NEWS ROUNDUP

Monument ranchers seek buyout In fact, this Southern Oregon landscape where Dauenhauer and about a dozen other ranchers run their cattle in the summer is so ecologically unique that President Clinton on June 9, 2000, proclaimed it the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument. Immediately, mining and timber cutting inside the monument were prohibited. Grazing continued, but the president ordered a study of whether livestock, which can be hard on the land, threaten the ecology of the area. The study won't be completed for a few more years. Ultimately, the answer will determine whether cattle -- and cowboys -- will remain in these parts. But Dauenhauer and the other ranchers don't want to wait around for the results: They want out of their leases, and they want to dictate the terms. They're asking the federal government to buy back the leases allowing them to graze cattle within the monument. And they want conservationists, who lobbied so hard and so successfully for the monument's creation, to share some of the buyback costs....
USFS, snowmobilers still trading blows over Little Box Canyon Almost a year after outdoor enthusiasts complained about changes made to the road in Little Box Canyon north of Rifle, relations between them and the Forest Service remain as rocky as the route itself. Rocks spread by a Forest Service contractor on the road - some of them 10 inches in diameter - have made it off limits to all but four-wheel-drive vehicles with good clearance, said Bob Hoffmeister, treasurer of the Rifle Snowmobile Club....
Judge blocks post-fire timber sale, says hazard would grow A federal judge has blocked the federal government's plans to sell timber from an area west of Lake Tahoe that was extensively burned in a fire three years ago, land now proposed for a wilderness area. U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. blocked the proposed cut in Duncan Canyon, about 30 miles southeast of Foresthill, more than a year after issuing a temporary restraining order. On Friday, he sided with environmental groups that said the logging could create a worse fire hazard and harm wildlife in the area....
Ice Age Floodwaters Leave a Walkable Trail Across the Northwest Thousands of years ago, with a force that shook the earth, ice dams in the mountains here gave way, sending a towering, churning wall of water - the equivalent of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie flowing at a rate of 10 times all the rivers on the planet - on a frantic dash to the Pacific Ocean. The mammoth lake held back by the dam, Glacial Lake Missoula, was drained like a giant bathtub, in perhaps as little as 48 hours. And like an enormous high-pressure fire hose, the water moved massive amounts of rock and left scars in the bedrock of four states. This catastrophic event, in the last ice age, was not the only flood from the lake. There were dozens or more similar "flood outbursts" in the last ice age, and perhaps many more in previous ice ages....
Geologic trail proposed Now Congress is considering whether to create a National Geologic Trail that would stretch from Missoula, Mont., to the Willamette Valley in Oregon and tell the story of the floods. The four-state auto route would be managed by the National Park Service and follow the path of the floodwaters through four states....
Bush Administration Moves Pave Way for Development in Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem A coalition of conservation and outdoor education groups has formally asked the U.S. Forest Service to withdraw plans to lease nearly 158,000 acres for oil and gas drilling in western Wyoming’s Bridger-Teton National Forest. The leasing would open the door to industrial development in pristine roadless areas and habitat for rare wildlife such as Canada lynx. The groups sent a letter to the Forest Service last week asking the agency to forego leasing based on violations of federal environmental laws....
Fish Known To Break People's Arms Found In Cherry Creek Reservoir Fishery managers are worried that the introduction of an Asian fish into Colorado waters could damage the sports fishery and even result in injuries to humans. Fishermen recently caught two bighead carp, which can grow to more than 4 feet and weigh up to 100 pounds, in Cherry Creek Reservoir. Biologists are concerned the carp may have spread downstream to the South Platte River, where river flow could provide the habitat they need to successfully reproduce....
Plans would cut snowmobile income: Economic forecasts on park decision mired in questions No matter which path is chosen for snowmobiling in Yellowstone National Park, one near-certainty is emerging: the snowmobile business in the park - and the cash that it provides to area businesses - probably won't be what it once was. Under the latest three-year proposal for snowmobiling in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, businesses in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho stand to lose between $165,000 and $11.5 million next year in comparison to the winter of 1997-98, according to National Park Service estimates. Job losses could range from four to 280 compared to the 1997-98 season. Economists used that winter for comparison because they said it represents a typical snowmobile season before the controversy and uncertainty over snowmobiling arose....
Knowledge mined from Silverton hills The hills are alive with the sound of scientific discourse. In silvered aspen glades and on mossy tundra, scientists and teachers are murmuring alongside brooks. And the nearby San Juan Mountains town of Silverton has come to realize that the "gold in them thar hills" doesn't have to be extracted to be treasured....
Horse bidders must pass muster Adopting a horse from the government on the Internet is almost, but not quite, like eBay. First, you have to convince Karen Malloy you are horse-worthy. Malloy manages the Bureau of Land Management's Internet adoptions, which are held five times a year, including this month, at www.adoptahorse.blm.gov. Before you can bid, you have to submit an application that is reviewed by Malloy. Applications for the August auction closed this week....
Editorial: Roadblock at Yucca Mountain federal appeals court decision has thrown a gigantic roadblock in the way of efforts to create an underground burial site for nuclear wastes at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. A three-judge panel in the District of Columbia ruled last month that regulators could not simply require the repository to contain the wastes for 10,000 years, the standard set by the Environmental Protection Agency, but must instead ensure that Yucca could function acceptably for hundreds of thousands of years. That standard is so outlandishly stringent it may not be achievable. Unless Congress steps in to change the ground rules, the court ruling could significantly delay or even derail efforts to move ahead with an underground repository that will be vitally needed in coming decades....
Lawmakers wants law changes to address ag leasing ruling A leading Democrat on Monday proposed law changes to deal with a court ruling that eliminated an automatic advantage for farmers and ranchers facing competition for renewal of their state agricultural leases. Senate Minority Leader Jon Tester of Big Sandy said he will ask the 2005 Legislature to act quickly so that the state Land Board will have the authority to determine who should be awarded leases in light of the judge's decision. Fast action is necessary because the next round of lease renewals will occur in late winter, he said....
Bishop run-in led to change, corps staff say Frustrated federal water quality regulators said the reassignment of the Intermountain section's top official after a run-in with Utah Rep. Rob Bishop was a decision to "feed one of our own to the lions," and could undermine future enforcement activities. Brooks Carter, who had been chief of the Army Corps of Engineers' Intermountain Regulatory Section for 19 years, was moved into a new regional policy job in late July, amid a dispute with Bishop and the city of Perry over a pair of projects that the corps said violated the Clean Water Act....
Settlement leaves many landowners fighting over water A massive, seven-year fight over rights to the Santa Maria Valley Groundwater Basin has taken a first step toward resolution. But for hundreds of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo county property owners and hopeful developers, the settlement signed last week between the Santa Maria Valley Water Conservation District and Santa Maria changes nothing. For those people, most of whom were dragged into the lawsuit against their will, the legal wrangling will continue....
El Paso residents allege water conspiracy by governor Two El Paso, Texas residents have appealed a water permit issued to Dona Ana County and an El Paso-based development group, contending there was a conspiracy involving the developer and the governor to take water that belonged to the El Paso residents. The appeal by Charlie and Phyllis Crowder, filed in state district court here, adds an obstacle to efforts to resolve decades of legal battles over Santa Teresa water. Charlie Crowder has alleged a conspiracy involving Gov. Bill Richardson, the Verde Group and others to take his land and water....
Judge denies motion to stop negotiations in Navajo water dispute A state district judge has ruled that motions to stop a proposed settlement in a Navajo water rights dispute are premature. State District Judge Rozier Sanchez denied the motions after a three-hour hearing Friday saying the state and Navajo Nation are still negotiating the settlement. Sanchez said a final draft had not been submitted to the court. Farmington attorney and resident Gary Horner and San Juan Agricultural Water Users attorney Felix Briones argued to forbid the settlement from proceeding, saying the state has not conducted a survey to see how much water exists or an irrigation acreage study....
Federal wildlife agency to sell groundwater near Silver Springs The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to sell 660 acre-feet of groundwater rights acquired with the purchase of the Ghiglia Ranch in Lyon County to the highest bidder next month. The USFWS bought the groundwater rights in 1999 as part of a $2.6 million deal to acquire the ranch's 4,000 acre-feet of surface water rights. The surface water rights are earmarked for use at the Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge near Fallon....
Meat-eaters soak up the world's water Governments may have to persuade people to eat less meat because of increasing demands on water supplies, according to agricultural scientists investigating how the world can best feed itself. They say countries with little water may choose not to grow crops but trade in "virtual water", importing food from countries which have large amounts of water to save their supplies for domestic or high-value uses. With about 840 million people in the world undernourished, and a further 2 billion expected to be born within 20 years, finding water to grow food will be one of the greatest challenges facing governments. Currently up to 90% of all managed water is used to grow food....
Maybelle Carter's guitar staying here A man whose only tie to Nashville's country music business is a love of song has rescued its crown jewel. Murfreesboro businessman Robert W. ''Bob'' McLean has pledged $575,000 to purchase ''Mother Maybelle'' Carter's 1928 Gibson guitar, considered one of the most historically significant instruments in American popular music. It now returns to permanent display in the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, where the public can enjoy it....
Old Hertzberg museum could go from clowns to cowboys A group of local movers and shakers is working to establish a museum of Western art and artifacts, hoping to enrich the area's cultural tapestry by highlighting more of its history. While still early in the planning process, a small staff for the National Western Art Foundation is already in place and working to unveil the as yet unnamed museum next month. Though the plans may be sketchy, museum leaders are firm about the city's need to explore and illuminate San Antonio and South Texas' role in the West....
Saddle Exhibit Offered at Colorado State Fair For over a century, beginning in the 1870s, saddle making was major industry in Pueblo. Turn-of-the-Century Pueblo was home to such famous saddle makers as S.C. Gallup, R.T. Frazier and Thomas Flynn. At a time when society was dependent upon the horse for transportation, these saddle makers were famous nationwide for developing what is known as the Pueblo Stock Saddle. Today, there is a huge demand from collectors for saddles produced in Pueblo in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Though the days of the large saddle shops in Pueblo ended when Mack’s Saddlery burned in 1989, custom saddle makers continue to produce quality handmade saddles throughout Colorado. These artists who continue the art of saddle making are the focus of an exhibit at this year’s State Fair....
Spade rounds up title again In the end, winning the 24th annual Texas Ranch Roundup came down to squeezing a few drops of milk from a wild, uncooperative cow that had no intentions of giving it up. But when the seconds were all counted, the points added up, and the overall numbers were tallied, the Spade Ranch of Lubbock took home the top honors for the third year in a row....
Famed Texas horse line regaining the spotlight There was a time, the old hands say, when you could pick out a Waggoner Ranch cowboy just by the horse he was riding. The horse would have a thick chest, deep heart, big hips and short, strong back. And there was a time when every ranch in the country wanted their horses' bloodlines traced back to names such as Poco Bueno, Pretty Boy and Blackburn....
It's All Trew: Point of view depends on viewing point Recently I refereed a serious debate between three "coffee-slurpers" who were arguing which early-day home improvement had the most significance. All agreed first that rural electricity was number one. But what were numbers two, three and four on the scale? The subjects being argued were running water in the home, a commode in the bathroom or the advent of butane gas piped into a home. As I listened to the comments, the old adage handed down by Grandpa Trew came to mind. "Your point of view often depends on the point from where you are viewing." Here are some good examples....