Forest Service credibility at issue Conflicts over mineral and grazing rights on the former Eberts ranch are eroding the credibility of the U.S. Forest Service in western North Dakota. The purchase of the ranch by the federal government was controversial, and manufactured disagreements now ongoing are working to further polarize interests and people. The Forest Service needs to do its homework and effectively deal with core issues on the 5,200-acre ranch north of Medora. The ranch was purchased for $5.3 million, and involved public and private resources. It's part of the view shed east of Theodore Roosevelt's Elkhorn Ranch. Two conflicts have arisen since the purchase of the ranch last year:The Forest Service has proposed, and the grazing association has opposed, the development of grass bank on the ranch and its lease property, rather than it be under the grazing association's authority. And more recently, a third party has purchased half the mineral rights under the ranch and wants to sell the gravel, or sell those rights to the Forest Service, so digging an open pit mine on the ranch could be avoided The idea of a grass bank, which could be used to help manage the grasslands, isn't necessarily a bad idea. That's not the point. The legislation to purchase the ranch, introduced by U.S. Sen. Byron Dorgan, specifically said the "Federal and private lands encompassing the Elkhorn Ranch (Eberts) shall become part of the grazing agreement held by Medora Grazing Association to be reallocated to its members in accordance with their rules ..."It might be legalese but there's no ambiguity in the language. Yet Dakota Prairie Grasslands supervisor Dave Pieper has continued to press for making the Eberts ranch a grass bank. This is where trust breaks down, where credibility gets trampled....For why the FS is doing this, see my comments here.