Rancher billboards promote grazing, logging on public lands

Stevens County ranchers are using billboards to raise awareness about public lands issues. The Stevens County Cattlemen are advertising with a billboard on Highway 395 south of Colville, Wash. The billboard depicts the message “Public Lands: Log it, graze it or watch it burn.” A billboard featuring the message “Wilderness: public land of no use — no logging, chainsaws, grazing, mining, bikes, wheelchairs and ATVs,” was located on the highway in Arden, Wash., earlier this year. The group first used the billboards in 2015. “Much of the policy being set for public lands emphasizes conservation and recreation, but shuns good management like grazing and logging,” said Jamie Henneman, spokesperson for the group. “The best management uses holistic tools like grazing and timber harvest to keep wildfire fuel loads down in the forests.” The county wants to see public lands be sustainable and healthy for the benefit of all, Henneman said. “Some of the best recreational benefits — clear trails, healthy stands of trees, reduced brush and vegetation — are because of cows and loggers,” she said. “It may not be politically correct to say right now, but these methods work.”...more