Politics trumps Science on Grazing

[JoseCuervo]

Why anyone would want to work for the land managment agencies is beyond me, when no matter how hard you work, the local politics reign supreme.

Grazing Resolution: Rancher, Forest Service reach agreement

ELKO - Intervention and mediation by local elected officials resulted in an agreement signed Tuesday between the U.S. Forest Service and Elko County rancher Mike Riordan, ending a conflict over grazing rights on the west side of the Ruby Mountains.


"We have more than we had at the beginning of the process," Riordan said. "I sure appreciate all the people that came together to help."


Dan Dallas, Forest Service ranger for the Ruby Mountain and Jarbidge districts, said the input from Assemblyman John Carpenter, R-Elko; Elko County Commission Chairman Mike Nannini; and Elko County Commissioner John Ellison played a pivotal role in his agency and Riordan reaching an agreeable settlement.


Riordan said he thought Tuesday's agreement was a step in the right direction for an ongoing process.


"They (elected officials) have done a tremendous job and given of their time and brought everybody together, and with their help and Dan Dallas' help, we have got something we can start with and hopefully make some progress," he said.


The dispute began in February when former District Ranger Bill Van Bruggen canceled half of the Riordan Family Trust's grazing permit due to a series of disagreements over the permit's terms and conditions from 1998 to 2003.


"They said it was overgrazing," Ellison said about the Forest Service's decision to slice the Riordans' grazing allocation in half. He said that Van Bruggen "on his way out the door cut out 50 percent forever" of the Riordans' permit.


He said he was told at a meeting Reno that Forest Service biologists had found seven or eight areas in the permit where overgrazing had caused destruction to habitat for certain reptile species. Ellison said one of the areas cited was above 12,000 feet, which Ellison said was absurd.


"We disputed the finding of overgrazing," Ellison said.


He said the agreement calls for the allocations to be monitored and for corrective action to be taken should any problems develop.


The Riordans are authorized to graze livestock on the west side of the Ruby Mountains on National Forest System lands in the Smith Creek, Lindsey and Brown Creek areas.


Dallas said the Forest Service does not take such drastic action very often.


"It's unusual for the Forest Service to get to the point in a grazing conflict where we feel there is no other option than to cancel either portions or all of a grazing permit," Dallas said. "For a lot of reasons, and unfortunately for too many years, the Riordans and our office were unable to get in alignment on how to solve these problems on the ground."


In mid-March, the Riordans appealed the cancellation decision to mediation through the Nevada Department of Agriculture.


Ellison said that at the beginning there was a difficult road ahead to reach an agreement.


"We were all told that this would never be reversed, but we all sat down and worked as a team and resolved the issue and made it work for the rancher and the Forest Service," he said. "So I think it was a win-win for both parties."


Dallas said the local officials' assistance was important in obtaining a solution to the dispute.


"I've got to credit our local elected officials, they were able to finally bring us to the table and concentrate on a solution that would work for all parties," he said. "I think we have negotiated a reasonable and obtainable resolution to this conflict with their help."


DeLoyd Satterwaite, a member of the Nevada Department of Agriculture Board, said he believed it was best if such conflicts could be resolved at the local level.


"I've always felt that mediation is the way to go, and especially when you can get outside. People like we have had ... give you different views and you look at in a different way and a lot of times you can come up with a solution," he said. "I think this is at least a way to start."


Dallas said they were able to arrive at common ground.


"My thinking is the resources will be better off in the long run," he said. "Mike's situation on his ranch will be better off because of this agreement."


Carpenter said grazing is at the heart of the matter.


"I think it is very important that we can work with the Forest Service ... . We don't want to lose any grazing in Elko County because ranching is very important," he said. "We want to work with the Forest Service and keep grazing the way it is and hopefully improve it, and I am very glad that we were able to work these things out."


Ellison said county board members and Carpenter intervened and mediated in some other grazing disputes. Nannini said he hoped it would set a precedent.


"I would like to offer anybody who is having any conflicts and need some help that we are willing to step up to the plate and solve their problems," he said. "This is just maybe one of many and we can resolve any issue as long as we can sit down and talk about it."

 

[pawclaws]

I agree they ought to all just quit!

 

[Nut]

Originally posted by pawclaws:
I agree they ought to all just quit!

Yep the politicians should

 

[Tom]

I herd there's some computer thing now that can transfer the whole library of congress contents in 4.6 seconds. The trouble is, I can't read it that fast.

Environmentalists have got to learn to work in the political system, that's how the country is run.