NEWS ROUNDUP

Buyout will end Siskiyou grazing After three years of negotiations, ranchers and conservationists have agreed to terms of a buyout to get cattle off the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, which was created to protect the rare mix of plants found where the Siskiyou Mountains connect with the Cascade Range. "This is a compromise that none of the ranchers really want, but we figure is the best thing for ranchers, our economic interests and for the taxpayers," said Bob Miller of Hornbrook, Calif., whose family has run cattle in the area for a century. "It's basically the best compromise we can come up with to solve a major problem that's been created by modern times." Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., announced from Washington, D.C., that he plans to introduce a bill in July that would pay ranchers $814,200 if they agree to give up leases that allow about 500 cattle to graze on the monument. Conservation groups offered to sweeten the deal with an as-yet-undetermined amount of cash if all 17 ranching families with grazing rights agree to retire their leases. The bill also would create a 23,000-acre Soda Mountain Wilderness within the monument, something conservation groups have been trying to achieve for 30 years....
House approves coastline oil and natural gas exploration The House of Representatives voted 232-187 Thursday to permit new oil and natural gas exploration off the nation's coastlines in swaths that have been off-limits since 1981 because of environmental concerns. The vote, in which 40 Democrats voted with the Republicans, reflected the political pressures of soaring fuel prices and a desire to reduce the nation's dependence on foreign oil, especially from the volatile Mideast. Supporters argued that expanded offshore drilling would lower natural gas prices, help farmers and manufacturers, bolster national security and bring back jobs. "We depend on foreign countries for 66 percent of our energy," said House Resources Committee Chairman Richard Pombo, R-Calif., who managed the drilling bill. "I'm telling you, it's time to stop saying no." The Senate hasn't passed an offshore drilling bill, and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said it's unlikely to allow new drilling off the East and West coasts. However, he said he sensed an "improving likelihood" that Congress this year will authorize deepwater exploration in portions of the Gulf of Mexico that now are off-limits to new drilling....
Life for rangers on the front lines and in the backcountry of national parks Although he spends most of his patrol alone, National Park Service ranger Kean Mihata rarely gets lonely. At any point during his shift, the law enforcement officer could be called on to assist an injured climber dangling from a cliff wall, wrap a Band-Aid on a youngster's finger, quiet rowdy campers or chase poachers. Some nights, he might be required to do all of those. "It keeps things interesting," says Mihata, who spent four years as an interpretative ranger with the National Park Service before spending the last four with law enforcement. His career has included stints in California and Alaska. "The diversity here is amazing. I get to see folks from everywhere in the world. I can't think of a job I would love as much as this one." More often than not, Mihata is answering questions, like "When is the next shuttle?" He often hands out speeding tickets and escorts oversized vehicles through the tight confines of the Mount Carmel Highway tunnel....
'Preservation' should not mean abandoning our property rights Just one year after the Supreme Court's dreadful Kelo decision sparked an outcry against government eminent-domain abuse, some in Congress are preparing a new threat to property owners in Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania. Congressman Frank Wolf (R-Va.) wants to transform the entire U.S. 15 corridor, from Charlottesville to Gettysburg, into a National Heritage Area. National Heritage Areas are preservation zones, where the National Park Service and designated preservationist groups team up to influence how an area is developed (or not developed). Wolf's bill, the Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Heritage Area Act, is a pork-barrel earmark awarded to preservationist interest groups. Only instead of merely providing pork, this would actually purchase lobbyists. The legislation essentially deputizes the National Trust for Historic Preservation, other like-minded preservationist groups and the Park Service to oversee land-use policy in the corridor. This consortium would form a "management entity" and be given a federal mandate to create an "inventory" of all property in the area that it wants "preserved," "managed," or "acquired" because of its "national historic significance." In an effort to downplay concerns from property-rights advocates, a spokesperson for the Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership (the umbrella group that is spearheading the Heritage Area effort), claims, "A National Heritage Area does not interfere with the local authority at all." Such a statement signifies either extreme ignorance of the legislation, or outright dishonesty. Wolf's legislation is specifically designed to interfere with local authorities....
Hippies beat back US forest officers United States Forest Service officers were hit, elbowed and pelted with a rock when they tried to arrest unruly campers at a gathering of the Rainbow Family, a free-spirited, loosely affiliated band of hippies, officials said. The confrontation on Monday night was one of at least three clashes between officers and campers as thousands of the Rainbow Family gather for a weeklong outing, which officially begins on Saturday. None of the injuries was serious, Forest Service spokesperson Kimberly Vogel said on Thursday. About 5 000 members of the group, which promotes non-violence and harmony with nature, have arrived at the campsite in the Routt National Forest about 50km north of Steamboat Springs in defiance of the Forest Service, which has refused to grant the group a permit, citing the fire danger. About 200 campers surrounded 15 officers and became verbally abusive on Monday night, Vogel said. As the officers tried to arrest some campers, the crowd surged forward, striking at least three officers and pulling the suspects free, Vogel said....it will be interesting to see how many do Federal time like Kit Laney.
Rainbow Family trials to stay in firehouse The trials for the Rainbow Family members camping in the Routt National Forest will continue in the small firehouse near Steamboat Springs, a federal judge said Thursday. U.S. District Court Judge Marcia Krieger denied a motion for a temporary restraining order filed by David Lane, an attorney for several Rainbow Family members. But Krieger later set a hearing for today in Denver on a second attempt by attorneys for the Rainbow Family to stop the trials. Lane's original suit, filed Tuesday, said the firehouse's small size effectively turned the trials into "secret proceedings." The firehouse is about 35 miles northwest of Steamboat. About 250 Rainbow Family members have been charged with camping illegally because the group, estimated to reach 20,000 by next week, was unable to obtain a permit because of fire danger....
Thieves targeting federal land to steal bark off trees People who believe in herbal medicines say slippery elm bark is good for what ails you -- especially problems associated with the skin, stomach and bowels. But stripping all the bark from slippery elm trees isn't good for the trees. It kills them. Thefts of slippery elm bark -- like ginseng and other plants valued as herbal cures -- are on the rise on public lands in Kentucky and elsewhere. In the last couple of weeks, several people have been charged in connection with stripped elm trees in Leslie and Jackson counties in the Daniel Boone National Forest. In Leslie County, three people were charged twice in one week. The second time, they told officers they were trying to make money to pay fines for the first offense, Forest Service spokeswoman Kim Feltner said today....
Continental Divide biathlon course evaluated The Forest Service says a military biathlon course, proposed for the Continental Divide just west of Helena, would have mostly minimal effects on the area. The Montana Army National Guard wants to build, maintain and use the course for biathlon -- rigorous Nordic skiing, followed by target shooting with .22-caliber rifles. The site is on Forest Service land near MacDonald Pass -- an already popular among Nordic skiers in Helena. Some skiers like the Guard's one-and-a-half (m) million dollar plan, because the groomed course would be open to the public when not in military use. Others say the course would disrupt a peaceful area, inhabited by wildlife and popular for family recreation....
Little-known law keeps Wyo. Range leases open Judi Adler and her neighbors around Hoback Ranches thought they were in the clear. The natural gas leases for minerals under the public and private lands surrounding their homes were due to expire in a matter of months, and they had received no notice of any impending drilling plans. A few months later, they read an article in the newspaper that the land, including the mineral rights directly underneath their homes, had been authorized by the federal government for oil and gas production. An operator had plans to drill three deep natural gas wells there. The move left the homeowners wondering what happened. The law governing mineral lease suspensions is Section 39 of the 1920 Minerals Leasing Act. Under that law, operators can apply for a suspension for two reasons: when it is in the interest of resource conservation, or because of “force majeure,” which basically means when the operator can’t produce the lease due to reasons beyond its control. The second clause has elicited most of the controversy. Force majeure could mean that the BLM was unable to do the proper surveys to approve a well before the lease expired, or, in a recent controversial case in Cora near the Green River, the company could not get any private landowners to grant it access to its landlocked lease parcel. In the case of the Wyoming Range, however, the suspensions can be linked to a 1992 BLM memo that effectively expanded the workable definition of force majeure to include instances when “leasing delays by the federal government prohibit a lessee’s ability to form lease blocks sufficient for the orderly exploration and development of oil and gas resources....
House measure would sweeten oil shale deal Energy companies could potentially reap millions of dollars in royalty breaks under a House bill approved Thursday that calls for the United States to model its western oil shale program after Canada's booming tar sands industry. Companies in Canada are making fortunes turning sticky, tar-covered sand into oil. The United States hopes to do the same with tar sand in Utah and its cousin, oil shale, a rock that yields petroleum when heated. Colorado, Utah and Wyoming contain an estimated 500 billion to 1.1 trillion recoverable barrels of oil from oil shale, though companies are still exploring whether it can be tapped economically. The provision in a House energy bill, which also lifts a ban on oil and gas drilling off much of the U.S. coast, directs the interior secretary to use Canada as an example of how to shape the royalties the oil shale companies would pay for energy from public lands. Canadian tar sands producers pay little in royalties until several years into development....
BLM struggles with drilling demand The federal government is struggling to keep up with demand as high energy prices and a push to tap U.S. oil and gas reserves fuel a rush to drill in the Rocky Mountain states, land managers told a Senate committee this week. The number of drilling permit applications to the Bureau of Land Management jumped 27 percent between 2004 and 2006, agency and industry officials said. The BLM has scrambled to keep pace, but has been able to boost the number of permits approved by only 20 percent over the same time frame. "We find ourselves in an uphill battle to get on top of the workload," said Kathleen Clarke, director of the BLM, which oversees much of the nation's onshore public oil and gas reserves. The situation is expected to grow more intense. Natural gas production from reserves in the Rockies is projected to double in the next 20 years, surpassing production in the Gulf of Mexico. Duane Zavadil of the Independent Petroleum Association of Mountain States said the BLM needs to update its permitting process to prevent delays....
Report: Grouse protections not working When state and federal regulators opened the door to drilling of 51,000 coal-bed methane wells in the Powder River Basin several years ago, they did so not knowing the implications to wildlife. Now ongoing monitoring indicates that seasonal restrictions intended to protect sage grouse and their wintering habitat in the region isn't working. The University of Montana report suggests that year-round restrictions on coal-bed methane development are needed in some areas -- particularly in the northern portion of the basin on the Wyoming/Montana border. The report concludes that "conservation strategies to date to protect the species have been largely ineffective. An effective conservation strategy is one that limits the cumulative impact of disturbances across the landscape at all times of the year." David Naugle, a wildlife professor at the University of Montana, has headed up the sage grouse research, paid for by the Bureau of Land Management in both Wyoming and Montana. Naugle released a related report earlier this month noting a 84 percent decline in sage grouse in the Powder River Basin, where much of the coal-bed methane production takes place....
Judge: BLM should consider alternatives to herbicides An administrative judge with the US Interior Department has ruled that the Bureau of Land Management should have considered alternatives to herbicides when it studied a project to control brush near Roswell. Judge Robert Holt says the agency must revise its environmental assessment for the project, which involves treating 2,700 acres near the Rio Hondo. The agency must evaluate options that include mechanical or manual control, burning and biological control. Holt says the BLM’s failure to analyze more alternatives violated regulations for preparing environmental assessments as well as provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act....
Poaching probe nets a big haul In the biggest single-day bust of suspected poachers in state history, California wildlife officers on Thursday arrested 17 people in three cases threatening native sturgeon and abalone populations. With 85 state game wardens involved, the California Department of Fish and Game called the roundup unprecedented. Arrests were made in at least eight California cities. One arrest occurred in Oregon, and three more in California are pending. The sturgeon poaching ring, unconnected to the abalone cases, was centered on an illegal caviar-producing operation in Sacramento. It involved six Bay Area men who allegedly caught the fish illegally in the Sacramento River, authorities said. Four others in the Sacramento area processed the fish roe, or eggs, into caviar....
Horned lizard still not 'endangered' An easygoing desert lizard with the ability to disappear into its surroundings doesn’t deserve protection under the Endangered Species Act, the federal government ruled Wednesday. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Wednesday announced it won’t list the Flat-tailed horned lizard as a threatened species because it has plenty of habitat left in its range. Lizard defenders said the ruling is misguided and could push the reptile, described as a mini-dinosaur, closer to extinction. People have driven the the reptile from unprotected areas in the Coachella Valley, and development threatens lizards living in a desert wildlife preserve, they say. The ruling Wednesday follows a November 2005 court ruling that ordered the service to reconsider a decision to withdraw a proposal to list the lizard....
Judgment Day Set for Polar Bears Conservation groups today announced they have reached a settlement in a lawsuit to protect polar bears under the Endangered Species Act. Under the settlement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service must complete its “12-month” finding on whether polar bears should be listed under the Endangered Species Act by December 27, 2006. “The scientific community is issuing sharp warnings to address global warming now, or suffer consequences that include the loss of Arctic sea ice and species such as the polar bear,” said Kassie Siegel of the Center for Biological Diversity. “We need to immediately protect polar bears under the Endangered Species Act and immediately cut greenhouse gas pollution.” Polar bears live only in the Arctic and are totally dependent on sea ice for all of their essential needs, including hunting their prey of ice seals. The rapid warming of the Arctic and melting of the sea ice poses an overwhelming threat to polar bears, which could become the first mammal to lose 100 percent of its habitat due to global warming....
Prairie dogs wreaking havoc in area grasslands Uninvited guests are wreaking havoc on Wesley Grau’s land. True, prairie dogs inhabited the grasslands of North America long before Grau began farming and ranching in Grady. Nonetheless, Grau said, the rodents are irksome, and he wishes them gone. “I fight them constantly,” said Grau, who prefers to keep his population control methods secret. “They are similar to big rats.” In the past seven years, Grau has spent roughly $25,000 trying to curb the prairie dog population on his land. The wily animals have decimated entire acres of grazing land for his cattle. His horses have broken legs in prairie dog holes on numerous occasions, and rattlesnakes are prone to nesting in the underground webs of the dogs....
Agreement conserves entire Roberts Ranch in Livermore A recent agreement between Catherine Roberts and The Nature Conservancy legally protects the entire historic Roberts Ranch from development. Located in the Laramie Foothills between Fort Collins and Laramie, Wyo., the ranch is "one of the most beautiful places in the world," said Catherine Roberts, who, like her late husband and his ancestors, loves the land and cares for it. "The pioneer Roberts family and their descendents have all had a burning desire to keep this land in its natural state," Roberts said in a prepared statement. "The economics of our day makes that difficult, and so I am grateful for the chance to work on this conservation easement with so many other individuals dedicated to keeping a portion of this great land open, just as it was when the first ranchers saw it." The beginnings of the Livermore ranch, which now encompasses 16,500 acres, date back 130 years. On July 3, 1874, the first members of the Roberts family arrived in what was then called Livermore Park to manage land and cattle for Greeley resident Russell Fisk. Robert Owen Roberts had lived in other states back East before arriving in Greeley and serendipitously meeting Fisk. The six-member Roberts family first occupied Fisk's rat-infested and leaky log house....
Sheep get free lunch on city In mid-June, runners and bicyclists were surprised when they crested the hill behind Hughes Stadium in the Maxwell Open Space. There, sharing the view and the trails, were a couple hundred bleating ewes with lambs, a Peruvian sheepherder, a sheep dog and a bright blue herder's wagon. One hiker on the trails described the unusual scene as "charming." A bicyclist stopped just to take in the view, and neighborhood folks brought kids in strollers to see the little lambs. It was the meeting of two worlds, urban and rural. Sheep were a big part of the settling of the West, but sheepherder's wagons are about as rare anymore as open space itself. The most-asked question: What are the sheep doing here? The answer: They're a cost-effective supplement to Round-Up. The Fort Collins Natural Resources staff has been increasingly concerned about the expansion of invasive weeds into open spaces, caused partly by the prolonged drought. Sheep are viewed as one more weapon in the arsenal against those pesky plants. "On a large scale, sheep are cost effective and gentler on the land than traditional mechanical and chemical weed treatments," said Rick Bachand with the city's natural areas program. Sheep are particularly well suited for rocky, steep hillsides that are difficult to reach with machinery....
Drought Putting Thousands Of Cattle Up For Sale Some say parts of central South Dakota may be drier now than during the dust bowl years in the 1930's. The severe drought is forcing many ranchers to make tough decisions, like selling off their entire herds just to keep the animals from starving to death. And sales at a livestock auction in Campbell County have almost doubled this year. As livestock are unloaded the pens at the Herreid Livestock Market fill up. It's a sight that reminds ranchers and farmers of just how bleak the situation is becoming in drought stricken central South Dakota. Co-owner and Manager of Herreid Livestock Market Herman Schumacher says, "It's as tough a time as I've ever seen in the cattle industry as far as weather is concerned." President of the Campbell County Bank Bruce Brandner says, "It's come down to buy hay, move the cattle out of the country, or just have to sell the whole herd." Over the past month, livestock sales at the market have increased by almost 90 percent....