, Reeves and Terrell Counties. However, there are large expanses of suitable development sites for wind and solar that are of lesser conservation value.

Note that this research did not focus on air and water impacts associated with oil and gas development; rather, it focused on the impacts to land that occur when an oil and gas play is developed or a wind or solar facility is built.

Step 5 – Mitigating the Impacts of Energy Development

Identify opportunities to guide development that avoids or minimizes impacts to important values in the landscape and to prioritize areas for restoration action.

• Data and information, like that developed in the Tri-County area, can be used to identify resources and areas that should be prioritized for conservation.

Our research projected only a small amount of new oil and gas development in the Tri-County region. However, there is land that is suitable for wind and solar development. If future development of any kind is considered (energy related or not), the information generated through the RBB process can be used to enhance planning efforts for new development. The use of the decision framework would ensure mitigation of development impacts to the areas identified by the community as having the greatest conservation value. 

Guidance for using the data is available in the technical report.

• The ability to manage and mitigate siting impacts will vary by energy type.

Wind and solar development require a lot of land per unit of energy produced, but compared with oil and gas production, there is considerably more flexibility when it comes to siting new infrastructure. This means it is possible to select sites for renewable energy facilities with relatively low conservation value. In fact, we found that between 4 and 32 times the amount of suitable land is available to meet projected renewable energy targets.

In contrast, oil and gas development requires a much smaller footprint, but there are limited options for where new wells can be placed – infrastructure needs to lie above oil and gas reserves. This means it is more difficult for operators to avoid areas of high value, but they can minimize surface impacts by using single pads for multiple wells and carefully positioning those pads.