JoseCuervo
New member
Yeppers.... It sure is important for the Welfare Ranchers to be able to turn their Range Maggots out on Forest Service land.... We probably have too many BigHorn Sheep anyway.... Can't have enough mutton on the table....
<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR> Domestic sheep grazing proposed in Bridger-Teton
Associated Press
JACKSON – Bridger-Teton National Forest officials are proposing to open three areas in the Wyoming range to domestic sheep grazing.
According to a draft Environmental Impact Statement, forest officials want to expand domestic sheep grazing into areas closed to this use in the Jackson, Big Piney and Greys River ranger districts. It would also speed up ongoing revegetation and habitat rehabilitation work in the allotments, the document said.
But members of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition fear the proposal could threaten bighorn sheep herds in the Wyoming range if the animals co-mingle with domestic sheep.
“If the BTNF insists on allowing grazing allotments for domestic sheep in bighorn sheep range, then it’s inevitable the bighorn sheep will die out,” GYC Wyoming representative Lloyd Dorsey said.
Forest officials said although a preferred alternative has been identified, a final decision on which alternative to implement has not been made. The agency is accepting public comments on the DEIS through Dec. 8.
The preferred management action would expand what’s known as the Wyoming Range Allotment Complex and would allow domestic sheep grazing within the allotments.
The complex currently consists of the Corral Creek, Mule Creek, Grizzly Creek, Pickle Pass, Upper Grayback/Phosphate, North Horse and Prospect Peak domestic sheep allotments.
The majority of the complex, or about 65 percent, is located in Sublette County, with the remainder in Lincoln County. There is a total of about 67,500 acres within the project area.
The forest proposal provides for a rotational rest system, whereby each allotment will be rested from livestock grazing a minimum of two of every seven years.
The alternative calls for the construction of some new fences and the elimination of others to effectively incorporate some of the allotment boundary changes. It will also speed up revegetation and habitat rehabilitation work.
Dorsey noted that many wildlife professionals, wildlife researchers and veterinarians believe bighorn sheep and domestic sheep should not occupy the same range because of the potential adverse effects on bighorn sheep from diseases carried by domestic sheep.
Bighorn sheep are highly susceptible to some strains of Pasteruella carried by domestic sheep. Domestic sheep appear to be immune to strains carried by bighorn sheep.
“A heck of a lot of the Wyoming range and even the lower foothills, out into the butte, and onto the Bureau of Land Management lands and the mesa was historically bighorn sheep range ... and populations are down to about 1 percent of their historic numbers in the lower 48 now,” Dorsey said.
The draft EIS said the agency will use an adaptive management strategy to allow for flexibility during implementation to respond to changing conditions and unexpected results. It also calls for follow-up monitoring studies, including at least one long-term study, on each allotment, along with condition and trend data analysis.
Other alternatives outlined in the draft EIS include a no-action alternative, a no domestic sheep grazing alternative and an alternative that would provide for greater separation between domestic sheep grazing areas and the bighorn sheep core native head area boundary.
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<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR> Domestic sheep grazing proposed in Bridger-Teton
Associated Press
JACKSON – Bridger-Teton National Forest officials are proposing to open three areas in the Wyoming range to domestic sheep grazing.
According to a draft Environmental Impact Statement, forest officials want to expand domestic sheep grazing into areas closed to this use in the Jackson, Big Piney and Greys River ranger districts. It would also speed up ongoing revegetation and habitat rehabilitation work in the allotments, the document said.
But members of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition fear the proposal could threaten bighorn sheep herds in the Wyoming range if the animals co-mingle with domestic sheep.
“If the BTNF insists on allowing grazing allotments for domestic sheep in bighorn sheep range, then it’s inevitable the bighorn sheep will die out,” GYC Wyoming representative Lloyd Dorsey said.
Forest officials said although a preferred alternative has been identified, a final decision on which alternative to implement has not been made. The agency is accepting public comments on the DEIS through Dec. 8.
The preferred management action would expand what’s known as the Wyoming Range Allotment Complex and would allow domestic sheep grazing within the allotments.
The complex currently consists of the Corral Creek, Mule Creek, Grizzly Creek, Pickle Pass, Upper Grayback/Phosphate, North Horse and Prospect Peak domestic sheep allotments.
The majority of the complex, or about 65 percent, is located in Sublette County, with the remainder in Lincoln County. There is a total of about 67,500 acres within the project area.
The forest proposal provides for a rotational rest system, whereby each allotment will be rested from livestock grazing a minimum of two of every seven years.
The alternative calls for the construction of some new fences and the elimination of others to effectively incorporate some of the allotment boundary changes. It will also speed up revegetation and habitat rehabilitation work.
Dorsey noted that many wildlife professionals, wildlife researchers and veterinarians believe bighorn sheep and domestic sheep should not occupy the same range because of the potential adverse effects on bighorn sheep from diseases carried by domestic sheep.
Bighorn sheep are highly susceptible to some strains of Pasteruella carried by domestic sheep. Domestic sheep appear to be immune to strains carried by bighorn sheep.
“A heck of a lot of the Wyoming range and even the lower foothills, out into the butte, and onto the Bureau of Land Management lands and the mesa was historically bighorn sheep range ... and populations are down to about 1 percent of their historic numbers in the lower 48 now,” Dorsey said.
The draft EIS said the agency will use an adaptive management strategy to allow for flexibility during implementation to respond to changing conditions and unexpected results. It also calls for follow-up monitoring studies, including at least one long-term study, on each allotment, along with condition and trend data analysis.
Other alternatives outlined in the draft EIS include a no-action alternative, a no domestic sheep grazing alternative and an alternative that would provide for greater separation between domestic sheep grazing areas and the bighorn sheep core native head area boundary.
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