NEWS ROUNDUP

Senator Craig Thomas of Wyoming Dies at 74
Senator Craig Thomas, a three-term Republican from Wyoming, died Monday evening, just hours after his staff reported that the treatment he was receiving for leukemia was no longer working. He was 74. Under Wyoming’s election laws, the state Republican Party will nominate three people to be his successor. The final choice will be made by the state’s governor, David Freudenthal, a Democrat. Because the seat will remain in Republican control, the balance of power in the Senate will not shift, a prospect that shook up Capitol Hill when Senator Tim Johnson, a South Dakota Democrat, had a brain hemorrhage on Dec. 13. Mr. Thomas’s family issued a statement saying he died Monday evening at National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., where he had been receiving chemotherapy for acute myeloid leukemia. Mr. Thomas announced that he had just been given the leukemia diagnosis two days after the 2006 election, in which he was elected with 70 percent of the vote. Raised on a ranch near Cody, Wyo., Mr. Thomas worked with the Wyoming Farm Bureau and the Wyoming Rural Electric Association before entering politics in the state Legislature. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1989 in a special election to replace Dick Cheney, who had been appointed secretary of defense. He was first elected to the Senate in 1994. Senator Thomas, a conservative who could almost always be counted on to vote with the Republican leadership, served on the national parks subcommittee, an assignment that was a good fit for a lawmaker whose state was home to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. Whether the issue was snow-mobiling, wildlife management or timber rights, he believed that policy for parklands should be set Westerners, not by “East Coast liberals.”....
U.S. Cuts Back Climate Checks From Space
The Bush administration is drastically scaling back efforts to measure global warming from space, just as the president tries to convince the world the U.S. is ready to take the lead in reducing greenhouse gases. A confidential report to the White House, obtained by The Associated Press, warns that U.S. scientists will soon lose much of their ability to monitor warming from space using a costly and problem-plagued satellite initiative begun more than a decade ago. Because of technology glitches and a near-doubling in the original $6.5 billion cost, the Defense Department has decided to downsize and launch four satellites paired into two orbits, instead of six satellites and three orbits. The satellites were intended to gather weather and climate data, replacing existing satellites as they come to the end of their useful lifetimes beginning in the next couple of years....
Climate Change May Cut Yields, Feed Fires, USDA Says
Global warming could reduce U.S. corn yields 1.5 percent in the next 30 years and harm the livestock industry, according to the initial draft of the first major climate report from the Agriculture Department in five years. More wildfires, longer droughts and greater heat stress on animals will disrupt U.S. agriculture, forcing farmers to change land and water management practices, the department said. U.S. crops were valued at $122.4 billion in 2006, with corn accounting for $33.8 billion, the USDA said. The report was based on observed effects of climate change on U.S. agriculture, rather than the computer models used in past studies, David Schimel, a lead writer of the report, said before it was released. The initial document is less optimistic than the USDA's 2002 climate report, he said. The negative effects on crops may be mitigated somewhat by increased levels of soil-nurturing carbon dioxide, the report said. Rice and soybean yields may increase in some regions of the country, the USDA said. The report, prepared with help from the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy and other federal agencies, is subject to revision and peer review and won't be completed until the end of the year, Schimel said....
Vegas tapping Utah water?
Aquifers beneath the west desert are more connected than previously believed, indicating that a project to pump groundwater to Las Vegas from central Nevada valleys could impact neighboring Utah farmers and wildlife. A draft analysis released by the U.S. Geological Survey reveals that groundwater flows from Nevada to Utah at a greater rate than anticipated. It also indicates that there may be more groundwater in various aquifers than expected. That news only adds to the anxiety of ranchers and conservationists who say a proposal by the Southern Nevada Water Authority to eventually pump as much as 200,000 acre feet of water from desert valleys annually to the ever-growing Las Vegas metropolis would be "devastating." "It's basically a very immoral thing to do," Utah rancher Cecil Garland said Monday. "Those of us in agriculture know there isn't that kind of water in these desert valleys." Earlier this year, Nevada State Water Engineer Tracy Taylor ruled that the water authority could pump 40,000 acre-feet of water yearly from aquifers in Spring Valley, Nev. That area lies directly west of Snake Valley, which straddles the Utah-Nevada border. After 10 years, state and federal authorities will determine whether the pumping has been harmful to the environment. If the impacts are not too great, the Nevada water authority could then pump an additional 20,000 acre-feet a year from Spring Valley to Las Vegas....
Army to disclose plots it would seek in expansion
Fort Carson leaders plan to release a map this week showing which land they want to acquire if they expand their training site in southern Colorado, a spokeswoman said Monday. The Army has previously provided an area of interest for the proposed 418,000-acre expansion of Piñon Canyon, which is opposed by many ranchers in the area. Fort Carson spokeswoman Dee McNutt said a map of specific plots the Army is interested in would be released at a public meeting Thursday in Trinidad. She declined to provide details, including whether any landowners had agreed to sell to the Army. “This is just an area of interest,” McNutt said. Lon Robertson, a rancher in Kim who leads a group opposed to the expansion, said it doesn’t matter which land the Army wants, because acquiring that much ranch land would have a ripple effect on the region’s economy and culture. “It doesn’t matter which leg you cut off. You still cut off a leg,” Robertson said. Rep. John Salazar, D-Colo., said the Army didn’t tell him about the meeting. “I continue to not support the Army’s expansion plan, especially when it takes agriculture land out of production,” he said in a statement. The proposed expansion would nearly triple the size of what the Army now owns on the plains and canyon country of southern Colorado....
Yuma Proving Ground exploring expansion
Up to 500,000 acres of public land could go to expand a military training facility near Yuma, pushing the boundaries of the complex near or beyond several protected wilderness areas and into Maricopa County. If the U.S. Army annexes the land, public access to some parts of the Sonoran Desert will be eliminated. Expansion plans for the Yuma Proving Ground are only in the "exploratory" phase, facility officials said Monday. It's too early to know which lands would be included in the annexation and what the impact on plants and wildlife in those areas would be. The proving ground, about 30 miles northeast of Yuma, is a testing site for military weapons and hardware. Officials there want to be able to test artillery with greater firing ranges than weapons used there now, said Chuck Wullenjohn, public affairs officer for the proving ground. But some environmental advocates are concerned about an expanded facility's effects on sensitive areas. Officials at the Bureau of Land Management, which holds the land adjacent to the proving ground, say they won't know how the lands would be affected until the facility solidifies its plan....
When will Wyo gain wolf control?
Even with a recent compromise, it will be some time before Wyoming assumes control of wolves within its borders. "There are a number of hurdles that have to be dealt with," said Mitch King, director for the Mountain-Prairie Region of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. After years of negotiating, state and federal leaders last month announced a management plan that lawyers for both sides say they can live with. That plan will now be forged in the same public process that resulted in management strategies employed by Montana and Idaho. The work is expected to take several months. In the meantime, concessions made by both sides during the negotiating process could open new avenues for litigation regarding removal of wolves from Endangered Species Act protection. And the extended timeline means wolf numbers will continue to swell beyond expectations at the time of reintroduction in the 1990s. Before Wyoming takes control of its wolves, Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dale Hall must formally accept Wyoming's wolf management plan, a move that will require a lengthy public comment process....
Former Forest Service fire commander gets 2-year term for starting blazes
A former U.S. Forest Service fire management officer was sentenced to 24 months in prison Monday for starting a blaze without authorization. U.S. District Court Judge Paul Rosenblatt rejected the contention of Van Bateman that he simply "cleaned up a little timber" with that and at least one other prescribed burn, albeit without the proper authorization. "My intent and desires have always been to protect the national forest as best I could," Bateman told the judge. But Rosenblatt said that while he is "familiar with Forest Service bureaucracy," Bateman was wrong. "You simply were doing what you wanted to do rather that what should have been done," the judge told the 34-year veteran of the Forest Service, who acknowledged setting the Boondock Fire three years ago about 45 miles south of Flagstaff. Nor was the judge impressed by more than 50 letters from others — many of them former Forest Service employees — who wrote that they had done the same thing. In fact, the judge suggested those letters were one reason he was rejecting a plea by Grant Woods to place his client on probation. "That's kind of chilling," Rosenblatt said of the letters. "Too much paperwork simply doesn't cut it." Bateman also will have to pay a $5,000 fine and $10,390 in restitution to the Forest Service. Once released, he will be on supervised probation for another three years and will have to undergo a psychological exam. The two-year sentence was the maximum Rosenblatt could impose under the terms of a plea deal.... Former firefighter struggles with friend's pending imprisonment Until his recent retirement, Larry Humphrey was an incident commander for an elite Type 1 firefighting team. And for the past 30-some years, he's also been Van Bateman's best friend. Bateman, a firefighter accused of arson and sentenced to two years in prison, was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine along with a $10,000 restitution to the federal government. "It breaks my heart," said Humphrey. "He was the best firefighter in the U.S. as far as I'm concerned. Of course, he is my best friend." And now Humphrey's best friend is going to prison. Bateman and Humphrey were both top dogs when it came to waging war against the biggest flames. As Bateman was sentenced today, Presiding Judge Paul G. Rosenblat, addressed the fact that some top firefighters may think the rules don't apply to them. "You never think you're above the law," Humphrey said. "You have so many conflicting laws and policies, it's impossible for an incident commander to follow everything."....
Lawsuit seeks to reverse grizzly delisting
The grizzly bears in and near Yellowstone National Park face food shortages caused by global warming, a dearth of protected habitat and a shallow gene pool. Plus, there aren't enough of them to ensure their own survival. And the government is ignoring this information because of political pressures. That, in a nutshell, is the legal case presented by seven environmental groups in a lawsuit filed in United States District Court in Idaho Monday that seeks to halt the government's effort to remove federal protections for the bear. On April 30, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service removed the grizzly from the U.S. Endangered Species Act, where it had been since 1975. Chris Servheen, the man who runs grizzly recovery efforts for FWS, said he wasn't surprised at the suit or its allegations. “It's called the 'throw-it-on-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks's approach,” Servheen said Monday. “Nothing we could have ever done would prevent them from suing us. That's what they do. Whatever we achieve, they always want more than that.” He also strongly defended the integrity of the government's delisting plans. The suit was filed by lawyers for EarthJustice, an environmental law firm. The plaintiffs are the Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, Alliance for the Wild Rockies, Center for Biological Diversity, Western Watersheds Project, Great Bear Foundation and Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance....
Some greens oppose lawsuit
If a lawsuit to restore federal protection for grizzly bears is successful, it would hobble the Endangered Species Act program and consume resources better spent on other threatened or endangered species, federal officials and some conservation groups say. Those who want grizzlies to remain shielded, meanwhile, portray the lawsuit as a challenge to the Bush administration's alleged strategy to remove wildlife as an obstacle to drilling, mining and grazing on federal lands. Several other conservation groups, including Defenders of Wildlife and the National Wildlife Federation, have supported the delisting of Yellowstone grizzlies. "There will always be uncertainties, for any species," said Tom France of the National Wildlife Federation. "But the facts are there to support delisting and the regulatory plans are adequate to protect bears."
Agreement Reached on Tongass National Forest Timber Sales Lawsuits
The District Court approved a comprehensive settlement agreement between mill owners, the Forest Service, the state, and conservation groups on May 30th. The settlement addresses a series of lawsuits concerning timber sales on the Tongass National Forest, and is effective until the Forest completes its amendment of the 1997 Forest Plan. Under the terms of the agreement, the Forest Service will withdraw Records of Decision for nine Environmental Impact Statements that allow timber sales in inventoried roadless areas. In return, plaintiffs will withdraw litigation on several purchased sales. The terms of the agreement provide enough timber to keep hundreds of people employed in the industry throughout Southeast Alaska until the Forest Plan Amendment is completed and implementation begun. "We're happy to be able to keep working," Viking Lumber owner Kirk Dahlstrom said. "Our existing wood products industry is dependent on timber from the National Forest, so it's great to have some wood available for the next year or more." "This settlement is very practical. For the duration of the agreement, it safeguards important community use areas and wildlife habitat-the places most important for hunting, fishing, wildlife, customary and traditional gathering, recreation, and tourism on the Tongass-while ensuring local mills have the timber they need until the Forest Service completes the forest planning process," said Russell Heath, Executive Director of the Southeast Alaska Conservation Council....
Adopt a Wild Horse or Burro and Get a Free Gas Card!!!
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) invites you to head out to the Missouri State Fairgrounds in Sedalia, Missouri, on June 22 - 24, 2007 and take home a mustang or burro from America's public range lands. And they will even help pay for your gas. The three-day event features approximately 60 wild horses and burros, ranging in age from 5-years-old and younger. In addition to nice, healthy yearlings, mares, studs and geldings, there will be a limited number of jack burros. Gas blues keeping you home?? No worries. Adopt an animal and BLM will give you a $50 gas gift card. Plus, take home your choice of a nice ball cap or t-shirt. These bonuses are limited to one gift card and choice of ball cap or tee shirt per adopter....
Off roading leaves behind ugly scars in the desert
Ranchers say Pinal County is becoming a haven for off-road enthusiasts unlawfully riding their dirt bikes and sand buggies over areas that are off limits. And while they wait for lawmakers and state officials to do something, ranchers say off-roaders are tearing up the scenic desert. "If it wasn't for the ranchers out here, this place would be totally gone," said rancher Craig Shelley, who ranches about 15 square miles northeast of Queen Creek. "At least we're out here and trying to keep some semblance of the desert out here. It's getting harder to do it all the time." Shelley and other nearby ranchers have experienced a barrage of problems from off-road vehicle riders destroying their property and the property they've leased from the state. Ranchers are also spending thousands of dollars on fence and property repairs, litter cleanup and replacing signs that warn riders of trespassing and closed routes....
`America's salad bowl' on ballot
The fertile Salinas Valley served as a backdrop for some of John Steinbeck's most memorable writing, from "East of Eden" to "Of Mice and Men." Today, voters will write a new story there. Its plot: whether to sharply restrict development on farmland throughout the valley, a 100-mile-long expanse of lettuce, broccoli, strawberries, vineyards and cattle ranches known as "America's Salad Bowl" which stretches along Highway 101 south of Salinas, producing a $3.3 billion farm economy. In one of the more intense local election seasons in at least a decade, Monterey County voters will decide the fate of Measure A, a citizen initiative that would require a countywide vote for new developments on most of the region's unincorporated land - largely farms and ranches. But the most strident opponents are farmers and ranchers, who maintain the measure will do more to harm their way of life than preserve it. Environmentalists and their supporters say the measure is needed to limit the kind of sprawl and traffic that swallowed up Santa Clara County's "Valley of Heart's Delight" 50 years ago....
Carbon Credit Program Pays Off
The check is in the mail for about 630 farmers and ranchers in North Dakota, who signed up last year in the Carbon Credit Program. It`s a program that pays producers to capture carbon dioxide in their soil through practices like no-till cropping and grassland preservation. Those carbon credits are then sold at an exchange, to offset greenhouse gas emissions. To date, farmers and ranchers in the state have earned more than $2 million through the program. Enrolling acres in the carbon credit program might just change Jim Hopfauf`s way of life. "Right now I don`t NO till, but next year I`m planning on getting a no-till drill so I`ll be 100% no till," Hopfauf says. After two years of no-till, he can add that land to his 103 acres already signed up to earn carbon credits through the North Dakota Farmers Union program. The Carbon Credit Program not only benefits farmers financially now, it benefits them in the long run by helping to create a healthier soil environment. Preserving the environment is one of the main goals of the Carbon Credit Program. "We get better drought resistance. We get better productivity. We get lower production cost. We get higher water quality and water use efficiency," says Dr. Michael Walsh, executive vice president of the Chicago Climate Exchange....
Discovery in Orange Cauliflower May Lead to More Nutritious Crops
While orange cauliflower may seem unappealing to some, it has distinct nutritional advantages. Now, Cornell researchers have identified the genetic mutation behind the unusual hue. The finding may lead to more nutritious staple crops, including maize, potato, rice, sorghum and wheat. The genetic mutation recently isolated by Cornell plant geneticist Li Li and colleagues -- and described in the December issue of The Plant Cell -- allows the vegetable to hold more beta-carotene, which causes the orange color and is a precursor to the essential nutrient vitamin A. While cauliflower and many staple crops have the ability to synthesize beta-carotene, they are limited partially because they lack a "metabolic sink," or a place to store the compound. Developing staple crops with more vitamin A is important because vitamin A deficiency, common in developing countries, leads to compromised immune systems and is the leading cause of blindness in children. "A large percentage of the human population depends on staple crops for nutrition," said Li, an adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics and a scientist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture -- Agricultural Research Service's U.S. Plant, Soil and Nutrition Laboratory at Cornell. "The research provides a possible new technique for genetically modifying staple crops to increase their ability to store beta-carotene and increase nutritional content in staple crops."....
Cattlemen Eye Swift Deal Warily
Reverberations from the proposed sale of meatpacker Swift & Co. to a Brazilian conglomerate have now reached from Denver to Washington D.C. to Sao Paulo. Many ranchers in the West are “relieved,” the Post reports, because the sale will keep Swift’s four plants operating and could result in higher beef prices. Lower worldwide demand has resulted in a price slump for beef in recent years, and the Swift plant in Greeley – scene of a December immigration raid that resulted in 1200 arrests – had cut one of its two shifts. The new owners say they plan to go back to two shifts a day, and retain the current workforce. The cattle industry is not so thrilled, however: “What all this means for U.S. cattle producers is that the sleeping giant is awakening and quickly moving in our direction,” said Eric Nelson, Trade Committee Chair for R-CALF USA, a cattle-business lobbying association. R-CALF is pushing for “marketplace reform” – a euphemism for protectionist legislation. Brazil is now the world’s largest exporter of beef, but the beef industry there has been plagued by foot-and-mouth disease. The European Commission banned all imports of beef from the three Brazilian provinces affected by the disease, and an Irish delegation to Brazil recently found lax efforts to combat FMD: “If such practices were found anywhere in Europe the cattle would be deemed worthless and their owners faced with hefty fines and, quite possibly, a spell behind bars,” ag expert Dan Buglass wrote recently in the Scotsman newspaper....
It's All Trew: Country cures tame pesky farm critters
No one knows why, but occasionally rats will choose to invade a farm or ranch. As this is definitely a health and safety hazard, every effort should be made at eradication. A friend near Shamrock suffered such an invasion on his ranch overnight. It was frightening for the family, plus as damage soared, he was at wits end as rat poison would also be dangerous to family pets. An employee, hailing from another country, solved the problem with a bale of hay, a 2-inch by 2-inch board and a half barrel of water. He placed the half barrel in the barn and filled it about half full of water, then placed the bale of hay nearby. Wedging the board under the bale wires on one end, he extended the board out over the barrel about halfway. The rats ran down the board trying to get a drink of water, fell off into the water and drowned. They buried buckets of dead rats for days before complete eradication. Grandpa and Grandma Trew dipped snuff as long as I can remember. Before planting their garden each spring, they soaked the seeds in "snuff water" overnight to keep the bugs, worms and birds from ruining the seeds. They always had a beautiful garden....