LITIGATION/WATER RIGHTS
Western States Water Council Newsletter, Issue No.1560
Western Watersheds Project v. Matejko
On March 23, the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho found that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), pursuant to the Endangered Species Act (ESA), has a duty to consult with the appropriate federal fish and wildlife agency over decisions regarding the imposition of conditions on water right diversions crossing its lands where such diversions could affect ESA listed species. The Western Watersheds Project brought suit to enjoin the operation of several diversions, which cross BLM land in the Upper Salmon River basin, because the diversions take water from habitat used by the endangered Bull Trout.
The water diversions at issue were created under the Mining Act of 1866, which allowed private parties with a vested water right to construct diversions across federal lands. The Act recognized such rights of way without any formal application process or approval. According to the plaintiff, the decision not to impose conditions on the operation of these diversions which cross BLM land, constituted an "action" that may affect listed species, triggering the ESA consultation requirement.
The BLM contended that the 1866 Act did not authorize it to approve diversions or require permits for their operation. But the court pointed to a BLM regulation and "Instructional Memorandum" to the effect that the agency would not impose conditions on a diversion arising under the 1866 Mining Act "unless there is substantial deviation in either location or authorized use." The court determined that the decision represented by this regulatory action itself constituted an agency action under the ESA. The court relied on the Ninth Circuit's 1981 decision in Grindstone Butte Project v. Kleppe, where the Ninth Circuit held that the Act of 1901 gave BLM authority to impose conditions on rights of way created by the Act of 1891. In Kleppe, the Ninth Circuit noted that the Act of 1866 "is essentially similar to the 1891 Act." The Ninth Circuit also favorably cited a lower court decision holding "that the Act of 1901 authorized the BLM to impose conditions on rights of way created under the Act of 1866."
The BLM has not yet indicated whether it will appeal the decision.
Monday, April 12, 2004
Sunday, April 11, 2004
NEWS ROUNDUP
Use of Bitterroot forest photos to support Sierra logging called misleading The Forest Service has been accused of misrepresenting forest conditions by using misleading photographs in a brochure that urges more logging to prevent wildfires in the Sierra Nevada. The pamphlet, created by a public relations firm, explains that fire risks have risen as the Sierra's forests have grown more dense the past century. Six small black-and-white photos spanning 80 years appear beside descriptions of how the "forests of the past" had fewer trees and less underbrush, making them less susceptible to fire. The 1909 photo shows an open, park-like forest with large trees spaced widely apart. More trees and underbrush appear in each successive picture - 1948, 1958, 1968, 1979 - and finally a photograph thick with trees in 1989. However, the 1909 photo does not depict natural conditions - it was taken just after the forest had been logged. And the pictured forest is nowhere near the Sierra Nevada. It's in Montana.... Conservationists say 'whoa' to grizzly transplants in Cabinets Some critics say federal and state wildlife agencies are rushing a plan to augment the slim grizzly bear population in the Cabinet Mountains with transplants from the Northern Continental Divide. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks are collaborating on a proposal to transplant one or two female grizzlies, possibly sometime this summer. At a March 29 meeting in Libby, however, it met some resistance from people who want to see improvements in habitat security, a more thorough public process and other measures to help transplanted bears survive.... Editorial: Justice Needed Tre Arrow insists he's no terrorist. His credibility might be enhanced had he not claimed earlier that the trees told him to change his name to Tre Arrow, and had he not falsely told law authorities in Victoria, B.C., that his name was Joshua Murray. Rather than quibbling over semantics, we'll focus on one clearly defined word: justice, the point to which Arrow the radical environmentalist must be brought. And if he is found guilty of terrorist acts as charged, then he should be incarcerated for a very long time.... Man Accused Of Toppling Trees In National Forest A landowner is accused of snapping or uprooting nearly 400 trees across national forest land to stop off-road vehicles. Dene Sapp, who lives just outside Jamestown, faces one count of damaging federal property, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Roosevelt National Forest officials say Sapp, whose land abuts the national forest, toppled a total of 376 trees in three areas and used heavy equipment to dig trenches across dirt roads. Sapp intended to stop off-road enthusiasts, according to an affidavit by U.S. Forest Service special agent Kimberly Jones.... A decade of change in national forests U.S. District Court Judge William Dwyer initially shut down logging in the Northwest during the waning days of the administration of the first President Bush. But when Bill Clinton took office, he oversaw one of the greatest periods of change regarding national forests since World War II. During the 1990s, Clinton and Vice President Al Gore put together the Northwest Forest Plan, which curtailed logging on federal land in Washington, Oregon and Northern California. Later, timber harvest on federal lands across the country also fell dramatically, as the U.S. Forest Service moved toward conservation in the wake of lawsuits filed by environmentalists, mostly over endangered species.... Old-growth logging nearing a standstill in dramatic shift To grasp just how much the Northwest woods have changed, consider this: In a region once synonymous with logging, some local mills now bring raw logs in from hundreds, even thousands, of miles away. A decade after President Clinton tried to settle the conflict between spotted owls and logging by making 85 percent of the Northwest's federal forests off-limits to chain saws, at least one company has turned to hauling logs by rail to wood-starved Northwest mills — some from across the region, others from as far as Tennessee.... Column: Greens fighting deep-forest thinning ignore facts One of the stranger developments in American environmental policy is the love affair Greens today express for forest communities. They love them. They want to nurture and protect them. This wasn't always so, to say the least. But the fascination enviros have with the forest communities they once scorned is about to be put to the test. With the approval last November of President Bush's Healthy Forests legislation, the door was opened for states to take action to thin their choked, dying forests. In Arizona, that just happened.... Decade-old forest plan hurts as it helps Ten years ago, a pair of signatures on a 4,000-page document changed the landscape of federal forests in the Northwest -- and with it a way of life. Sawmills went silent. Oregon's federal timber harvest, already in free fall, declined to less than one tenth its former size. And wildlife -- from the northern spotted owl down to enigmatic forest-floor snails -- found new protections. Called the Northwest Forest Plan and signed into action on April 13, 1994, it was the Clinton administration's sweeping attempt to settle long-escalating feuds over the purpose of the region's publicly owned forests.... Warning: Mud may flow again Debris flows that filled a garage and dumped mud on the yards of three homes in Farmington last week could happen again there and could strike other parts of Utah that were ravaged by fire. The twin mudslides on North Compton Road can be traced to a grass fire that burned 4,000 acres in the lower slopes of the nearby mountains last July. The blaze allegedly was set by a transient who wanted to go to prison so he would have a place to live. Last week's furious rainstorm, which dumped 2.36 inches of water on the Farmington east bench, was all the scorched earth needed. Water, mud and rocks thundered down the mountainside, damaging yards, vehicles and garages.... Column: See You in Court The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance's original suit against the Interior Department, BLM's parent, invoked the 1946 Federal Administrative Procedure Act, which says federal courts can compel agencies to act under certain circumstances. But the act wasn't intended to govern exactly how agencies responded to congressional mandates. Rather, a federal district court determined, it was limited to final agency decisions and "mandatory, nondiscretionary activities" -- not ongoing processes like monitoring land use. So in the Utah case, as long as BLM was doing something on its own timetable, the court ruled, the conservation group was out of luck. A panel of judges on the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals overruled that judgment, saying that the obligation to protect Utah's land looked plenty "mandatory and nondiscretionary" to them. It's certainly tempting to back a decision that tries to force the BLM to stop sitting idly by while off-roaders rip up pristine Utah wilderness. (The Supreme Court "should make clear that the executive branch cannot go around invoking some imaginary discretionary authority to ignore laws it doesn't like," opined the New York Times in an editorial about the case.) But such an approach has serious consequences that could cripple the day-to-day management of federal operations.... Invasion of the Buggy Snackers (and Other Horrors) Global travel and trade have created a superhighway into the United States for destructive foreign insects, plants, animals and diseases that scientists call alien invasive species. Yet we're pretending we don't have to pay much attention. Countless other destructive alien species are on their way here unless we enact immediate trade policy changes and tougher cargo inspections. The costs will be formidable, but the alternative -- more "free trade" in this biological pollution -- is far worse.... Editorial: Public lands under attack The Bush administration is trying to stop pristine lands in Colorado from getting the protection they deserve. Several canyons and mesas near Grand Junction are part of wilderness legislation sponsored by U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, a Denver Democrat. Last week, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management said five proposed wilderness areas - Hunter Canyon, Big Ridge, Oil Spring Mountain, Cow Ridge and Dragon Canyon - will be part of a May 13 oil and gas lease auction. Oddly, the BLM didn't propose leasing federal land near some proposed wilderness areas, just the pristine lands themselves. That's particularly true for the Cow Ridge proposed wilderness. To judge from the map, it looks like the BLM is deliberately leasing parcels to ensure that DeGette can't include them in future wilderness bills.... Column: National Heritage Areas, The War Over Words Continues Based on the offerings of the deputy director for the National Park Service at a March 30 congressional hearing on National Heritage Areas, it would appear private property owners should now rest easy if their lands become targeted for heritage area declaration. To assume such, though, would be folly. But first, some background. The NPS and partnering state and local entities have created 24 NHAs encompassing 160,000 square miles of mostly privately owned lands since 1984. Advocates say NHAs are needed to preserve areas of cultural, historical, natural and scenic significance, and that the beauty of the system is that the federal government does not retain authority over the declared lands, but rather the individual property owners.... Column: National Heritage Areas, Shortcomings of the CRS Report On several fronts, a Congressional Research Service study on National Heritage Areas is misleading, misguided or outright mistaken – the latter by omission, as report authors fail to point out the absurdities of a key and common phrase used to identify private lands for public oversight. Absent from the report to Congress is mention of the term "nationally significant," a most familiar means by which environmentalists and their non-government and political cohorts justify the taking of private properties. This is the exact term, for instance, that was used as grounds for recent House passage of the Highlands Conservation Act, a $100 million-plus piece of legislation that hurts private landowners by seeking public control of more than two million acres of property, ostensibly to protect the region’s "water, forest, wildlife, recreational, agricultural and cultural resources.".... Park City offers Uncle Sam a deal Uncle Sam wants a place in Park City for himself and his military family members to relax and recreate in their off-time. And Park City wants Uncle Sam. A military resort in Utah's mountains could soon become a reality if a real estate swap proposed by Park City government is accepted by the U.S. Air Force, which has been looking to obtain a vacation destination in the area since Snowbasin's Hill Haus shut down about five years ago. This week, City Hall officially offered to give the Air Force the historic Imperial Hotel — a 100-year-old renovated lodge at the top of bustling Main Street. It has 10 rooms, a hot tub area, parking stalls, a dining room, undeveloped street-level space in a prime location and is worth about $1.35 million. All that Park City wants in return is a big patch of land and the sagebrush that grows on it.... County to lead fight over wild horses Elko County Commissioners are planning to take the lead role in a battle with the federal government over wild horse populations in Nevada. "We have a lot of ranchers in the area and we have the responsibility to step up to the plate," Commissioner Charlie Myers said. "This really has a dramatic impact.".... Miners, conservationists, even jewelers at odds over mining Those necklaces, rings and watches in the jewelry case may be a lot more expensive than many people think, conservationists contend. Jewelry also carries the cost of environmental damage from mining for their gold, silver and other precious metals, according to a new public relations campaign that is putting pressure on jewelry retailers to reject minerals from big polluters. The campaign has already prompted the president of Tiffany & Co. to shift his attention from the jewelry cases on Fifth Avenue to the Cabinet Mountains wilderness area of Montana.... Column: Saving ranchlands doesn't mean saving the rancher Few environmental issues have stirred up as much dust in the West as the debate over livestock grazing. "Cattle ruin the land," shouts one side. "Environmentalists commit cultural genocide against ranchers," shouts the other. In the early 1990s, a small group of conservationists looked beyond the hyperbole and found a third approach: supporting ranchers who wanted to raise healthy livestock while also improving the health of the land. "Keep good ranchers on the land" became their mantra. It's a nice sentiment, but the fact is that ranching is dying in the West and has been for some time. While we were debating whether or not cattle could be grazed in an ecologically sound way, the Western landscape we all care so much about was run over by a Mack truck.... Western governors explore energy solutions Governors from Western states will gather with leaders from Mexico and Canada for a summit on how to meet future energy needs in a region rich with natural resources, from oil and natural gas to opportunities for wind, solar and geothermal power. Touted as a "North American Energy Summit" by the Western Governors' Association, the three-day meeting opening Wednesday in Albuquerque will bring together governmental and tribal leaders with energy company executives, environmentalists, researchers and other experts to consider an ambitious agenda of energy issues. Among the topics to be explored: the future of oil production, gasoline and natural gas prices, reliability of the Western electricity grid, the role of nuclear power, renewable energy sources, improving energy efficiency and cross-border collaboration on energy policies.... Irrigation, irritation and litigation in a remote California county On the outskirts of town, where tumbleweeds strain against barbed wire and sagebrush sprouts on the roadside, a sign reads, "Where the West still lives." One member of the Modoc County board of supervisors shoes horses for a living. Cowboy hats, boots and Wrangler jeans are the get-up of choice. But a dustup in this high desert town of 3,200 has revived the Old West's mean side, with death threats, fistfights and a sheriff confiscating guns. At the heart of the nasty dispute is water – in this case, Rattlesnake Creek.... Ranchers, scientists air beef over book A major Canadian publisher is likely to add to the woes of the beef industry by releasing a book that blames hamburgers for an "epidemic of Alzheimer's disease." Dr. Murray Waldman, a coroner with the City of Toronto and co-author of the McClelland and Stewart book, Dying for a Hamburger: modern meat processing and the epidemic of Alzheimer's disease, charges hamburger is the main source of prions, which trigger Alzheimer's. Prions, a type of malformed protein found in the brains of infected animals and humans, are credited as the cause of mad cow disease, several cases of which have been linked to Canadian cattle, and its human form, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The book is slated for release in the next two weeks.... Low-carb diets blamed for increase in rustling There's new trouble in valleys such as this one, where vestiges of the Old West live on. Cattle rustling is staging a comeback. And from ranches here in the rustic Sierra Nevada foothills to grazing lands across the western plains, cowboys know exactly what's to blame: a diet craze. The growing national popularity of high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets has kept beef prices high, even after the threat of mad cow disease arose in the Pacific Northwest late last year. But law enforcement officials say that Americans' new eating habits also appear to be inspiring a new generation of rustlers to steal and sell cattle, particularly newborn calves not yet seared with identifying brands.... West's drought worsens From the brittle hillsides of Southern California to the drying fields of Idaho, from Montana to New Mexico, a relentless drought is worsening across most of the West, water supplies are dwindling, and the threat of wildfires is rising. "Most of the West is headed into six years of drought, and some areas are looking at seven years of drought," said Rick Ochoa, weather program manager at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho.... Hog wild in Texas Texas is hogtied. Wild pigs are closing in on other states, too. The Lone Star State is grappling with the nation's largest population of feral pigs — squealing, rooting hordes of hogs that can destroy farmland and wildlife habitats, sully public parks, attack pets and domestic animals, and spread diseases such as tuberculosis and even anthrax to farm animals. The dreaded and free-roaming sus scrofa — also known as wild boars, piney-woods rooters, razorbacks, hawgs and a host of other monikers — now are thought to number 2 million in Texas alone....
Use of Bitterroot forest photos to support Sierra logging called misleading The Forest Service has been accused of misrepresenting forest conditions by using misleading photographs in a brochure that urges more logging to prevent wildfires in the Sierra Nevada. The pamphlet, created by a public relations firm, explains that fire risks have risen as the Sierra's forests have grown more dense the past century. Six small black-and-white photos spanning 80 years appear beside descriptions of how the "forests of the past" had fewer trees and less underbrush, making them less susceptible to fire. The 1909 photo shows an open, park-like forest with large trees spaced widely apart. More trees and underbrush appear in each successive picture - 1948, 1958, 1968, 1979 - and finally a photograph thick with trees in 1989. However, the 1909 photo does not depict natural conditions - it was taken just after the forest had been logged. And the pictured forest is nowhere near the Sierra Nevada. It's in Montana.... Conservationists say 'whoa' to grizzly transplants in Cabinets Some critics say federal and state wildlife agencies are rushing a plan to augment the slim grizzly bear population in the Cabinet Mountains with transplants from the Northern Continental Divide. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks are collaborating on a proposal to transplant one or two female grizzlies, possibly sometime this summer. At a March 29 meeting in Libby, however, it met some resistance from people who want to see improvements in habitat security, a more thorough public process and other measures to help transplanted bears survive.... Editorial: Justice Needed Tre Arrow insists he's no terrorist. His credibility might be enhanced had he not claimed earlier that the trees told him to change his name to Tre Arrow, and had he not falsely told law authorities in Victoria, B.C., that his name was Joshua Murray. Rather than quibbling over semantics, we'll focus on one clearly defined word: justice, the point to which Arrow the radical environmentalist must be brought. And if he is found guilty of terrorist acts as charged, then he should be incarcerated for a very long time.... Man Accused Of Toppling Trees In National Forest A landowner is accused of snapping or uprooting nearly 400 trees across national forest land to stop off-road vehicles. Dene Sapp, who lives just outside Jamestown, faces one count of damaging federal property, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Roosevelt National Forest officials say Sapp, whose land abuts the national forest, toppled a total of 376 trees in three areas and used heavy equipment to dig trenches across dirt roads. Sapp intended to stop off-road enthusiasts, according to an affidavit by U.S. Forest Service special agent Kimberly Jones.... A decade of change in national forests U.S. District Court Judge William Dwyer initially shut down logging in the Northwest during the waning days of the administration of the first President Bush. But when Bill Clinton took office, he oversaw one of the greatest periods of change regarding national forests since World War II. During the 1990s, Clinton and Vice President Al Gore put together the Northwest Forest Plan, which curtailed logging on federal land in Washington, Oregon and Northern California. Later, timber harvest on federal lands across the country also fell dramatically, as the U.S. Forest Service moved toward conservation in the wake of lawsuits filed by environmentalists, mostly over endangered species.... Old-growth logging nearing a standstill in dramatic shift To grasp just how much the Northwest woods have changed, consider this: In a region once synonymous with logging, some local mills now bring raw logs in from hundreds, even thousands, of miles away. A decade after President Clinton tried to settle the conflict between spotted owls and logging by making 85 percent of the Northwest's federal forests off-limits to chain saws, at least one company has turned to hauling logs by rail to wood-starved Northwest mills — some from across the region, others from as far as Tennessee.... Column: Greens fighting deep-forest thinning ignore facts One of the stranger developments in American environmental policy is the love affair Greens today express for forest communities. They love them. They want to nurture and protect them. This wasn't always so, to say the least. But the fascination enviros have with the forest communities they once scorned is about to be put to the test. With the approval last November of President Bush's Healthy Forests legislation, the door was opened for states to take action to thin their choked, dying forests. In Arizona, that just happened.... Decade-old forest plan hurts as it helps Ten years ago, a pair of signatures on a 4,000-page document changed the landscape of federal forests in the Northwest -- and with it a way of life. Sawmills went silent. Oregon's federal timber harvest, already in free fall, declined to less than one tenth its former size. And wildlife -- from the northern spotted owl down to enigmatic forest-floor snails -- found new protections. Called the Northwest Forest Plan and signed into action on April 13, 1994, it was the Clinton administration's sweeping attempt to settle long-escalating feuds over the purpose of the region's publicly owned forests.... Warning: Mud may flow again Debris flows that filled a garage and dumped mud on the yards of three homes in Farmington last week could happen again there and could strike other parts of Utah that were ravaged by fire. The twin mudslides on North Compton Road can be traced to a grass fire that burned 4,000 acres in the lower slopes of the nearby mountains last July. The blaze allegedly was set by a transient who wanted to go to prison so he would have a place to live. Last week's furious rainstorm, which dumped 2.36 inches of water on the Farmington east bench, was all the scorched earth needed. Water, mud and rocks thundered down the mountainside, damaging yards, vehicles and garages.... Column: See You in Court The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance's original suit against the Interior Department, BLM's parent, invoked the 1946 Federal Administrative Procedure Act, which says federal courts can compel agencies to act under certain circumstances. But the act wasn't intended to govern exactly how agencies responded to congressional mandates. Rather, a federal district court determined, it was limited to final agency decisions and "mandatory, nondiscretionary activities" -- not ongoing processes like monitoring land use. So in the Utah case, as long as BLM was doing something on its own timetable, the court ruled, the conservation group was out of luck. A panel of judges on the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals overruled that judgment, saying that the obligation to protect Utah's land looked plenty "mandatory and nondiscretionary" to them. It's certainly tempting to back a decision that tries to force the BLM to stop sitting idly by while off-roaders rip up pristine Utah wilderness. (The Supreme Court "should make clear that the executive branch cannot go around invoking some imaginary discretionary authority to ignore laws it doesn't like," opined the New York Times in an editorial about the case.) But such an approach has serious consequences that could cripple the day-to-day management of federal operations.... Invasion of the Buggy Snackers (and Other Horrors) Global travel and trade have created a superhighway into the United States for destructive foreign insects, plants, animals and diseases that scientists call alien invasive species. Yet we're pretending we don't have to pay much attention. Countless other destructive alien species are on their way here unless we enact immediate trade policy changes and tougher cargo inspections. The costs will be formidable, but the alternative -- more "free trade" in this biological pollution -- is far worse.... Editorial: Public lands under attack The Bush administration is trying to stop pristine lands in Colorado from getting the protection they deserve. Several canyons and mesas near Grand Junction are part of wilderness legislation sponsored by U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, a Denver Democrat. Last week, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management said five proposed wilderness areas - Hunter Canyon, Big Ridge, Oil Spring Mountain, Cow Ridge and Dragon Canyon - will be part of a May 13 oil and gas lease auction. Oddly, the BLM didn't propose leasing federal land near some proposed wilderness areas, just the pristine lands themselves. That's particularly true for the Cow Ridge proposed wilderness. To judge from the map, it looks like the BLM is deliberately leasing parcels to ensure that DeGette can't include them in future wilderness bills.... Column: National Heritage Areas, The War Over Words Continues Based on the offerings of the deputy director for the National Park Service at a March 30 congressional hearing on National Heritage Areas, it would appear private property owners should now rest easy if their lands become targeted for heritage area declaration. To assume such, though, would be folly. But first, some background. The NPS and partnering state and local entities have created 24 NHAs encompassing 160,000 square miles of mostly privately owned lands since 1984. Advocates say NHAs are needed to preserve areas of cultural, historical, natural and scenic significance, and that the beauty of the system is that the federal government does not retain authority over the declared lands, but rather the individual property owners.... Column: National Heritage Areas, Shortcomings of the CRS Report On several fronts, a Congressional Research Service study on National Heritage Areas is misleading, misguided or outright mistaken – the latter by omission, as report authors fail to point out the absurdities of a key and common phrase used to identify private lands for public oversight. Absent from the report to Congress is mention of the term "nationally significant," a most familiar means by which environmentalists and their non-government and political cohorts justify the taking of private properties. This is the exact term, for instance, that was used as grounds for recent House passage of the Highlands Conservation Act, a $100 million-plus piece of legislation that hurts private landowners by seeking public control of more than two million acres of property, ostensibly to protect the region’s "water, forest, wildlife, recreational, agricultural and cultural resources.".... Park City offers Uncle Sam a deal Uncle Sam wants a place in Park City for himself and his military family members to relax and recreate in their off-time. And Park City wants Uncle Sam. A military resort in Utah's mountains could soon become a reality if a real estate swap proposed by Park City government is accepted by the U.S. Air Force, which has been looking to obtain a vacation destination in the area since Snowbasin's Hill Haus shut down about five years ago. This week, City Hall officially offered to give the Air Force the historic Imperial Hotel — a 100-year-old renovated lodge at the top of bustling Main Street. It has 10 rooms, a hot tub area, parking stalls, a dining room, undeveloped street-level space in a prime location and is worth about $1.35 million. All that Park City wants in return is a big patch of land and the sagebrush that grows on it.... County to lead fight over wild horses Elko County Commissioners are planning to take the lead role in a battle with the federal government over wild horse populations in Nevada. "We have a lot of ranchers in the area and we have the responsibility to step up to the plate," Commissioner Charlie Myers said. "This really has a dramatic impact.".... Miners, conservationists, even jewelers at odds over mining Those necklaces, rings and watches in the jewelry case may be a lot more expensive than many people think, conservationists contend. Jewelry also carries the cost of environmental damage from mining for their gold, silver and other precious metals, according to a new public relations campaign that is putting pressure on jewelry retailers to reject minerals from big polluters. The campaign has already prompted the president of Tiffany & Co. to shift his attention from the jewelry cases on Fifth Avenue to the Cabinet Mountains wilderness area of Montana.... Column: Saving ranchlands doesn't mean saving the rancher Few environmental issues have stirred up as much dust in the West as the debate over livestock grazing. "Cattle ruin the land," shouts one side. "Environmentalists commit cultural genocide against ranchers," shouts the other. In the early 1990s, a small group of conservationists looked beyond the hyperbole and found a third approach: supporting ranchers who wanted to raise healthy livestock while also improving the health of the land. "Keep good ranchers on the land" became their mantra. It's a nice sentiment, but the fact is that ranching is dying in the West and has been for some time. While we were debating whether or not cattle could be grazed in an ecologically sound way, the Western landscape we all care so much about was run over by a Mack truck.... Western governors explore energy solutions Governors from Western states will gather with leaders from Mexico and Canada for a summit on how to meet future energy needs in a region rich with natural resources, from oil and natural gas to opportunities for wind, solar and geothermal power. Touted as a "North American Energy Summit" by the Western Governors' Association, the three-day meeting opening Wednesday in Albuquerque will bring together governmental and tribal leaders with energy company executives, environmentalists, researchers and other experts to consider an ambitious agenda of energy issues. Among the topics to be explored: the future of oil production, gasoline and natural gas prices, reliability of the Western electricity grid, the role of nuclear power, renewable energy sources, improving energy efficiency and cross-border collaboration on energy policies.... Irrigation, irritation and litigation in a remote California county On the outskirts of town, where tumbleweeds strain against barbed wire and sagebrush sprouts on the roadside, a sign reads, "Where the West still lives." One member of the Modoc County board of supervisors shoes horses for a living. Cowboy hats, boots and Wrangler jeans are the get-up of choice. But a dustup in this high desert town of 3,200 has revived the Old West's mean side, with death threats, fistfights and a sheriff confiscating guns. At the heart of the nasty dispute is water – in this case, Rattlesnake Creek.... Ranchers, scientists air beef over book A major Canadian publisher is likely to add to the woes of the beef industry by releasing a book that blames hamburgers for an "epidemic of Alzheimer's disease." Dr. Murray Waldman, a coroner with the City of Toronto and co-author of the McClelland and Stewart book, Dying for a Hamburger: modern meat processing and the epidemic of Alzheimer's disease, charges hamburger is the main source of prions, which trigger Alzheimer's. Prions, a type of malformed protein found in the brains of infected animals and humans, are credited as the cause of mad cow disease, several cases of which have been linked to Canadian cattle, and its human form, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The book is slated for release in the next two weeks.... Low-carb diets blamed for increase in rustling There's new trouble in valleys such as this one, where vestiges of the Old West live on. Cattle rustling is staging a comeback. And from ranches here in the rustic Sierra Nevada foothills to grazing lands across the western plains, cowboys know exactly what's to blame: a diet craze. The growing national popularity of high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets has kept beef prices high, even after the threat of mad cow disease arose in the Pacific Northwest late last year. But law enforcement officials say that Americans' new eating habits also appear to be inspiring a new generation of rustlers to steal and sell cattle, particularly newborn calves not yet seared with identifying brands.... West's drought worsens From the brittle hillsides of Southern California to the drying fields of Idaho, from Montana to New Mexico, a relentless drought is worsening across most of the West, water supplies are dwindling, and the threat of wildfires is rising. "Most of the West is headed into six years of drought, and some areas are looking at seven years of drought," said Rick Ochoa, weather program manager at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho.... Hog wild in Texas Texas is hogtied. Wild pigs are closing in on other states, too. The Lone Star State is grappling with the nation's largest population of feral pigs — squealing, rooting hordes of hogs that can destroy farmland and wildlife habitats, sully public parks, attack pets and domestic animals, and spread diseases such as tuberculosis and even anthrax to farm animals. The dreaded and free-roaming sus scrofa — also known as wild boars, piney-woods rooters, razorbacks, hawgs and a host of other monikers — now are thought to number 2 million in Texas alone....
OPINION/COMMENTARY
The German Crack in Kyoto's Wall
A new crack has appeared in Kyoto's wall.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said Europe should not rush into enforcing targets to curb greenhouse emissions if Russia fails to sign the Kyoto protocol. "We hope that Kyoto will be ratified, for example by Russia," told Schroeder. "But if that doesn't happen, it will distort competition at the expense of European and especially German economy."
In fact, according to DRI/WEFA estimates, under the Kyoto protocol the price of home heating could rise by 28 percent in Germany by 2010; gasoline and diesel prices would rise by 9 percent and 14 percent. GDP would shrink by 2.9 percent below the baseline forecasts, and employment would fall by 1.0 million jobs annually during the 2008-2012 budget period....
Activists Threaten Cancer Research
Animal rights zealots will do anything for attention, even if it means attacking a fundraiser for cancer research. The misnamed Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), a front group for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, is protesting the American Cancer Society's "Cattle Barons' Ball" events. The western-themed galas have raised more than $20 million for cancer research over the past 30 years. But PCRM will do anything to advance its vegetarian-only, animal rights agenda -- even jeopardize the search for a cancer cure and endanger Americans' health....
The Politics of Science
The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) recently issued a report accusing the Bush Administration of suppressing and manipulating scientific evidence on global warming and other issues for the sake of politics.
The mixture of politics and science is nothing new in Presidential administrations. The Clinton administration had its own agenda as well:
---A Princeton University physicist was fired in 1993 because he did not agree with Al Gore's views on ozone depletion in the stratosphere.
---President Clinton withheld funding on the implications of human embryo use for genetic research after the National Institutes of Health reported that it was unethical to create human embryos simply for the purpose of such research.
---In 1993, the EPA manipulated data and hand-picked from several studies on second-hand smoke in order to validate its theory that second-hand smoke caused lung cancer in adults and respiratory problems in children.
Moreover, the UCS has not cited any instances where science was misused for policies that the organization itself favors.
The UCS recommends stricter standards for scientists on federal review panels, and Congressional guarantees that the public has access to its studies. However, many steps to improve the quality of scientific information are already in place. Congress recently passed the Federal Quality Data Act in 1999 issuing guidelines for quality, objectivity and public access to information.
Source: Ronald Bailey, "Political Science - Why Government Isn't the Best Place to Look For Unbiased Science," Reason Online, March 3, 2004.
For text
http://www.reason.com/rb/rb030304.shtml
Environmentalists’ Unrealistic Demands Hurt Poor and Minorities
The Bush administration is proposing dramatic reductions in sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and mercury from power plants, yet professional environmental advocates are claiming the reductions are not enough.
I am not a scientist. I am, however, somewhat expert in how public policy is made and the unintended impacts it can have on minority and low-income people. I believe this is one such case.
Health and environmental experts at the Mercatus Center, the Cato Institute, the American Enterprise Institute, and other respected think tanks say the reductions promised under the President’s plan already exceed the amounts justified in terms of the health risks and costs involved. By trying to reduce emissions too much, too fast, we risk incurring social costs that far outweigh whatever small and hypothetical health benefits we might be aiming for....
U.S. Supreme Court Declines to Set National Wetlands Law Straight
The U.S. Supreme Court today announced that it will not hear three high-profile cases asking the Court to clarify the constitutional limitations on federal authority to regulate wetlands under the Clean Water Act. One of the cases the High Court declined to review, Rapanos v. United States, was brought by Pacific Legal Foundation on behalf of John Rapanos, a Michigan landowner who will now serve at least 10 months in prison for failing to get a Clean Water Act permit. In addition, the Court rejected petitions for review in Newdunn Associates v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Deaton v. United States, cases that also involve property owners facing federal penalties for federal permit violations.
"Frankly, we're shocked that the Court chose not to hear these important cases," said PLF attorney M. Reed Hopper. "The Supreme Court reversed Mr. Rapanos' conviction nearly three years ago, and we're surprised that they would decline to do so this time around."
"Mr. Rapanos' property is 20 miles from any navigable waterway and has no connection to interstate commerce. How many miles away does your property have to be from any legitimate connection to interstate commerce to be free from federal jurisdiction?" added Hopper....
'PETA Is A Scary Organization'
Last night's season premier of "Penn and Teller: Bullsh*t!" exposed some of the more disturbing, frightening, and lesser-known features of the animal rights movement. The episode, which prominently features the Center for Consumer Freedom, reveals the dark side of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, and even moved the silent half of the Penn and Teller comic duo to words. "PETA is a scary organization," says the usually speechless Teller. "People loosely connected with PETA burn down buildings. People whose bank accounts PETA puts money in burn down buildings ... I like animals, too. But not to the extent that I want to block a cure for cancer or AIDS by burning down research laboratories."
Jerry Vlasak, spokesman for PETA's medical front group (the misnamed Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine), had this to say on last night's show: "If someone is killing, on a regular basis, thousands of animals, and if that person can only be stopped in one way by the use of violence, then it is certainly a morally justifiable solution."....
The German Crack in Kyoto's Wall
A new crack has appeared in Kyoto's wall.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said Europe should not rush into enforcing targets to curb greenhouse emissions if Russia fails to sign the Kyoto protocol. "We hope that Kyoto will be ratified, for example by Russia," told Schroeder. "But if that doesn't happen, it will distort competition at the expense of European and especially German economy."
In fact, according to DRI/WEFA estimates, under the Kyoto protocol the price of home heating could rise by 28 percent in Germany by 2010; gasoline and diesel prices would rise by 9 percent and 14 percent. GDP would shrink by 2.9 percent below the baseline forecasts, and employment would fall by 1.0 million jobs annually during the 2008-2012 budget period....
Activists Threaten Cancer Research
Animal rights zealots will do anything for attention, even if it means attacking a fundraiser for cancer research. The misnamed Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), a front group for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, is protesting the American Cancer Society's "Cattle Barons' Ball" events. The western-themed galas have raised more than $20 million for cancer research over the past 30 years. But PCRM will do anything to advance its vegetarian-only, animal rights agenda -- even jeopardize the search for a cancer cure and endanger Americans' health....
The Politics of Science
The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) recently issued a report accusing the Bush Administration of suppressing and manipulating scientific evidence on global warming and other issues for the sake of politics.
The mixture of politics and science is nothing new in Presidential administrations. The Clinton administration had its own agenda as well:
---A Princeton University physicist was fired in 1993 because he did not agree with Al Gore's views on ozone depletion in the stratosphere.
---President Clinton withheld funding on the implications of human embryo use for genetic research after the National Institutes of Health reported that it was unethical to create human embryos simply for the purpose of such research.
---In 1993, the EPA manipulated data and hand-picked from several studies on second-hand smoke in order to validate its theory that second-hand smoke caused lung cancer in adults and respiratory problems in children.
Moreover, the UCS has not cited any instances where science was misused for policies that the organization itself favors.
The UCS recommends stricter standards for scientists on federal review panels, and Congressional guarantees that the public has access to its studies. However, many steps to improve the quality of scientific information are already in place. Congress recently passed the Federal Quality Data Act in 1999 issuing guidelines for quality, objectivity and public access to information.
Source: Ronald Bailey, "Political Science - Why Government Isn't the Best Place to Look For Unbiased Science," Reason Online, March 3, 2004.
For text
http://www.reason.com/rb/rb030304.shtml
Environmentalists’ Unrealistic Demands Hurt Poor and Minorities
The Bush administration is proposing dramatic reductions in sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and mercury from power plants, yet professional environmental advocates are claiming the reductions are not enough.
I am not a scientist. I am, however, somewhat expert in how public policy is made and the unintended impacts it can have on minority and low-income people. I believe this is one such case.
Health and environmental experts at the Mercatus Center, the Cato Institute, the American Enterprise Institute, and other respected think tanks say the reductions promised under the President’s plan already exceed the amounts justified in terms of the health risks and costs involved. By trying to reduce emissions too much, too fast, we risk incurring social costs that far outweigh whatever small and hypothetical health benefits we might be aiming for....
U.S. Supreme Court Declines to Set National Wetlands Law Straight
The U.S. Supreme Court today announced that it will not hear three high-profile cases asking the Court to clarify the constitutional limitations on federal authority to regulate wetlands under the Clean Water Act. One of the cases the High Court declined to review, Rapanos v. United States, was brought by Pacific Legal Foundation on behalf of John Rapanos, a Michigan landowner who will now serve at least 10 months in prison for failing to get a Clean Water Act permit. In addition, the Court rejected petitions for review in Newdunn Associates v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Deaton v. United States, cases that also involve property owners facing federal penalties for federal permit violations.
"Frankly, we're shocked that the Court chose not to hear these important cases," said PLF attorney M. Reed Hopper. "The Supreme Court reversed Mr. Rapanos' conviction nearly three years ago, and we're surprised that they would decline to do so this time around."
"Mr. Rapanos' property is 20 miles from any navigable waterway and has no connection to interstate commerce. How many miles away does your property have to be from any legitimate connection to interstate commerce to be free from federal jurisdiction?" added Hopper....
'PETA Is A Scary Organization'
Last night's season premier of "Penn and Teller: Bullsh*t!" exposed some of the more disturbing, frightening, and lesser-known features of the animal rights movement. The episode, which prominently features the Center for Consumer Freedom, reveals the dark side of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, and even moved the silent half of the Penn and Teller comic duo to words. "PETA is a scary organization," says the usually speechless Teller. "People loosely connected with PETA burn down buildings. People whose bank accounts PETA puts money in burn down buildings ... I like animals, too. But not to the extent that I want to block a cure for cancer or AIDS by burning down research laboratories."
Jerry Vlasak, spokesman for PETA's medical front group (the misnamed Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine), had this to say on last night's show: "If someone is killing, on a regular basis, thousands of animals, and if that person can only be stopped in one way by the use of violence, then it is certainly a morally justifiable solution."....
Friday, April 09, 2004
NEWS ROUNDUP
Prospects looking up for logging Ten years after the supposed end of the spotted owl wars, environmentalists are charging that two recent moves by the Bush administration undercut the pact's environmental protections. The wrangling goes on as it has for a decade, with the timber industry firing back that environmentalists stymied a key goal of the Clinton administration's 1994 Northwest Forest Plan: cutting at least some timber to rescue beleaguered logging towns. Federal officials still struggle to get more wood out of taxpayer-owned woods. But here in this town hemmed in by national forest south of Mount Rainier, something quite different is happening. Environmentalists are, in effect, walking through the forest and saying: Let's cut that tree. And that one. And that one over there, too. What happened?.... A creeping controversy In an unmarked site on the edges of this community of berry farmers, Bob Harriman puts one foot on the world's most controversial grass. It's a blanket of brilliant green — as thin as a piece of paper and as uniform as cellophane. If it sounds unnatural, that's because it is. The turf is a genetically modified version of the creeping bentgrass popular on golf course greens and fairways, and it is being tested here by Scotts Co., which hopes its creation will be resistant to a common weed-killing chemical.... Lion captured by snare in Sabino Canyon near school State wildlife biologists captured a mountain lion Friday in Sabino Canyon using a snare set near a recently killed deer, an Arizona Game and Fish Department spokesman said. The animal was captured in a wash in the canyon about a half-mile northeast of a middle school and a quarter-mile from a home. Wildlife biologists are confident the animal is the same one seen March 18 in a parking lot outside Esperero Canyon Middle School, Miles said.... Forest Vision Extends Into Hearst Tract The U.S. Forest Service is considering creating a Big Sur National Forest that could include the Hearst Ranch and Ft. Hunter Liggett, if the enormous U.S. Army base is shuttered in the Pentagon's coming round of base closures. As envisioned, the new national forest could encompass an area yet to be acquired that alone would be nearly half the size of Orange County, plus northern portions of the Los Padres National Forest. If the Forest Service were to acquire about 80,000 acres of the Hearst Ranch, as is suggested in the paper, and take over the 165,000-acre Ft. Hunter Liggett, it would add about 382 square miles to California's inventory of protected public lands.... Column: 'U.S. backs U.N. plan to control land' Ironically, the same year this policy was announced, Jesse Hardy bought 160 acres near Naples, Fla., to build his American dream. He had served 12 years in the Navy and was disabled from an injury during a helicopter jump. He built a modest home, using a generator for electricity, and began developing his dream of a wildlife area around fish ponds, which he hoped would bring enough paying visitors to meet his meager money needs. The federal government now wants Jesse's land. The government has already driven out or bought out all the other landowners in the area to expand the wilderness area in an effort to "restore" the Everglades. Jesse's land will not be affected by the restoration plan, but he will be the only resident in the area, and as long as there is a human in the area, it will not be "wild.".... Group: Stop Harvests in Blackbird Habitats Harvesting and plowing should be prohibited or at least delayed in areas where the tricolored blackbird breeds, an environmental group said Friday in asking for immediate protection for the species. The blackbird population appears to be in fine shape because thousands of the birds often flock together, said the Center for Biological Diversity. The bird looks like the red-winged blackbird, but behaves differently. California has more than 99 percent of the population, which once numbered in the millions.... Daschle says he wants prairie dogs off protected list Sen. Tom Daschle has asked federal officials not to list the black-tailed prairie dog as an endangered species. Four years ago, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found the prairie dog deserved to be a candidate for the threatened species list. However, recent surveys have shown the prairie dog population is much larger than earlier estimates indicated, Daschle, D-S.D., said Friday in a conference call with South Dakota reporters. New surveys show prairie dogs cover about 400,000 acres in the state, he said. The numbers show the prairie dog is far from endangered, Daschle said.... EPA General Counsel Nominee has a Checkered Record Ann Klee, currently general counsel to Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton, has been nominated by the Bush Administration to become general counsel of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Klee is a Washington veteran with a long history representing conservative interests on environmental issues. After working as a lawyer in Washington for several years, Klee became environmental counsel to Senator Dirk Kempthorne (R-ID) in 1995. Now governor of Idaho, Kempthorne is an outspoken opponent of many federal environmental laws and programs.... A small bird that makes a big noise A small bird with a long tail threatens to wreak havoc with the plans of Colorado developers. An impending decision to list the "greater sage grouse" as an endangered species could affect millions of dollars of development plans, from ranching and farming to housing, mining and oil and gas production. The grouse population has been steadily declining over the past 20 years. Its habitat is spread over 110 millions acres in 11 states, including northwestern Colorado.... State Lands Commission Votes to Preserve Wetlands and Opposes Offshore Oil Drilling The California State Lands Commission voted today to grant the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service a lease for the construction of the Bolsa Chica Wetlands Project. The project will restore 880 acres of oil fields to their natural wetlands habitat and will act as a haven to fish and wildlife. The restored wetlands will also serve as a recreation site for visitors and residents of Huntington Beach, California. The Commission also voted to send a letter to President George W. Bush reiterating its position of support for a moratorium on new oil and gas development off the coast of California.... Habitat protection price tag put at $1 billion The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that protecting the habitat of an endangered crustacean and a threatened songbird will cost public and private property owners nearly $1 billion over the next 23 years. The federal agency's economic analysis, which covers six Southern California counties, was released yesterday. It is part of the process of deciding which land will be protected as "critical habitat" for the San Diego fairy shrimp and the coastal California gnatcatcher.... Former employee says tribe neglected its bison A man who works for the Three Affiliated Tribes' bison project said neglect, bad management and laziness caused the tribes' bison to die this winter. Ted Siers, 33, a five-year employee of the bison project who is on leave while he waits to be transferred to a different department, says he'd rather face retaliation from tribal authorities than let the situation continue. Siers describes a bison operation that engaged in cruel and inhumane treatment of the animals and one in which the bison were routinely underfed while the project's six employees spent most of the work day watching DVD movies and lounging. He said bison project general manager Pete Hale was rarely around, and manager Paul White Owl Sr. ran the operation in ways that caused the bison to fatally injure each other and then left them to crawl off and die.... Editorial: Uncle Sam giving away land The federal government this week sold public property worth $15.5 million for a pitiful $875. The egregious giveaway spotlights a concern looming over many Colorado towns, not just Crested Butte: For a song, Uncle Sam sells mining claims that can be turned into developments that overwhelm nearby communities. Mount Emmons towers over Crested Butte, creating the town's dramatic backdrop. This week, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management granted a mining patent (tantamount to title) to Phelps Dodge Corp., putting the popular recreation area in private hands. Under the 1872 Mining Act, the company paid about $5 an acre - in an area where a tenth of an acre on the free market fetches $100,000.... Meatpacker considers suing USDA over mad cow A small meatpacking company warned Friday it may sue the Agriculture Department to obtain permission to test every animal at its slaughterhouse for mad cow disease. Agriculture officials have refused a license request from Creekstone Farms Premium Beef, which said Japanese customers would buy its products if the company tested every animal processed at its Arkansas City, Kan., plant for the brain-wasting disease, formally known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy.... 10-Gallon Hats in Bavaria It's nowhere near high noon, but a tough-looking hombre in a black leather vest, black stovepipe pants and a black cowboy hat is sauntering down the dusty length of a frontier Main Street, a gun belt slung low on his hips. He strolls past the sheriff's office, the Palace Hotel and a saddled horse hitched loosely to a wooden railing, then pauses for a moment at the broad covered porch of the Black Bison Saloon. Entering, he strides up to the bar and places his order. "Ein bier, bitte." This is Pullman City, a theme park in southern Germany where more than a million visitors a year step out of 21st-century Europe into an American Wild West fantasyland of stagecoaches, gunfighters, mountain men and Indians.... Trade irritant may delay opening border to cattle There's growing concern on both sides of the border that an old trade irritant may scuttle plans to reopen the U.S. border to Canadian cattle that are over 30 months old. Cattle producers in the United States say they don't want the border open until Canada gets rid of its restrictions on American cattle. The problem is created by two livestock diseases called bluetongue and anaplasmosis. They've been wiped out in Canada, but not in the United States. They kill sheep and goats, but not cattle. However, they do cause cattle to lose weight.... Cowgirl's years of effort result in a birthday win Benjie Christian Neely is celebrating her 31st birthday today after winning $19,333 Thursday night at the National Cutting Horse Association Super Stakes. It was a moral victory for the Lyons, Ga., cowgirl who won her first title in Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum after attempting for more than a decade. The coliseum is the sport's most prominent venue, the cutting horse equivalent of Yankee Stadium. "I can't even tell you what it feels like" to win in Fort Worth, Neely said. "I almost had it in my head that I couldn't show in here. It's very intimidating to show here because it's the best competition that there is. Neely won the show's Classic non-professional division title atop a mare named Little Lacy. Another reason that Neely was ecstatic about winning was because Little Lacy was sired by her prize stallion, Little Trona.... Atop a beast, he chases treasure: a buckle To hear Michael Gaffney tell it, he's nothing special when it comes to riding 1-ton, snorting bulls hellbent for cowboy hide. "I'm a pretty common Joe who gets to do what I love to do," said Gaffney, a former world champion bull rider. Gaffney, a part-time Corrales resident, tends to understate his career achievements. Make no mistake, this is no average Joe....
Prospects looking up for logging Ten years after the supposed end of the spotted owl wars, environmentalists are charging that two recent moves by the Bush administration undercut the pact's environmental protections. The wrangling goes on as it has for a decade, with the timber industry firing back that environmentalists stymied a key goal of the Clinton administration's 1994 Northwest Forest Plan: cutting at least some timber to rescue beleaguered logging towns. Federal officials still struggle to get more wood out of taxpayer-owned woods. But here in this town hemmed in by national forest south of Mount Rainier, something quite different is happening. Environmentalists are, in effect, walking through the forest and saying: Let's cut that tree. And that one. And that one over there, too. What happened?.... A creeping controversy In an unmarked site on the edges of this community of berry farmers, Bob Harriman puts one foot on the world's most controversial grass. It's a blanket of brilliant green — as thin as a piece of paper and as uniform as cellophane. If it sounds unnatural, that's because it is. The turf is a genetically modified version of the creeping bentgrass popular on golf course greens and fairways, and it is being tested here by Scotts Co., which hopes its creation will be resistant to a common weed-killing chemical.... Lion captured by snare in Sabino Canyon near school State wildlife biologists captured a mountain lion Friday in Sabino Canyon using a snare set near a recently killed deer, an Arizona Game and Fish Department spokesman said. The animal was captured in a wash in the canyon about a half-mile northeast of a middle school and a quarter-mile from a home. Wildlife biologists are confident the animal is the same one seen March 18 in a parking lot outside Esperero Canyon Middle School, Miles said.... Forest Vision Extends Into Hearst Tract The U.S. Forest Service is considering creating a Big Sur National Forest that could include the Hearst Ranch and Ft. Hunter Liggett, if the enormous U.S. Army base is shuttered in the Pentagon's coming round of base closures. As envisioned, the new national forest could encompass an area yet to be acquired that alone would be nearly half the size of Orange County, plus northern portions of the Los Padres National Forest. If the Forest Service were to acquire about 80,000 acres of the Hearst Ranch, as is suggested in the paper, and take over the 165,000-acre Ft. Hunter Liggett, it would add about 382 square miles to California's inventory of protected public lands.... Column: 'U.S. backs U.N. plan to control land' Ironically, the same year this policy was announced, Jesse Hardy bought 160 acres near Naples, Fla., to build his American dream. He had served 12 years in the Navy and was disabled from an injury during a helicopter jump. He built a modest home, using a generator for electricity, and began developing his dream of a wildlife area around fish ponds, which he hoped would bring enough paying visitors to meet his meager money needs. The federal government now wants Jesse's land. The government has already driven out or bought out all the other landowners in the area to expand the wilderness area in an effort to "restore" the Everglades. Jesse's land will not be affected by the restoration plan, but he will be the only resident in the area, and as long as there is a human in the area, it will not be "wild.".... Group: Stop Harvests in Blackbird Habitats Harvesting and plowing should be prohibited or at least delayed in areas where the tricolored blackbird breeds, an environmental group said Friday in asking for immediate protection for the species. The blackbird population appears to be in fine shape because thousands of the birds often flock together, said the Center for Biological Diversity. The bird looks like the red-winged blackbird, but behaves differently. California has more than 99 percent of the population, which once numbered in the millions.... Daschle says he wants prairie dogs off protected list Sen. Tom Daschle has asked federal officials not to list the black-tailed prairie dog as an endangered species. Four years ago, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found the prairie dog deserved to be a candidate for the threatened species list. However, recent surveys have shown the prairie dog population is much larger than earlier estimates indicated, Daschle, D-S.D., said Friday in a conference call with South Dakota reporters. New surveys show prairie dogs cover about 400,000 acres in the state, he said. The numbers show the prairie dog is far from endangered, Daschle said.... EPA General Counsel Nominee has a Checkered Record Ann Klee, currently general counsel to Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton, has been nominated by the Bush Administration to become general counsel of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Klee is a Washington veteran with a long history representing conservative interests on environmental issues. After working as a lawyer in Washington for several years, Klee became environmental counsel to Senator Dirk Kempthorne (R-ID) in 1995. Now governor of Idaho, Kempthorne is an outspoken opponent of many federal environmental laws and programs.... A small bird that makes a big noise A small bird with a long tail threatens to wreak havoc with the plans of Colorado developers. An impending decision to list the "greater sage grouse" as an endangered species could affect millions of dollars of development plans, from ranching and farming to housing, mining and oil and gas production. The grouse population has been steadily declining over the past 20 years. Its habitat is spread over 110 millions acres in 11 states, including northwestern Colorado.... State Lands Commission Votes to Preserve Wetlands and Opposes Offshore Oil Drilling The California State Lands Commission voted today to grant the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service a lease for the construction of the Bolsa Chica Wetlands Project. The project will restore 880 acres of oil fields to their natural wetlands habitat and will act as a haven to fish and wildlife. The restored wetlands will also serve as a recreation site for visitors and residents of Huntington Beach, California. The Commission also voted to send a letter to President George W. Bush reiterating its position of support for a moratorium on new oil and gas development off the coast of California.... Habitat protection price tag put at $1 billion The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that protecting the habitat of an endangered crustacean and a threatened songbird will cost public and private property owners nearly $1 billion over the next 23 years. The federal agency's economic analysis, which covers six Southern California counties, was released yesterday. It is part of the process of deciding which land will be protected as "critical habitat" for the San Diego fairy shrimp and the coastal California gnatcatcher.... Former employee says tribe neglected its bison A man who works for the Three Affiliated Tribes' bison project said neglect, bad management and laziness caused the tribes' bison to die this winter. Ted Siers, 33, a five-year employee of the bison project who is on leave while he waits to be transferred to a different department, says he'd rather face retaliation from tribal authorities than let the situation continue. Siers describes a bison operation that engaged in cruel and inhumane treatment of the animals and one in which the bison were routinely underfed while the project's six employees spent most of the work day watching DVD movies and lounging. He said bison project general manager Pete Hale was rarely around, and manager Paul White Owl Sr. ran the operation in ways that caused the bison to fatally injure each other and then left them to crawl off and die.... Editorial: Uncle Sam giving away land The federal government this week sold public property worth $15.5 million for a pitiful $875. The egregious giveaway spotlights a concern looming over many Colorado towns, not just Crested Butte: For a song, Uncle Sam sells mining claims that can be turned into developments that overwhelm nearby communities. Mount Emmons towers over Crested Butte, creating the town's dramatic backdrop. This week, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management granted a mining patent (tantamount to title) to Phelps Dodge Corp., putting the popular recreation area in private hands. Under the 1872 Mining Act, the company paid about $5 an acre - in an area where a tenth of an acre on the free market fetches $100,000.... Meatpacker considers suing USDA over mad cow A small meatpacking company warned Friday it may sue the Agriculture Department to obtain permission to test every animal at its slaughterhouse for mad cow disease. Agriculture officials have refused a license request from Creekstone Farms Premium Beef, which said Japanese customers would buy its products if the company tested every animal processed at its Arkansas City, Kan., plant for the brain-wasting disease, formally known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy.... 10-Gallon Hats in Bavaria It's nowhere near high noon, but a tough-looking hombre in a black leather vest, black stovepipe pants and a black cowboy hat is sauntering down the dusty length of a frontier Main Street, a gun belt slung low on his hips. He strolls past the sheriff's office, the Palace Hotel and a saddled horse hitched loosely to a wooden railing, then pauses for a moment at the broad covered porch of the Black Bison Saloon. Entering, he strides up to the bar and places his order. "Ein bier, bitte." This is Pullman City, a theme park in southern Germany where more than a million visitors a year step out of 21st-century Europe into an American Wild West fantasyland of stagecoaches, gunfighters, mountain men and Indians.... Trade irritant may delay opening border to cattle There's growing concern on both sides of the border that an old trade irritant may scuttle plans to reopen the U.S. border to Canadian cattle that are over 30 months old. Cattle producers in the United States say they don't want the border open until Canada gets rid of its restrictions on American cattle. The problem is created by two livestock diseases called bluetongue and anaplasmosis. They've been wiped out in Canada, but not in the United States. They kill sheep and goats, but not cattle. However, they do cause cattle to lose weight.... Cowgirl's years of effort result in a birthday win Benjie Christian Neely is celebrating her 31st birthday today after winning $19,333 Thursday night at the National Cutting Horse Association Super Stakes. It was a moral victory for the Lyons, Ga., cowgirl who won her first title in Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum after attempting for more than a decade. The coliseum is the sport's most prominent venue, the cutting horse equivalent of Yankee Stadium. "I can't even tell you what it feels like" to win in Fort Worth, Neely said. "I almost had it in my head that I couldn't show in here. It's very intimidating to show here because it's the best competition that there is. Neely won the show's Classic non-professional division title atop a mare named Little Lacy. Another reason that Neely was ecstatic about winning was because Little Lacy was sired by her prize stallion, Little Trona.... Atop a beast, he chases treasure: a buckle To hear Michael Gaffney tell it, he's nothing special when it comes to riding 1-ton, snorting bulls hellbent for cowboy hide. "I'm a pretty common Joe who gets to do what I love to do," said Gaffney, a former world champion bull rider. Gaffney, a part-time Corrales resident, tends to understate his career achievements. Make no mistake, this is no average Joe....
OPINION/COMMENTARY
Obesity resurrects CARA
Unbelievable. The old CARA bill is coming back under the pretense of concern about the nation’s obesity problem. The old idea has been given a new name -- the "Get Outdoors Act."
Along with finger pointing at corn sweeteners, fast foods and mom’s homemade pies, now it is because the government doesn’t own enough land that is causing obesity. Where does personal accountability fit in?
Perhaps some thought should be given to reopening some of the trails that have been closed to the public in the National Forests and National Parks for fear the "obese" and others would destroy the ecosystem.
Before more open space and land is bought under the guise of "recreation for the obese," we need to request an accounting of the almost 50% of the nation’s land now owned by government and environmental land trusts and the untold percent under government control.
The federal bill HR 4100, called the "Get Outdoors Act," is sponsored by extreme green Congressman George Miller (D-CA) and ‘once’ friend of property rights, Congressman Don Young (R-AK). It appears Young is more concerned about the pork that will return to Alaska from this bill than the rights of the people he represents. These were the same legislators who promoted CARA.
The "Get Outdoors Act of 2004" will provide for $3 billion in guaranteed annual funding for outdoor and recreation purposes to address the obesity crisis using the same offshore drilling revenue funding as CARA....
Obesity resurrects CARA
Unbelievable. The old CARA bill is coming back under the pretense of concern about the nation’s obesity problem. The old idea has been given a new name -- the "Get Outdoors Act."
Along with finger pointing at corn sweeteners, fast foods and mom’s homemade pies, now it is because the government doesn’t own enough land that is causing obesity. Where does personal accountability fit in?
Perhaps some thought should be given to reopening some of the trails that have been closed to the public in the National Forests and National Parks for fear the "obese" and others would destroy the ecosystem.
Before more open space and land is bought under the guise of "recreation for the obese," we need to request an accounting of the almost 50% of the nation’s land now owned by government and environmental land trusts and the untold percent under government control.
The federal bill HR 4100, called the "Get Outdoors Act," is sponsored by extreme green Congressman George Miller (D-CA) and ‘once’ friend of property rights, Congressman Don Young (R-AK). It appears Young is more concerned about the pork that will return to Alaska from this bill than the rights of the people he represents. These were the same legislators who promoted CARA.
The "Get Outdoors Act of 2004" will provide for $3 billion in guaranteed annual funding for outdoor and recreation purposes to address the obesity crisis using the same offshore drilling revenue funding as CARA....
DIAMOND BAR CATTLE COMPANY/HORSES
Dear horse-loving friends,
Most of you have heard about the New Mexico rancher, Kit Laney, whose cattle has been impounded and sold by the United States Forest Service. During this process Kit was arrested and jailed. On March 26 his wife Sherry visited him in jail, many miles away from the ranch. When she returned, she discovered 14 of her horses gone. Ten older horses, some retired, and 4 freshly gelded colts. These horses were kept close to the ranch house in order to feed them and to exercise the colts. When Sherry Laney contacted the USFS she was told she could have her horses back for $650 a piece.
While it is not our intention to debate the legitimacy of the taking of horses off of private land by the USFS, what we would like to bring to your attention are the conditions the impounded horses are kept in.
A first hand account by Marie Lee, Sherry Laney's sister, reads like this:
..."With the understanding that the USFS had impounded some of my horses, I went to inspect them. When I arrived at the temporary corrals set-up by the USFS at the Me-own, Kathy Van Camp (USFS) armed with pepper spray and a frown, informed me that I could not view my horses until the brand inspectors arrived. The USFS personnel then proceeded to stand guard between me and the horses in the corrals. Catron County Sheriff Cliff Snyder and my sister Sherry Laney showed up and Kathy Van Camp (USFS) told Sherry that if she stepped between her and the corral, she would arrest her. Meanwhile, looking over Kathy's shoulder, I noticed my horse, Jasper, standing there with his head drooping. He looked very sick. Eventually, the inspectors arrived and entered the corral. By then Jasper was laying down in the mud. He wouldn't even get up when they inspected him. Finally, I was allowed to enter the corral. The mud and manure were ankle deep. The watering system for these 14 horses is a small trough (around 100 gal.) and at the time was about 3/4 empty. The USFS personnel had thrown hay in this muck for our 14 head of horses, consisting of 10 older horses and 4 freshly gelded colts. One of these colts was swollen in the belly. Jasper had finally stood back up. As I was taking pictures of him, I noticed his sheath was swollen and had a large scab on it. Russell Ward, USFS Ranger, informed me that the vet had been called out. When asked, Russell did not know what the vet had diagnosed on Jasper. Another horse had colic and Russell said was given Banamine. I noticed this particular horse was still having problems urinating. I was allowed to haul 4 horses off. When I unloaded my horses, they rushed to water and proceeded to drink as if they had not had any water in a while. I fully believe Jasper would have died under the care of the USFS rangers if he was left in there much longer..."
The Me-own in the Gila National Forest is a very remote area with no water and the current weather conditions (sleet and rain, night time temperatures around freezing) make it very difficult to haul feed and water over many miles of rough dirt roads.
As reported by the USFS, Laney's cattle (which the USFS does not own) was sold last week. The USFS has declined to name the contract cowboys rounding up cattle and horses, and the sales barn which accepted the cattle. They have also refused to answer FOIA requests. Word has it that the cattle was sold in Guyman, OK. Witnesses told of mother cows with tight bags, i.e. udders not sucked, standing bawling in the temporary corrals in the Gila National Forest. Evidently, the USFS in its infinite wisdom has agreed to pay the contractors only for mature animals rounded up, therefore calves unable to travel far were left behind in the rugged terrain. The USFS plans on selling the remaining cattle as well as the horses in question.
The reason why many of the impounded 14 horses are older (late teens and early twenties) is because Kit and Sherry Laney believe that horses who worked hard on their ranch deserve retirement.
Please help us do two things:
1. Demand better conditions for the horses held in the temporary corrals at Me-own in the Gila National Forest, and
2. Inform the people at your local livestock sales barns about this situation.
Please call or fax your message (you may use any portion of this text) to the following:
US Senator Pete Domenici
Tel. 202 224 6621 (D.C.)
Fax 202 228 3261 (D.C.)
Tel. 505 526 5475 (Las Cruces, NM)
Fax 505 523 6589 (Las Cruces, NM)
US Senator Jeff Bingaman
Tel. 202 224 5521 (D.C.)
Fax 202 224 2852 (D.C.)
Tel. 505 523 6561 (Las Cruces, NM)
Toll free in NM only 1 800 443 8658
Fax 505 523 6584 (Las Cruces, NM)
US Congressman Steve Pearce
Tel. 202 225 2365 (D.C.)
Fax 202 225 9599 (D.C.)
Tel. 505 522 2219 (Las Cruces, NM)
Fax 505 522 3099 (Las Cruces, NM)
USFS Silver City, NM Tel. 505 388 8201
Marcia Andre, Supervisor Fax 505 388 3204
Anyone wishing more information about this case can find it by typing "Kit Laney" into the search field of any search engine.
Please forward this information to all your friends. Thank you for your help.
Monika Helbling, rabbitbrushranch@yahoo.com
Dear horse-loving friends,
Most of you have heard about the New Mexico rancher, Kit Laney, whose cattle has been impounded and sold by the United States Forest Service. During this process Kit was arrested and jailed. On March 26 his wife Sherry visited him in jail, many miles away from the ranch. When she returned, she discovered 14 of her horses gone. Ten older horses, some retired, and 4 freshly gelded colts. These horses were kept close to the ranch house in order to feed them and to exercise the colts. When Sherry Laney contacted the USFS she was told she could have her horses back for $650 a piece.
While it is not our intention to debate the legitimacy of the taking of horses off of private land by the USFS, what we would like to bring to your attention are the conditions the impounded horses are kept in.
A first hand account by Marie Lee, Sherry Laney's sister, reads like this:
..."With the understanding that the USFS had impounded some of my horses, I went to inspect them. When I arrived at the temporary corrals set-up by the USFS at the Me-own, Kathy Van Camp (USFS) armed with pepper spray and a frown, informed me that I could not view my horses until the brand inspectors arrived. The USFS personnel then proceeded to stand guard between me and the horses in the corrals. Catron County Sheriff Cliff Snyder and my sister Sherry Laney showed up and Kathy Van Camp (USFS) told Sherry that if she stepped between her and the corral, she would arrest her. Meanwhile, looking over Kathy's shoulder, I noticed my horse, Jasper, standing there with his head drooping. He looked very sick. Eventually, the inspectors arrived and entered the corral. By then Jasper was laying down in the mud. He wouldn't even get up when they inspected him. Finally, I was allowed to enter the corral. The mud and manure were ankle deep. The watering system for these 14 horses is a small trough (around 100 gal.) and at the time was about 3/4 empty. The USFS personnel had thrown hay in this muck for our 14 head of horses, consisting of 10 older horses and 4 freshly gelded colts. One of these colts was swollen in the belly. Jasper had finally stood back up. As I was taking pictures of him, I noticed his sheath was swollen and had a large scab on it. Russell Ward, USFS Ranger, informed me that the vet had been called out. When asked, Russell did not know what the vet had diagnosed on Jasper. Another horse had colic and Russell said was given Banamine. I noticed this particular horse was still having problems urinating. I was allowed to haul 4 horses off. When I unloaded my horses, they rushed to water and proceeded to drink as if they had not had any water in a while. I fully believe Jasper would have died under the care of the USFS rangers if he was left in there much longer..."
The Me-own in the Gila National Forest is a very remote area with no water and the current weather conditions (sleet and rain, night time temperatures around freezing) make it very difficult to haul feed and water over many miles of rough dirt roads.
As reported by the USFS, Laney's cattle (which the USFS does not own) was sold last week. The USFS has declined to name the contract cowboys rounding up cattle and horses, and the sales barn which accepted the cattle. They have also refused to answer FOIA requests. Word has it that the cattle was sold in Guyman, OK. Witnesses told of mother cows with tight bags, i.e. udders not sucked, standing bawling in the temporary corrals in the Gila National Forest. Evidently, the USFS in its infinite wisdom has agreed to pay the contractors only for mature animals rounded up, therefore calves unable to travel far were left behind in the rugged terrain. The USFS plans on selling the remaining cattle as well as the horses in question.
The reason why many of the impounded 14 horses are older (late teens and early twenties) is because Kit and Sherry Laney believe that horses who worked hard on their ranch deserve retirement.
Please help us do two things:
1. Demand better conditions for the horses held in the temporary corrals at Me-own in the Gila National Forest, and
2. Inform the people at your local livestock sales barns about this situation.
Please call or fax your message (you may use any portion of this text) to the following:
US Senator Pete Domenici
Tel. 202 224 6621 (D.C.)
Fax 202 228 3261 (D.C.)
Tel. 505 526 5475 (Las Cruces, NM)
Fax 505 523 6589 (Las Cruces, NM)
US Senator Jeff Bingaman
Tel. 202 224 5521 (D.C.)
Fax 202 224 2852 (D.C.)
Tel. 505 523 6561 (Las Cruces, NM)
Toll free in NM only 1 800 443 8658
Fax 505 523 6584 (Las Cruces, NM)
US Congressman Steve Pearce
Tel. 202 225 2365 (D.C.)
Fax 202 225 9599 (D.C.)
Tel. 505 522 2219 (Las Cruces, NM)
Fax 505 522 3099 (Las Cruces, NM)
USFS Silver City, NM Tel. 505 388 8201
Marcia Andre, Supervisor Fax 505 388 3204
Anyone wishing more information about this case can find it by typing "Kit Laney" into the search field of any search engine.
Please forward this information to all your friends. Thank you for your help.
Monika Helbling, rabbitbrushranch@yahoo.com
Thursday, April 08, 2004
NEWS ROUNDUP
Editorial: Peaceful protest under attack In 2002, members of the activist environmental group Greenpeace tried peacefully to board a freighter headed for Miami in order to unfurl a banner calling for an end to illegal logging. Greenpeace said the freighter was hauling illegally harvested mahogany, an endangered species. The activists were arrested and fined. Fifteen months later, the U.S. government went after Greenpeace with zeal that should be reserved for threats to national security. But this case isn't about security; it's about political retribution. Federal prosecutors charged Greenpeace with a misdemeanor under an obscure 19th century law that forbids pimps from intercepting ships bound for port. The law against "sailormongering" has been used only twice, the last time more than 100 years ago, and in one case the judge said the statute was vague.... Hunters, Conservationists Get Tour of Bush Ranch President Bush on Thursday opened his expansive central Texas ranch to sporting aficionados and conservation groups, including the National Rifle Association, Ducks Unlimited and Pheasants Forever. Bush showed off the scenic canyons, streams and trails of his 1,600-acre Prairie Chapel ranch property to 23 representatives of the organizations, a spokeswoman said.... Bush Administration Illegally Delays Protection of Pacific Fisher The Bush administration announced today that the Pacific fisher, a rare relative of the otter and mink and denizen of old-growth forests, warrants protection as a threatened or endangered species under the Endangered Species Act, but is precluded by other higher priority listing actions. The finding was issued in response to a petition filed by Earthjustice on behalf of the Center for Biological Diversity and Sierra Nevada Forest Protection Campaign. The ESA allows the administration to delay listing a species by declaring it "warranted but precluded" if it can demonstrate other species are more in need of protection and hence a higher priority for listing, and that they are making expeditious progress towards listing these other species. Neither applies in the case of the fisher.... Corps acts to beef up wetlands protection Stricter conservation rules will apply to ditches, irrigation canals and nearby wetlands in the Northwest as a result of a new interpretation of a 2001 federal court decision. The corps will begin treating ditches, irrigation canals and nearby wetlands with a surface water connection to natural streams as "waters of the United States," qualifying them for protection under the Clean Water Act. Wetlands protected under the act may not be filled without a permit from the corps, which typically requires construction of artificial wetlands elsewhere. Corps attorney Ron Marsh said the new direction brings the corps into compliance with a 2001 ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that said irrigation ditches and canals qualify as tributaries to navigable rivers, also known as "waters of the United States." Corps regulations already protect wetlands adjacent to tributary streams.... Bush to decide endangered salmon status Geneticists can´t tell the difference between the wild and hatchery salmon swimming up the Snake River toward Idaho in their annual migration. Yet biologists agree that differences between salmon reared in hatcheries and those that emerge from the gravel of wild rivers are significant. Uniquely adapted to the streams where they live, wild salmon pass their robust survival traits to their progeny. Hatchery salmon are far less productive, biologists say, reduce the fitness of wild stocks through interbreeding, support larger predator populations, and allow increased harvests that inevitably include wild fish.... Freudenthal objects to Preble's mouse panel Gov. Dave Freudenthal says some members of a scientific panel that will review Wyoming's petition to remove the Preble's meadow jumping mouse from the threatened species list supported the decision to list the species in the first place. The Fish and Wildlife Service asked the Colorado Division of Wildlife to select the peer review panel. One of the members chosen has said that he believes the mouse should remain listed, according to Freudenthal. Another member co-authored a study that was called into question by a Denver Museum of Nature and Science study that was requested by Wyoming and concluded that the mouse is not a genetically distinct subspecies. A third panelist wrote an unpublished report saying the research relied upon when the mouse was listed was correct.... Report: Most grizzly deaths preventable Bird feeders and trash bins are proving more deadly to grizzly bears in the greater Yellowstone area than conflicts with cattle ranchers, according to a new report. In the past 30 years, at least 79 grizzlies have been killed for rummaging in garbage, homes and camp sites compared to just 16 that were shot over livestock grazing problems, said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service grizzly bear recovery coordinator Chris Servheen, who helped prepare the interagency report.... NM Game Commission endorses wolf program The state Game Commission has unanimously endorsed the Mexican gray wolf reintroduction program. While considering an agreement formally boosting New Mexicos involvement in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife program Wednesday, the commission went a step further and expressed its full support for the program. The commission is pro-wolf, Commissioner Jennifer Montoya of Las Cruces said during the commissions meeting here. Commission Chairman Guy Riordan said Gov. Bill Richardson supports the program. The 6-0 vote is a 180-degree switch from the mid-1990s, when a prior Game Commission and then-Republican Gov. Gary Johnson opposed the reintroduction program.... BLM requests for stockwater permits expire In what was the first test of Nevada's new law concerning stockwater rights, a number of applications for permits submitted by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management have been denied by the state engineer. Sen. Dean Rhoads, R-Tuscarora, said he received a report during the March meeting of the Public Lands Committee, which he chairs, that State Engineer Hugh Ricci turned down 19 BLM applications for stockwater rights in White Pine County. Rhoads said the BLM did not file any appeals, the deadline for which expired last week.... Appeals court refuses to open 'roadless' wilderness area A federal appeals court has refused to allow off-road vehicle groups to sue the Bureau of Land Management. The Tenth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver upheld a lower court's dismissal of a lawsuit filed by the Southwest Four Wheel Drive Association and the Las Cruces Four Wheel Drive Club. The suit filed in 2000 challenged the closure of most of the trails in the Robledo Mountains. The recreation groups argued the trails were public roads, protected under an 1866 law that allows states to claim rights to roads built over federal land. The law was repealed in 1976, but Congress said states and counties could continue using roads built before then.... Ag department blocks mad-cow testing The Agriculture Department has rebuffed a meatpacker's plan to test every animal at its Kansas slaughterhouse for mad cow disease. The refusal quiets a firestorm in the cattle industry sparked by Creekstone Farms Premium Beef, a small Kentucky-based meatpacking company that was seeking to privately test each animal at its Arkansas City, Kan., plant.... Largest U.S. cattle group says border must open Representatives of the largest American beef industry group said last week that American ranchers trying to pressure their government to keep the U.S. border closed to Canadian cattle have it wrong. "There are producers out there wishing for the Canadian border to be closed for the next millennium. If you look at that in a sensible, economic, scientific and neighbourly way, how could we stand for that kind of activity?" said Chandler Keys, policy analyst with the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. As well, he told reporters April 2 that if the United States wants to convince international buyers to resume beef trade with the U.S., then the U.S. must resume trade with Canada.... 58 countries still reject U.S. beef It has been nearly four months since one cow among 96 million head of cattle in the United States tested positive for mad cow disease, yet 58 countries still have some form of ban on U.S. beef. The economic toll is considerable. Of the total U.S. beef production in 2003 -- an estimated 26.30 billion pounds valued at $27 billion (2002 figure, the latest available) -- 2.58 billion pounds worth an estimated $3.266 billion was exported, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture....
Editorial: Peaceful protest under attack In 2002, members of the activist environmental group Greenpeace tried peacefully to board a freighter headed for Miami in order to unfurl a banner calling for an end to illegal logging. Greenpeace said the freighter was hauling illegally harvested mahogany, an endangered species. The activists were arrested and fined. Fifteen months later, the U.S. government went after Greenpeace with zeal that should be reserved for threats to national security. But this case isn't about security; it's about political retribution. Federal prosecutors charged Greenpeace with a misdemeanor under an obscure 19th century law that forbids pimps from intercepting ships bound for port. The law against "sailormongering" has been used only twice, the last time more than 100 years ago, and in one case the judge said the statute was vague.... Hunters, Conservationists Get Tour of Bush Ranch President Bush on Thursday opened his expansive central Texas ranch to sporting aficionados and conservation groups, including the National Rifle Association, Ducks Unlimited and Pheasants Forever. Bush showed off the scenic canyons, streams and trails of his 1,600-acre Prairie Chapel ranch property to 23 representatives of the organizations, a spokeswoman said.... Bush Administration Illegally Delays Protection of Pacific Fisher The Bush administration announced today that the Pacific fisher, a rare relative of the otter and mink and denizen of old-growth forests, warrants protection as a threatened or endangered species under the Endangered Species Act, but is precluded by other higher priority listing actions. The finding was issued in response to a petition filed by Earthjustice on behalf of the Center for Biological Diversity and Sierra Nevada Forest Protection Campaign. The ESA allows the administration to delay listing a species by declaring it "warranted but precluded" if it can demonstrate other species are more in need of protection and hence a higher priority for listing, and that they are making expeditious progress towards listing these other species. Neither applies in the case of the fisher.... Corps acts to beef up wetlands protection Stricter conservation rules will apply to ditches, irrigation canals and nearby wetlands in the Northwest as a result of a new interpretation of a 2001 federal court decision. The corps will begin treating ditches, irrigation canals and nearby wetlands with a surface water connection to natural streams as "waters of the United States," qualifying them for protection under the Clean Water Act. Wetlands protected under the act may not be filled without a permit from the corps, which typically requires construction of artificial wetlands elsewhere. Corps attorney Ron Marsh said the new direction brings the corps into compliance with a 2001 ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that said irrigation ditches and canals qualify as tributaries to navigable rivers, also known as "waters of the United States." Corps regulations already protect wetlands adjacent to tributary streams.... Bush to decide endangered salmon status Geneticists can´t tell the difference between the wild and hatchery salmon swimming up the Snake River toward Idaho in their annual migration. Yet biologists agree that differences between salmon reared in hatcheries and those that emerge from the gravel of wild rivers are significant. Uniquely adapted to the streams where they live, wild salmon pass their robust survival traits to their progeny. Hatchery salmon are far less productive, biologists say, reduce the fitness of wild stocks through interbreeding, support larger predator populations, and allow increased harvests that inevitably include wild fish.... Freudenthal objects to Preble's mouse panel Gov. Dave Freudenthal says some members of a scientific panel that will review Wyoming's petition to remove the Preble's meadow jumping mouse from the threatened species list supported the decision to list the species in the first place. The Fish and Wildlife Service asked the Colorado Division of Wildlife to select the peer review panel. One of the members chosen has said that he believes the mouse should remain listed, according to Freudenthal. Another member co-authored a study that was called into question by a Denver Museum of Nature and Science study that was requested by Wyoming and concluded that the mouse is not a genetically distinct subspecies. A third panelist wrote an unpublished report saying the research relied upon when the mouse was listed was correct.... Report: Most grizzly deaths preventable Bird feeders and trash bins are proving more deadly to grizzly bears in the greater Yellowstone area than conflicts with cattle ranchers, according to a new report. In the past 30 years, at least 79 grizzlies have been killed for rummaging in garbage, homes and camp sites compared to just 16 that were shot over livestock grazing problems, said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service grizzly bear recovery coordinator Chris Servheen, who helped prepare the interagency report.... NM Game Commission endorses wolf program The state Game Commission has unanimously endorsed the Mexican gray wolf reintroduction program. While considering an agreement formally boosting New Mexicos involvement in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife program Wednesday, the commission went a step further and expressed its full support for the program. The commission is pro-wolf, Commissioner Jennifer Montoya of Las Cruces said during the commissions meeting here. Commission Chairman Guy Riordan said Gov. Bill Richardson supports the program. The 6-0 vote is a 180-degree switch from the mid-1990s, when a prior Game Commission and then-Republican Gov. Gary Johnson opposed the reintroduction program.... BLM requests for stockwater permits expire In what was the first test of Nevada's new law concerning stockwater rights, a number of applications for permits submitted by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management have been denied by the state engineer. Sen. Dean Rhoads, R-Tuscarora, said he received a report during the March meeting of the Public Lands Committee, which he chairs, that State Engineer Hugh Ricci turned down 19 BLM applications for stockwater rights in White Pine County. Rhoads said the BLM did not file any appeals, the deadline for which expired last week.... Appeals court refuses to open 'roadless' wilderness area A federal appeals court has refused to allow off-road vehicle groups to sue the Bureau of Land Management. The Tenth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver upheld a lower court's dismissal of a lawsuit filed by the Southwest Four Wheel Drive Association and the Las Cruces Four Wheel Drive Club. The suit filed in 2000 challenged the closure of most of the trails in the Robledo Mountains. The recreation groups argued the trails were public roads, protected under an 1866 law that allows states to claim rights to roads built over federal land. The law was repealed in 1976, but Congress said states and counties could continue using roads built before then.... Ag department blocks mad-cow testing The Agriculture Department has rebuffed a meatpacker's plan to test every animal at its Kansas slaughterhouse for mad cow disease. The refusal quiets a firestorm in the cattle industry sparked by Creekstone Farms Premium Beef, a small Kentucky-based meatpacking company that was seeking to privately test each animal at its Arkansas City, Kan., plant.... Largest U.S. cattle group says border must open Representatives of the largest American beef industry group said last week that American ranchers trying to pressure their government to keep the U.S. border closed to Canadian cattle have it wrong. "There are producers out there wishing for the Canadian border to be closed for the next millennium. If you look at that in a sensible, economic, scientific and neighbourly way, how could we stand for that kind of activity?" said Chandler Keys, policy analyst with the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. As well, he told reporters April 2 that if the United States wants to convince international buyers to resume beef trade with the U.S., then the U.S. must resume trade with Canada.... 58 countries still reject U.S. beef It has been nearly four months since one cow among 96 million head of cattle in the United States tested positive for mad cow disease, yet 58 countries still have some form of ban on U.S. beef. The economic toll is considerable. Of the total U.S. beef production in 2003 -- an estimated 26.30 billion pounds valued at $27 billion (2002 figure, the latest available) -- 2.58 billion pounds worth an estimated $3.266 billion was exported, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture....
DIAMOND BAR CATTLE COMPANY
Rancher no longer behind bars
The Catron County rancher jailed since March 14 for assaulting federal officers was released Thursday from custody.
Kit Laney, 43, walked out of the federal building in Las Cruces shortly after 10 a.m. with his court-appointed custodian Bob Jones Sr.
“It feels real good to be out (of jail),” Laney said. “This is unquestionably the longest I’ve ever been indoors.”
Laney had been held without bond based on a federal magistrate’s concern he might return to his 121-year-old Diamond Bar ranch, where U.S. Forest Service officials alleged he assaulted them during the roundup and impoundment of Laney’s herd. Forest Service officers said the cattle were grazing illegally.
The conditions of Laney’s release confine him to a 10-mile radius of Jones’ Otero County ranch. He will wear an electronic monitoring device and must be in regular contact with his court-appointed public defender, Jane Greek.
“We weren’t even sure we’d get him out this morning,” said Jones’ son, Bob Jones Jr. “There were some last-minute things — paperwork — that needed to be looked at, but there is nothing that deprives him of his rights.”
Laney is to remain on the Jones ranch until his scheduled May 3 federal trial in Albuquerque.
“If Kit leaves we’re supposed to call the U.S. Marshal,” Jones Jr. said. “We didn’t put up any money, we just gave our word.”
Jones Jr. said he was unaware of any liability his family might face if Laney leaves.
The Jones family has operated their Otero County ranch for five generations.
“We’ll have some fine, experienced help on our place for a while,” Jones joked of Laney’s stay. “I know he won’t mind throwing some hay.”
Laney faces five counts of assault on a peace officer and resisting or obstructing officers executing a federal order.
Forest Service personnel and hired help were following a federal order to seize Laney’s cattle and sell them. He had been found in contempt of court for allowing his cattle to graze on the federal allotment without a permit.
The cattle have been sold at auction in Oklahoma.
Laney refused a permit after the Forest Service said he had to reduce the size of his herd. Laney said he couldn’t make a living with fewer cattle. He went to the grazing site March 14 after hearing his cattle were being mistreated by the Forest Service.
Officers said Laney used his horse to charge them, dismounted and began trying to tear down holding pens.
Federal Magistrate Karen B. Molzen initially refused to release Laney to Jones’ custody fearing he would return to his Diamond Bar Ranch in the Gila National Forest.
Greek appealed Molzen’s ruling to Senior U.S. District Judge John E. Conway, who ruled Laney could be released.
Laney has his share of supporters who fear the Forest Service is hurting ranchers.
The Catron County Commission has backed Laney, citing the loss of more than 25,000 head of cattle in the county in the past 10 years, costing the county more than $1 million in lost revenues. The commission said the Forest Service reneged on written promises and agreements, which induced the Laneys to put up their life savings to buy the Diamond Bar.
The case has also drawn the attention of U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., who asked for a government investigation of the actions of Forest Service personnel.
“We’re glad to help giving Kit a place to stay until his trial,” Jones Jr. said. “Anytime you buck the federal government it goes like this. They want Kit in jail.”
There is no set agenda for Laney when he gets to the Jones ranch.
“We were thinking about stopping at a truck stop and getting Kit a steak,” Jones said. “But I don’t know. He may just want to get the heck out of Dodge.”
T.S. Hopkins can be reached at thopkins@lcsun-news.com.
Rancher no longer behind bars
The Catron County rancher jailed since March 14 for assaulting federal officers was released Thursday from custody.
Kit Laney, 43, walked out of the federal building in Las Cruces shortly after 10 a.m. with his court-appointed custodian Bob Jones Sr.
“It feels real good to be out (of jail),” Laney said. “This is unquestionably the longest I’ve ever been indoors.”
Laney had been held without bond based on a federal magistrate’s concern he might return to his 121-year-old Diamond Bar ranch, where U.S. Forest Service officials alleged he assaulted them during the roundup and impoundment of Laney’s herd. Forest Service officers said the cattle were grazing illegally.
The conditions of Laney’s release confine him to a 10-mile radius of Jones’ Otero County ranch. He will wear an electronic monitoring device and must be in regular contact with his court-appointed public defender, Jane Greek.
“We weren’t even sure we’d get him out this morning,” said Jones’ son, Bob Jones Jr. “There were some last-minute things — paperwork — that needed to be looked at, but there is nothing that deprives him of his rights.”
Laney is to remain on the Jones ranch until his scheduled May 3 federal trial in Albuquerque.
“If Kit leaves we’re supposed to call the U.S. Marshal,” Jones Jr. said. “We didn’t put up any money, we just gave our word.”
Jones Jr. said he was unaware of any liability his family might face if Laney leaves.
The Jones family has operated their Otero County ranch for five generations.
“We’ll have some fine, experienced help on our place for a while,” Jones joked of Laney’s stay. “I know he won’t mind throwing some hay.”
Laney faces five counts of assault on a peace officer and resisting or obstructing officers executing a federal order.
Forest Service personnel and hired help were following a federal order to seize Laney’s cattle and sell them. He had been found in contempt of court for allowing his cattle to graze on the federal allotment without a permit.
The cattle have been sold at auction in Oklahoma.
Laney refused a permit after the Forest Service said he had to reduce the size of his herd. Laney said he couldn’t make a living with fewer cattle. He went to the grazing site March 14 after hearing his cattle were being mistreated by the Forest Service.
Officers said Laney used his horse to charge them, dismounted and began trying to tear down holding pens.
Federal Magistrate Karen B. Molzen initially refused to release Laney to Jones’ custody fearing he would return to his Diamond Bar Ranch in the Gila National Forest.
Greek appealed Molzen’s ruling to Senior U.S. District Judge John E. Conway, who ruled Laney could be released.
Laney has his share of supporters who fear the Forest Service is hurting ranchers.
The Catron County Commission has backed Laney, citing the loss of more than 25,000 head of cattle in the county in the past 10 years, costing the county more than $1 million in lost revenues. The commission said the Forest Service reneged on written promises and agreements, which induced the Laneys to put up their life savings to buy the Diamond Bar.
The case has also drawn the attention of U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., who asked for a government investigation of the actions of Forest Service personnel.
“We’re glad to help giving Kit a place to stay until his trial,” Jones Jr. said. “Anytime you buck the federal government it goes like this. They want Kit in jail.”
There is no set agenda for Laney when he gets to the Jones ranch.
“We were thinking about stopping at a truck stop and getting Kit a steak,” Jones said. “But I don’t know. He may just want to get the heck out of Dodge.”
T.S. Hopkins can be reached at thopkins@lcsun-news.com.
Gila Forest rancher released from custody
A rancher whose cattle in the Gila National Forest have been impounded by the federal government has been released from custody.
Kit Laney was arrested March 14th after a confrontation with federal officers and was taken to the Dona Ana County Detention Center.
He was released Thursday to Otero Mesa rancher Bob Jones.
Laney has been ordered to remain within a ten-mile radius of the Jones ranch in Otero County.
Laney also will be electronically monitored, and he must speak regularly with his attorney.
Laney has been indicted on charges of obstruction of justice, assaulting and interfering with federal officers and employees and interfering with a court order.
Laney and his former wife have contended in lawsuits that they have grazing rights in the Gila, but courts have ruled against them.....
A rancher whose cattle in the Gila National Forest have been impounded by the federal government has been released from custody.
Kit Laney was arrested March 14th after a confrontation with federal officers and was taken to the Dona Ana County Detention Center.
He was released Thursday to Otero Mesa rancher Bob Jones.
Laney has been ordered to remain within a ten-mile radius of the Jones ranch in Otero County.
Laney also will be electronically monitored, and he must speak regularly with his attorney.
Laney has been indicted on charges of obstruction of justice, assaulting and interfering with federal officers and employees and interfering with a court order.
Laney and his former wife have contended in lawsuits that they have grazing rights in the Gila, but courts have ruled against them.....
SENATOR'S LETTER/CANADIAN BAN
April 7, 2004
The Honorable Ann Veneman
Secretary
United States Department of Agriculture
14th Street & Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20250
Dear Madam Secretary:
We write on an issue of great importance to both cattle producers and U.S. consumers alike. Today, we comment upon and request that you withdraw the proposed United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) rule that would lift the ban on imports of live cattle from Canada as well as extend and expand existing imports of beef products. We believe it is premature to lift the ban on imports of live cattle from a country with two documented cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or Mad Cow Disease, diagnosed within a seven-month period and urge you not to do so.
We believe that the May 29, 2003 action to ban the importation of live Canadian ruminants and ruminant products was necessary to prevent the introduction of BSE into the United States, and we are hopeful that you will continue to keep this ban in place. However, we are deeply concerned that subsequent actions by USDA/APHIS are placing U.S. consumers and cattle producers at risk.
It is apparent from developments over the past month that USDA policy regarding control of BSE is in a state of flux. In just the past several weeks, USDA has dramatically increased the level of BSE testing in U.S. cattle. It is our understanding that the number of cattle targeted for testing has gone from about 20,000 head of cattle to 40,000, then to more than 200,000, and to possibly more than 400,000 head. While USDA appears determined to significantly increase its BSE testing, we are concerned that you are not requiring Canada to meet the same high standards and have, in fact, placed a much greater burden on U.S. cattle producers than on those who are the source of the contamination. We are further concerned that Canadian BSE control measures are far less rigorous than those required by USDA, particularly given that BSE was discovered in Canadian cattle herds. We understand that Canada intends to test only 8,000 cattle this year, less than 5 percent of the number we will test.
While no native case of BSE has been discovered in the United States, USDA actions have increased the cost burden on our producers for BSE prevention. Such actions have not only made the U.S. less competitive in the global market from a cost standpoint, but have unduly increased the concerns of our trading partners over the safety of U.S. beef, even though there is no scientific evidence that BSE exists in our native cattle herds.
The proposed USDA/APHIS rules creating a "BSE minimal-risk region" do not conform with international standards for "minimal BSE risk" set by the world organization for animal health, the Office International des Epizooties (OIE). Under OIE criteria, Canada is a "moderate BSE risk" country. We are deeply concerned that the proposed regulations, which would permanently weaken the health and safety standard for importation of live cattle and beef into the U.S., could result in imports from other countries with cattle herds that conclusive scientific evidence shows are infected with BSE. We do not believe USDA should lower U.S. standards that are currently in place for detection and prevention of animal diseases. We urge you not to abandon the USDA/APHIS mission of protecting and safeguarding America’s borders and ensuring that the health of America’s agriculture is not threatened.
The proposed rule weakens APHIS regulations that currently restrict imports of cattle and beef from countries, such as Canada, that have BSE. We urge you to withdraw it.
Respectfully,
Michael B. Enzi
United States Senator
Pete Domenici
United States Senator
Craig Thomas
United States Senator
April 7, 2004
The Honorable Ann Veneman
Secretary
United States Department of Agriculture
14th Street & Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20250
Dear Madam Secretary:
We write on an issue of great importance to both cattle producers and U.S. consumers alike. Today, we comment upon and request that you withdraw the proposed United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) rule that would lift the ban on imports of live cattle from Canada as well as extend and expand existing imports of beef products. We believe it is premature to lift the ban on imports of live cattle from a country with two documented cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or Mad Cow Disease, diagnosed within a seven-month period and urge you not to do so.
We believe that the May 29, 2003 action to ban the importation of live Canadian ruminants and ruminant products was necessary to prevent the introduction of BSE into the United States, and we are hopeful that you will continue to keep this ban in place. However, we are deeply concerned that subsequent actions by USDA/APHIS are placing U.S. consumers and cattle producers at risk.
It is apparent from developments over the past month that USDA policy regarding control of BSE is in a state of flux. In just the past several weeks, USDA has dramatically increased the level of BSE testing in U.S. cattle. It is our understanding that the number of cattle targeted for testing has gone from about 20,000 head of cattle to 40,000, then to more than 200,000, and to possibly more than 400,000 head. While USDA appears determined to significantly increase its BSE testing, we are concerned that you are not requiring Canada to meet the same high standards and have, in fact, placed a much greater burden on U.S. cattle producers than on those who are the source of the contamination. We are further concerned that Canadian BSE control measures are far less rigorous than those required by USDA, particularly given that BSE was discovered in Canadian cattle herds. We understand that Canada intends to test only 8,000 cattle this year, less than 5 percent of the number we will test.
While no native case of BSE has been discovered in the United States, USDA actions have increased the cost burden on our producers for BSE prevention. Such actions have not only made the U.S. less competitive in the global market from a cost standpoint, but have unduly increased the concerns of our trading partners over the safety of U.S. beef, even though there is no scientific evidence that BSE exists in our native cattle herds.
The proposed USDA/APHIS rules creating a "BSE minimal-risk region" do not conform with international standards for "minimal BSE risk" set by the world organization for animal health, the Office International des Epizooties (OIE). Under OIE criteria, Canada is a "moderate BSE risk" country. We are deeply concerned that the proposed regulations, which would permanently weaken the health and safety standard for importation of live cattle and beef into the U.S., could result in imports from other countries with cattle herds that conclusive scientific evidence shows are infected with BSE. We do not believe USDA should lower U.S. standards that are currently in place for detection and prevention of animal diseases. We urge you not to abandon the USDA/APHIS mission of protecting and safeguarding America’s borders and ensuring that the health of America’s agriculture is not threatened.
The proposed rule weakens APHIS regulations that currently restrict imports of cattle and beef from countries, such as Canada, that have BSE. We urge you to withdraw it.
Respectfully,
Michael B. Enzi
United States Senator
Pete Domenici
United States Senator
Craig Thomas
United States Senator
Judge Grants Greens Ranch Loan Info, But They Must Pay For It
SANTA FE — A federal judge says the U.S. Bureau of Land Management must release the names of banks and the consolidated amount of loans those banks have made to ranchers who are using BLM grazing permits as collateral.
The late-March ruling is a response to a lawsuit filed by the Forest Guardians, a radical environmental activist group opposed to grazing on public lands. The New Mexico Public Lands Council and New Mexico Cattle Growers' Association are interveners in the case filed last summer.
Forest Guardians earlier had tried to get the same information from the U.S. Forest Service.
Judge James O. Browning ruled this month that the information is part of the public record under the Freedom of Information Act and ordered the BLM to release redacted copies of the agency's lienholder agreement records to the Forest Guardians. The records disclose the identity of financial institutions involved in lending to BLM grazing
permittees using grazing privileges as collateral and the total amount of each individual loan.
Names, addresses and specific details of each loan are not to be released.
The judge says the BLM is to organize the agreements by field office and disclose the records to the Forest Guardians.
The BLM can compile aggregate loan totals for each field office as an alternative to releasing individual lienholder agreements.
The judge, however, denied a fee waiver allowed under the Freedom of Information Act, saying the action would not contribute to public understanding of government operations. The BLM may, the judge says, assess fees for searches and copying of the information. Such costs could effectively nullify the ruling, officials with the
Forest Guardians claim, because of the prohibitive expense involved. They say they will appeal the fee-waiver denial. (These activists can afford to pursue scores of nuisance lawsuits but can’t afford copying expenses? Or would they just prefer that
taxpayers foot the tab for their fishing expeditions? Our sympathy is reserved for the honest people at whom these extremists thumb their noses and whose livelihoods they are bent on destroying. — Ed.)
To find ranchers with grazing-permit loans, according to court records, the Forest Guardians used the federal Freedom of Information Act to get the names of participants in what's known as the escrow waiver loan program.
"We want to put the squeeze on ranchers to get off the land," says John Horning, the coordinator of the Forest Guardians' antigrazing campaign. "If some ranchers go out of business along the way, so be it."
Under the program, the U.S. government provides banks with verification of ranchers' grazing permits, so banks can accept the numbers of livestock allowed to graze under the permits as collateral for business loans. In the past 20 years, banks have issued more than $450 million in grazing-permit loans to about 300 ranching operations, according to the Forest Guardians.
Critics of the environmental extremist group say the group's tactics can be effective in putting ranchers out of business. "It doesn't take a mathematician to figure out how many head of cattle it takes for the rancher to make his bank note," says G.B. Oliver III, an executive at the Western Bank of Alamogordo, in Alamogordo, N.M.
The Forest Guardians submitted FOIA requests to each of the 10 BLM state offices in the western United States on July 31, 2000. According to court records, the Forest Guardians submitted a substantially identical FOIA request to the Arizona, California,
Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming BLM state offices.
In the requests, the activists sought copies of all documents, which are collateral assignments of all grazing permits for all grazing allotments in the state. This includes, but is not limited to, any and all notices of lienholders' interest, promissory notes, or any and all other documents that refer to the use of a federal grazing permit as a lien or collateral security for a loan.
According to court records, the Forest Guardians were interested in the names of alotments, permit holders, names of lending institutions and amount of money involved in each individual agreement.
The Taylor Grazing Act authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, through the BLM, to issue grazing permits. Permittees may use their permits, under the act, as collateral to secure loans. The act does not give the federal agency a role in the lending.
Judge Browning says the FOIA is intended to promote disclosure of information that sheds light on the activities of the government, not disclosure of information involving private citizens that happens to be stored in government files. In this case, the judge says, the lienholder agreements document legal financial relationships between
private individuals and private corporations. The extent of the government's involvement in these otherwise entirely private transactions is to receive and maintain voluntarily filed documents and notify lienholders when any action may affect the value of the collateral.
Browning's decision applies to all BLM lands in the Western United States.
The Forest Guardians claim the use of grazing permits as collateral encumbers public lands.
SANTA FE — A federal judge says the U.S. Bureau of Land Management must release the names of banks and the consolidated amount of loans those banks have made to ranchers who are using BLM grazing permits as collateral.
The late-March ruling is a response to a lawsuit filed by the Forest Guardians, a radical environmental activist group opposed to grazing on public lands. The New Mexico Public Lands Council and New Mexico Cattle Growers' Association are interveners in the case filed last summer.
Forest Guardians earlier had tried to get the same information from the U.S. Forest Service.
Judge James O. Browning ruled this month that the information is part of the public record under the Freedom of Information Act and ordered the BLM to release redacted copies of the agency's lienholder agreement records to the Forest Guardians. The records disclose the identity of financial institutions involved in lending to BLM grazing
permittees using grazing privileges as collateral and the total amount of each individual loan.
Names, addresses and specific details of each loan are not to be released.
The judge says the BLM is to organize the agreements by field office and disclose the records to the Forest Guardians.
The BLM can compile aggregate loan totals for each field office as an alternative to releasing individual lienholder agreements.
The judge, however, denied a fee waiver allowed under the Freedom of Information Act, saying the action would not contribute to public understanding of government operations. The BLM may, the judge says, assess fees for searches and copying of the information. Such costs could effectively nullify the ruling, officials with the
Forest Guardians claim, because of the prohibitive expense involved. They say they will appeal the fee-waiver denial. (These activists can afford to pursue scores of nuisance lawsuits but can’t afford copying expenses? Or would they just prefer that
taxpayers foot the tab for their fishing expeditions? Our sympathy is reserved for the honest people at whom these extremists thumb their noses and whose livelihoods they are bent on destroying. — Ed.)
To find ranchers with grazing-permit loans, according to court records, the Forest Guardians used the federal Freedom of Information Act to get the names of participants in what's known as the escrow waiver loan program.
"We want to put the squeeze on ranchers to get off the land," says John Horning, the coordinator of the Forest Guardians' antigrazing campaign. "If some ranchers go out of business along the way, so be it."
Under the program, the U.S. government provides banks with verification of ranchers' grazing permits, so banks can accept the numbers of livestock allowed to graze under the permits as collateral for business loans. In the past 20 years, banks have issued more than $450 million in grazing-permit loans to about 300 ranching operations, according to the Forest Guardians.
Critics of the environmental extremist group say the group's tactics can be effective in putting ranchers out of business. "It doesn't take a mathematician to figure out how many head of cattle it takes for the rancher to make his bank note," says G.B. Oliver III, an executive at the Western Bank of Alamogordo, in Alamogordo, N.M.
The Forest Guardians submitted FOIA requests to each of the 10 BLM state offices in the western United States on July 31, 2000. According to court records, the Forest Guardians submitted a substantially identical FOIA request to the Arizona, California,
Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming BLM state offices.
In the requests, the activists sought copies of all documents, which are collateral assignments of all grazing permits for all grazing allotments in the state. This includes, but is not limited to, any and all notices of lienholders' interest, promissory notes, or any and all other documents that refer to the use of a federal grazing permit as a lien or collateral security for a loan.
According to court records, the Forest Guardians were interested in the names of alotments, permit holders, names of lending institutions and amount of money involved in each individual agreement.
The Taylor Grazing Act authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, through the BLM, to issue grazing permits. Permittees may use their permits, under the act, as collateral to secure loans. The act does not give the federal agency a role in the lending.
Judge Browning says the FOIA is intended to promote disclosure of information that sheds light on the activities of the government, not disclosure of information involving private citizens that happens to be stored in government files. In this case, the judge says, the lienholder agreements document legal financial relationships between
private individuals and private corporations. The extent of the government's involvement in these otherwise entirely private transactions is to receive and maintain voluntarily filed documents and notify lienholders when any action may affect the value of the collateral.
Browning's decision applies to all BLM lands in the Western United States.
The Forest Guardians claim the use of grazing permits as collateral encumbers public lands.
NEWS ROUNDUP
Environmentalists appeal Arizona logging plan Environmentalists say taxpayers will be bilked and fire danger and soil loss will increase if the Forest Service goes through with a plan to salvage dead trees on land charred by the Rodeo-Chediski fire. The logging on 41,059 acres burned in the blaze would cut big, blackened trees while their cores are still valuable as timber.... Private Investment Protects Environment Where Government Fails The Institute for Humane Studies, an essential educational foundation in Arlington, Va., just launched a new Web site entitled A Better Earth. The site aims to educate college students, graduate students and others on alternative methods of environmental preservation — methods less hostile to free markets and free enterprise. The new Web site is important, because the environment seems to be the one area where even avowed free marketeers can't quite bring themselves to trust private enterprise over government intervention. Profit-seekers and corporations are too greedy and self-interested, the thinking goes, to give much thought to preserving wildlife, forests and wilderness. But is that really so? Are governments really better at preserving the environment than private enterprise? The biggest polluters on the planet are governments, not corporations. The U.S. government immunizes itself from most all of the environmental laws it demands of private corporations. And it is by far the bigger polluter.... A fish's role in the ecology debate Salmon have been the leading cultural icon in the Pacific Northwest since well before Meriwether Lewis and William Clark explored the territory 200 years ago. But now these oceangoing travelers are facing new challenges as steep as the Columbia River dams that precipitated their decline into near-extinction. A recent series of legal actions and political decisions aimed at protecting fish would limit use of pesticides, curtail river dredging, reduce water available for irrigation, and change the operation of power-generating dams. All this adds up to the likelihood of economic conflict across a region the size of Western Europe. Meanwhile, the National Academy of Sciences and another federally appointed panel of scientists have weighed in with controversial warnings. Federal judges have gotten into the act as well.... Mexican Spotted Owl designation could have big impact on state The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently released economic and environmental impact reports stating that a proposed critical habitat designation for the Mexican Spotted Owl would have a multi-million dollar impact on businesses that rely on national forests in Arizona. The final draft of the economic analysis for the owls is a 190-page document clearly detailing potential financial impacts to tribal activities, the timber industry, livestock grazing, fire management, small businesses, mining, oil and gas development and mining activities. Economic impact estimates measured in dollars are often put into two categories--high and low--and are frequently charted and well-documented in the document.... Arizona Hopes to Return Rare Fish to Wild State and federal officials are hoping a return to the wild will be possible by year's end for dozens of rare fish that were evacuated because of a wildfire. The roughly 1,000 Gila chub have been held at three different locations since they were removed from Sabino Creek in July to protect them from ash-laden runoff from the Aspen fire, which destroyed the vacation hamlet of Summerhaven on Mount Lemmon.... Column: Raising A Howl On the sixth anniversary of the first release of endangered Mexican gray wolves into the wild on March 29, 1998, the Center for Biological Diversity filed a formal petition for rule-making with Interior Secretary Gale Norton and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Steve Williams to save the Mexican wolf population from federal mismanagement. The 14-page petition was filed pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act, which gives the federal government 90 days for an initial response and one year to promulgate new regulations. Should these deadlines be missed, the center will sue to compel compliance. The petition requests reforms in the reintroduction program in accordance with recommendations of four independent scientists who examined the program at the behest of the Fish and Wildlife Service.... Key senator: 9th Circuit will be split Republican senators say they have gone from asking whether the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals should be split up to deciding how to split it up. "I think it is inevitable that (the court) will be split up," said. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala. On Wednesday, six judges from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which has jurisdiction over Montana, testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee panel that presides over the nation's court system. Sessions, other Republican senators, and several judges who testified said the court is geographically too large and too populous to be effectively administered. They noted that the about a fifth of the United States' population lives in the 9th Circuit, and the circuit includes nearly 40 percent of the nation's land mass.... Editorial: PETA Goes Too Far No stranger to controversy, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is at it again with an offensive new anti-meat billboard. The outdoor advertisement, which went up this week in Toronto and Edmonton, shows a young female model on one side, a close-up of a pig on the other, and the slogan "Neither of us is meat." It's a grotesquely insensitive reference to the case of accused serial killer and pig farmer Robert Pickton, who currently faces 15 charges of first-degree murder. Investigators have spent months sifting through his Port Coquitlam, B.C., property and have linked the DNA of 31 missing women to the site. Exploiting this tragedy to promote an anti-meat, pro-vegetarian message shows appalling disregard for the feelings of the victims' survivors.... Mexican Gray Wolves Debate Rages in N.M. Mexican gray wolves were called everything from treasures to killers during a hearing before the state Game Commission here. Six years after wolves were first brought back to the Southwest, it was clear Tuesday that opinions about them are still extreme. "I feel very fortunate — I have heard the howls of wolves," Grant County resident Sharon Morgan told the three state game commissioners heading the meeting at Western New Mexico University. But Gila Wilderness outfitter Jack Diamond disagreed. "Everyone thinks this wolf is such a great animal. He's a killer," Diamond said. "Does anybody care about our deer or elk? They're the ones that are going to suffer.".... New EPA smog standard to put 8 national parks in violation The Environmental Protection Agency plans to announce next week that the air quality in areas that include at least eight of the United States' most popular national parks is in violation of a new and more protective federal smog standard, National Park Service officials said Wednesday. Yosemite Park would join three national parks in California-- Sequoia, Kings Canyon and Joshua Tree -- listed as having unhealthy air. The air quality in those three parks already violates the EPA's old and less stringent smog standard, which was based on a one-hour measurement of air quality. That is being phased out in favor of an eight-hour measurement.... Park Service Faces Questions on Statue Even as it turned to a nonprofit group for a handout to reopen the Statue of Liberty, the National Park Service had access to millions of dollars for needed safety upgrades to the monument. The Park Service, the steward of Lady Liberty, has accumulated $15 million over the past five years from a franchise fee paid by tour operators and concession stands at Ellis Island and Liberty Island, according to Park Service officials. Under federal rules, the Park Service must spend 85 percent of the money at the site where it was earned.... Column: Commonsense Management of Resources Where do meat and vegetables come from? How about two-by-fours? Did you say farms and forests, or did you choose grocery and hardware stores? Modern conveniences tend to sever our cultural ties to the land that feeds and shelters us. They distance us from how natural resources become comfortable homes, dinner tables and more. That disconnect can do great harm. The decline of California's public forests and forestry industry is a prime example. California's foresters ultimately provide everything from paper towels to pool tables. They replant far more trees than they harvest, and a recent Cal Poly San Luis Obispo study found they meet the highest standards for protecting fish and wildlife as well as soil, air and water quality. Yet foresters have been vilified -- so effectively that in the past 10 years, more than half of California's mills have closed and 4,000 jobs have been lost.... New strain of sheep brain disease found A strain of scrapie - the fatal brain disease in sheep - not previously seen before in the UK has been discovered, it was announced yesterday. Scientists have identified the case after performing a series of diagnostic tests on tissue from a four-year-old sheep in an unnamed area of the UK. Some of the methods used showed the case had some characteristics similar to experimental BSE in sheep. But a microscopic analysis of brain material showed that the case did not resemble experimental BSE in sheep.... Baucus calls for probe before Canadian imports resume The United States should not reopen its border to live Canadian cattle imports until the investigative arm of Congress conducts its own investigation into Canada's handling of mad cow cases there, Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., said Tuesday. Baucus' call for an independent investigation by the General Accounting Office comes one day before the U.S. Department of Agriculture closes its comment period on a proposal to reopen the border to cattle older than 30 months of age.... USDA expects BSE rules to cost up to $149 million The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates that recent regulations designed to keep bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) infectivity out of the food supply will cost the beef industry from $110 million to $149 million a year. The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) today released a preliminary impact analysis on the regulations, which include a ban on the use of "downer" cattle for human food. The rules were announced in December, a week after the discovery of the nation's first BSE case in Washington state, and took effect in mid-January.... Equitrol Lawsuit A jury has returned a verdict of $1,007,500 to plaintiffs alleging in a lawsuit that Farnam's product Equitrol, a feed-through fly control product, was defectively designed and caused harm to their horses; Farnam has countered with a press release stating that it is appealing the decision and believes that the court decision is incorrect on legal and factual grounds. Equitrol's active ingredient tetrachlorvinphos (a cholinesterase inhibitor) is widely used for feed-through larvacides (manufactured by other companies) for cattle and in fly control products for several other species. Other companies manufacture and sell tetrachlorvinphos as a feed-through larvacide for horses.... Cutting star Rice takes another coveted crown Tag Rice further solidified his position as one of the brightest stars in the National Cutting Horse Association on Wednesday by riding Mr. Beamon to the championship of the Super Stakes Classic Open. The 28-year-old Buffalo trainer marked a solid 224.5 score on the gray gelding, working third in the last bunch of cattle at Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum. The title put an even $50,000 in the pockets of Rice and owner Charlie Seiz of Cedartown, Ga. Cats Red Feather, ridden by Phil Rapp of Weatherford, finished second with a 223.5 for a payoff of $41,145. John Wold of Argyle rode Cats Mereda to third place and $34,449....
Environmentalists appeal Arizona logging plan Environmentalists say taxpayers will be bilked and fire danger and soil loss will increase if the Forest Service goes through with a plan to salvage dead trees on land charred by the Rodeo-Chediski fire. The logging on 41,059 acres burned in the blaze would cut big, blackened trees while their cores are still valuable as timber.... Private Investment Protects Environment Where Government Fails The Institute for Humane Studies, an essential educational foundation in Arlington, Va., just launched a new Web site entitled A Better Earth. The site aims to educate college students, graduate students and others on alternative methods of environmental preservation — methods less hostile to free markets and free enterprise. The new Web site is important, because the environment seems to be the one area where even avowed free marketeers can't quite bring themselves to trust private enterprise over government intervention. Profit-seekers and corporations are too greedy and self-interested, the thinking goes, to give much thought to preserving wildlife, forests and wilderness. But is that really so? Are governments really better at preserving the environment than private enterprise? The biggest polluters on the planet are governments, not corporations. The U.S. government immunizes itself from most all of the environmental laws it demands of private corporations. And it is by far the bigger polluter.... A fish's role in the ecology debate Salmon have been the leading cultural icon in the Pacific Northwest since well before Meriwether Lewis and William Clark explored the territory 200 years ago. But now these oceangoing travelers are facing new challenges as steep as the Columbia River dams that precipitated their decline into near-extinction. A recent series of legal actions and political decisions aimed at protecting fish would limit use of pesticides, curtail river dredging, reduce water available for irrigation, and change the operation of power-generating dams. All this adds up to the likelihood of economic conflict across a region the size of Western Europe. Meanwhile, the National Academy of Sciences and another federally appointed panel of scientists have weighed in with controversial warnings. Federal judges have gotten into the act as well.... Mexican Spotted Owl designation could have big impact on state The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently released economic and environmental impact reports stating that a proposed critical habitat designation for the Mexican Spotted Owl would have a multi-million dollar impact on businesses that rely on national forests in Arizona. The final draft of the economic analysis for the owls is a 190-page document clearly detailing potential financial impacts to tribal activities, the timber industry, livestock grazing, fire management, small businesses, mining, oil and gas development and mining activities. Economic impact estimates measured in dollars are often put into two categories--high and low--and are frequently charted and well-documented in the document.... Arizona Hopes to Return Rare Fish to Wild State and federal officials are hoping a return to the wild will be possible by year's end for dozens of rare fish that were evacuated because of a wildfire. The roughly 1,000 Gila chub have been held at three different locations since they were removed from Sabino Creek in July to protect them from ash-laden runoff from the Aspen fire, which destroyed the vacation hamlet of Summerhaven on Mount Lemmon.... Column: Raising A Howl On the sixth anniversary of the first release of endangered Mexican gray wolves into the wild on March 29, 1998, the Center for Biological Diversity filed a formal petition for rule-making with Interior Secretary Gale Norton and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Steve Williams to save the Mexican wolf population from federal mismanagement. The 14-page petition was filed pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act, which gives the federal government 90 days for an initial response and one year to promulgate new regulations. Should these deadlines be missed, the center will sue to compel compliance. The petition requests reforms in the reintroduction program in accordance with recommendations of four independent scientists who examined the program at the behest of the Fish and Wildlife Service.... Key senator: 9th Circuit will be split Republican senators say they have gone from asking whether the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals should be split up to deciding how to split it up. "I think it is inevitable that (the court) will be split up," said. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala. On Wednesday, six judges from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which has jurisdiction over Montana, testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee panel that presides over the nation's court system. Sessions, other Republican senators, and several judges who testified said the court is geographically too large and too populous to be effectively administered. They noted that the about a fifth of the United States' population lives in the 9th Circuit, and the circuit includes nearly 40 percent of the nation's land mass.... Editorial: PETA Goes Too Far No stranger to controversy, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is at it again with an offensive new anti-meat billboard. The outdoor advertisement, which went up this week in Toronto and Edmonton, shows a young female model on one side, a close-up of a pig on the other, and the slogan "Neither of us is meat." It's a grotesquely insensitive reference to the case of accused serial killer and pig farmer Robert Pickton, who currently faces 15 charges of first-degree murder. Investigators have spent months sifting through his Port Coquitlam, B.C., property and have linked the DNA of 31 missing women to the site. Exploiting this tragedy to promote an anti-meat, pro-vegetarian message shows appalling disregard for the feelings of the victims' survivors.... Mexican Gray Wolves Debate Rages in N.M. Mexican gray wolves were called everything from treasures to killers during a hearing before the state Game Commission here. Six years after wolves were first brought back to the Southwest, it was clear Tuesday that opinions about them are still extreme. "I feel very fortunate — I have heard the howls of wolves," Grant County resident Sharon Morgan told the three state game commissioners heading the meeting at Western New Mexico University. But Gila Wilderness outfitter Jack Diamond disagreed. "Everyone thinks this wolf is such a great animal. He's a killer," Diamond said. "Does anybody care about our deer or elk? They're the ones that are going to suffer.".... New EPA smog standard to put 8 national parks in violation The Environmental Protection Agency plans to announce next week that the air quality in areas that include at least eight of the United States' most popular national parks is in violation of a new and more protective federal smog standard, National Park Service officials said Wednesday. Yosemite Park would join three national parks in California-- Sequoia, Kings Canyon and Joshua Tree -- listed as having unhealthy air. The air quality in those three parks already violates the EPA's old and less stringent smog standard, which was based on a one-hour measurement of air quality. That is being phased out in favor of an eight-hour measurement.... Park Service Faces Questions on Statue Even as it turned to a nonprofit group for a handout to reopen the Statue of Liberty, the National Park Service had access to millions of dollars for needed safety upgrades to the monument. The Park Service, the steward of Lady Liberty, has accumulated $15 million over the past five years from a franchise fee paid by tour operators and concession stands at Ellis Island and Liberty Island, according to Park Service officials. Under federal rules, the Park Service must spend 85 percent of the money at the site where it was earned.... Column: Commonsense Management of Resources Where do meat and vegetables come from? How about two-by-fours? Did you say farms and forests, or did you choose grocery and hardware stores? Modern conveniences tend to sever our cultural ties to the land that feeds and shelters us. They distance us from how natural resources become comfortable homes, dinner tables and more. That disconnect can do great harm. The decline of California's public forests and forestry industry is a prime example. California's foresters ultimately provide everything from paper towels to pool tables. They replant far more trees than they harvest, and a recent Cal Poly San Luis Obispo study found they meet the highest standards for protecting fish and wildlife as well as soil, air and water quality. Yet foresters have been vilified -- so effectively that in the past 10 years, more than half of California's mills have closed and 4,000 jobs have been lost.... New strain of sheep brain disease found A strain of scrapie - the fatal brain disease in sheep - not previously seen before in the UK has been discovered, it was announced yesterday. Scientists have identified the case after performing a series of diagnostic tests on tissue from a four-year-old sheep in an unnamed area of the UK. Some of the methods used showed the case had some characteristics similar to experimental BSE in sheep. But a microscopic analysis of brain material showed that the case did not resemble experimental BSE in sheep.... Baucus calls for probe before Canadian imports resume The United States should not reopen its border to live Canadian cattle imports until the investigative arm of Congress conducts its own investigation into Canada's handling of mad cow cases there, Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., said Tuesday. Baucus' call for an independent investigation by the General Accounting Office comes one day before the U.S. Department of Agriculture closes its comment period on a proposal to reopen the border to cattle older than 30 months of age.... USDA expects BSE rules to cost up to $149 million The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates that recent regulations designed to keep bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) infectivity out of the food supply will cost the beef industry from $110 million to $149 million a year. The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) today released a preliminary impact analysis on the regulations, which include a ban on the use of "downer" cattle for human food. The rules were announced in December, a week after the discovery of the nation's first BSE case in Washington state, and took effect in mid-January.... Equitrol Lawsuit A jury has returned a verdict of $1,007,500 to plaintiffs alleging in a lawsuit that Farnam's product Equitrol, a feed-through fly control product, was defectively designed and caused harm to their horses; Farnam has countered with a press release stating that it is appealing the decision and believes that the court decision is incorrect on legal and factual grounds. Equitrol's active ingredient tetrachlorvinphos (a cholinesterase inhibitor) is widely used for feed-through larvacides (manufactured by other companies) for cattle and in fly control products for several other species. Other companies manufacture and sell tetrachlorvinphos as a feed-through larvacide for horses.... Cutting star Rice takes another coveted crown Tag Rice further solidified his position as one of the brightest stars in the National Cutting Horse Association on Wednesday by riding Mr. Beamon to the championship of the Super Stakes Classic Open. The 28-year-old Buffalo trainer marked a solid 224.5 score on the gray gelding, working third in the last bunch of cattle at Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum. The title put an even $50,000 in the pockets of Rice and owner Charlie Seiz of Cedartown, Ga. Cats Red Feather, ridden by Phil Rapp of Weatherford, finished second with a 223.5 for a payoff of $41,145. John Wold of Argyle rode Cats Mereda to third place and $34,449....
Wednesday, April 07, 2004
Protected Areas Don't Protect Many Endangered Species, Study Finds
The good news is that more than a tenth of the Earth's land surface is now a designated safe haven for wildlife, exceeding international targets. But the bad news, according to a new study, is that many of the world's most threatened species don't actually live in those areas.
Now scientists behind the study are calling for an urgent review of global conservation strategies. They say national parks and wildlife reserves, no matter how large, won't prevent wide-scale extinctions in coming decades if they aren't created in the right places.
The study involved 21 scientists from nine countries—Australia, Brazil, Chile, China, Italy, Kenya, South Africa, the U.K., and the United States. They looked at how effectively species diversity is represented in protected areas.
Having assessed 11,633 species of amphibians, birds, mammals, and turtles, the scientists identified more than 300 critically endangered animals living wholly outside protected areas. Left unprotected, these species face an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.
In addition, 237 endangered and 267 vulnerable animals were also found to be completely unprotected in any part of their ranges. The findings appear in the current issue of the scientific journal Nature....
The good news is that more than a tenth of the Earth's land surface is now a designated safe haven for wildlife, exceeding international targets. But the bad news, according to a new study, is that many of the world's most threatened species don't actually live in those areas.
Now scientists behind the study are calling for an urgent review of global conservation strategies. They say national parks and wildlife reserves, no matter how large, won't prevent wide-scale extinctions in coming decades if they aren't created in the right places.
The study involved 21 scientists from nine countries—Australia, Brazil, Chile, China, Italy, Kenya, South Africa, the U.K., and the United States. They looked at how effectively species diversity is represented in protected areas.
Having assessed 11,633 species of amphibians, birds, mammals, and turtles, the scientists identified more than 300 critically endangered animals living wholly outside protected areas. Left unprotected, these species face an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.
In addition, 237 endangered and 267 vulnerable animals were also found to be completely unprotected in any part of their ranges. The findings appear in the current issue of the scientific journal Nature....
Tuesday, April 06, 2004
NEWS ROUNDUP
Column: USDA's Mark Rey drags feet on releasing info about forest policymaking Rey and his department have been dragging their feet in response to requests for public release of documents regarding the Bush administration's proposed overhaul of forest-management practices. Critics suspect the documents might confirm that logging-industry executives wielded undue influence over the process. The current tussle began in October 2002, when Defenders of Wildlife and the Endangered Species Coalition slapped the USDA with a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. They wanted documentation of the Bush administration's motivation for suspending Clinton-era rule updates under the National Forest Management Act, which governs America's nearly 200 million acres of national forest -- parcels of land that make up 8 percent of the country. NFMA was passed in 1976 and implemented under the Reagan administration to better manage national forests and protect wildlife.... Thomas introduces bill to stop 'venue shopping' Wyoming is being steamrolled on federal land issues by judges thousands of miles away who ignore expert findings and are unfamiliar with Western issues, Sen. Craig Thomas, R-Wyo., said Tuesday. To stem that trend, Thomas has drafted legislation meant to stop a practice known as "venue shopping," in which lawsuits are filed in jurisdictions viewed to be more friendly to a group's interests. "I don't think someone from Washington, D.C., would want a judge in Wyoming to tell them what to do in the nation's capitol," he said. "Why should a judge in Washington be able to tell us what to do in our backyard?" Under the bill, lawsuits against the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service would be heard in district courts affected by the litigation.... Editorial: Nibble on the Biscuit If nothing changes by summer's end, thousands of dead trees in the Biscuit fire zone will have lost much of their economic value and provide little but political fodder for the November presidential election. It would be a terrible waste if all these trees go from pulp to political fiction while environmentalists, loggers and the U.S. Forest Service slug it out in the courts. The Southern Oregon towns that surround the Biscuit are struggling with Oregon's highest jobless rates. They badly need the work, and the wood, that would come from salvage.... Aerial gunning of coyotes to resume The controversial killing of coyotes on Anderson Mesa will again become one prong of the pronghorn antelope recovery plan. Arizona Game and Fish officials announced Monday that the agency plans to have more coyotes removed from two sections of the mesa -- located southeast of Flagstaff -- after two years of successes with the pronghorn recovery program.... Military renews drive to reshape environmental laws The Defense Department wants the government to ease environmental laws to avoid costly cleanups of military ranges and give states more time to handle air pollution from training exercises. The proposed changes were submitted to Congress on Tuesday, part of the Pentagon's renewed drive to ease several environmental laws in the name of military readiness. Since 2002, the Bush administration has sought more flexibility in complying with the laws, claiming that environmental restrictions are compromising training and readiness.... Go here for a transcript of the DOD press briefing....Hold all land users accountable, ranchers tell BLM official All users of public lands should be held to the same high standards that ranchers with grazing permits must follow, cattle industry representatives told a federal official Tuesday. Kathleen Clarke, director of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, met with the ranchers and area leaders at the BLM’s Carlsbad field office. Describing the tone of the meeting as “robust,” Clarke said the ranchers made it clear to her that everyone who uses multiple-use lands — such as those administered by her agency— should be accountable in protecting the land for future generations. A major grievance among ranchers is that while they are required to follow strict regulations in how their BLM-leased land is used, the oil and gas industry is held to a lesser standard.... Nevada congressman seeks to cut red tape in mining permit process One of mining's staunchest congressional allies is trying to win relief for what he calls an over-regulated industry with a plan to speed up federal action on backlogged mining claims and permits. At the urging of the Nevada mining industry, Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., is pressing House leaders for an extra $2.3 million for the Bureau of Land Management's 2005 budget. Gibbons wants most of the money to go toward 11 new BLM positions to speed the review of mining claims and of permits for new mines and exploration in Nevada, the nation's top gold-producing state.... OHV: Don't pay for plant count out of our pockets Off-highway vehicle groups are petitioning Congress and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, furious that user fees from the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area are the sole funding source for a mandated plant survey of the Peirson's milk-vetch. "We're not opposed to monitoring. We realize that has to be done and we support good science," said Roy Denner, president of the Santee-based Off Road Business Association. Denner claims the four-month monitoring program, being conducted by BLM staff and contract workers in the dunes, is being paid for by the user fees of off-road enthusiasts who flock to the outdoor attraction during major holidays.... Group fails to sway Burns on drilling ban Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., sat down Tuesday with several Montana ranchers, but he was not convinced by their request that he support a moratorium on drilling along the Rocky Mountain Front. Hugo Johnson, Karl Rappold, Chuck Blixrud and Montana Wilderness Association community organizer Candi Zion were only expecting to meet with a couple of Burns' aides; but a few minutes into their conversation with the aides, Burns joined them. After listening to them, Burns did not change his mind.... Column: The Senate's Stockholm Syndrome The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs treaty) will soon become binding international law. The stage is now set for potential U.S. Senate ratification of a document that will allow U.N. and other international bureaucrats to implement future global bans on various chemicals and give the Environmental Protection Agency sole authority to accept those bans for the United States. This alone should generate rancorous debate over sovereignty and constitutional law issues. However, other elements will raise the stakes even higher.... White House Minimized the Risks of Mercury in Proposed Rules, Scientists Say While working with Environmental Protection Agency officials to write regulations for coal-fired power plants over several recent months, White House staff members played down the toxic effects of mercury, hundreds of pages of documents and e-mail messages show. The staff members deleted or modified information on mercury that employees of the environmental agency say was drawn largely from a 2000 report by the National Academy of Sciences that Congress had commissioned to settle the scientific debate about the risks of mercury. In interviews, 6 of 10 members of the academy's panel on mercury said the changes did not introduce inaccuracies. They said that many of the revisions sharpened the scientific points being made and that justification could be made for or against other changes. Most changes were made by the White House's Office of Management and Budget, which employs economists and scientists to review regulations.... Yellowstone bison: To shoot or not to shoot? Mike Mease calls himself a "bison shepherd." And on the sagebrush-covered flats of Horse Butte, he and others from the Buffalo Field Campaign (BFC) are bracing for their biggest confrontation of the year. Armed with video cameras and walky-talkies to coordinate strategy across hundreds of square miles, this ragtag group of environmentalists is on a mission: Usher Yellowstone bison out of harm's way when the rangy animals leave the national park and cross into Montana.... To Save Salton Sea, Engineers Consider Dividing It in Two With Causeway Farmers, environmentalists and water experts have tussled for decades over what to do with the Salton Sea, the malodorous saltwater lake fed by agricultural runoff that is also an oasis for millions of birds and fish. The latest challenge is how to preserve the wildlife habitat while reducing the amount of water that supports it, which is required by a recent pact involving nearby Imperial Valley farmers, the city of San Diego and the federal government. Now, some engineers may have a solution: slicing the huge lake in two.... Study: Canada takes too much water; 1921 pact apportioning water from rivers in dispute Canadian irrigators have been wrongfully taking 90,000 acre-feet of Montana water a year for more than 80 years, a state study shows, and Gov. Judy Martz is pushing to renegotiate the international agreement that created the problem. "I know that water users experience shortages almost every year in the Milk River basin," Martz said. The issue dates to 1921, when U.S. and Canadian officials signed an agreement to share the waters of the St. Mary and Milk rivers. Both rivers have their headwaters in Montana's Glacier National Park and flow north into Canada. The Milk River later flows back into Montana north of Havre.... Comments on border due today Today marks the last day the U.S. Department of Agriculture will accept public comments on plans to reopen American borders to Canadian cattle. Last month, Alberta Premier Ralph Klein predicted trade barriers would be lifted as soon as this June. The head of the USDA debunked that idea Tuesday. "I will not project when we will publish a final rule," Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman said.... Small meatpacker seeks mad cow testing While government regulators try to reassure Americans and international customers the U.S. meat supply is safe from mad cow disease, a fledgling Kansas meatpacker is willing to prove it. Its survival might depend on it. Creekstone Farms Premium Beef is one of the nation's smallest meatpacking companies. But it has set off a firestorm at the U.S. Department of Agriculture and within the cattle industry by seeking permission from regulators to privately test all the animals processed at its Arkansas City slaughterhouse for mad cow disease.... Bull Riding: Extreme-ly Profitable Men who ride 1,800-pound bucking bulls for a living do not as a rule say "yee-ha," although they tend to speak with cowboy drawls thick as braided rope. They keep fit with hundreds of push-ups and sit-ups a day, developing granite physiques and extra allure for rodeo groupies, known as "buckle bunnies." At just about any rodeo, the bull riders are relatively easy to spot: They're the ones whose faces are creased and splotched by scars; they're the ones who limp. Bull riding is so dangerous, and the bulls are bred for such reliable ferocity, that the pros wear flak jackets, mouth guards and, increasingly, helmets. Nonetheless, a bull rider is injured every 13 or so rides -- stomped by hooves, head-butted in midair, dragged by his own rope, bludgeoned by horns the dimensions of warped baseball bats -- and every year or so someone is killed. Increasingly, and largely because of the sport's dependable violence, Americans beyond the traditional country rodeo audience are embracing bull riding. Capitalizing on its notoriety as the most dangerous eight seconds in sports, the event has hit the big time, attracting television deals, huge crowds, serious money and major corporate sponsors.... Doc Charlie, the cats, and politics My daughter, Sunni, her daughter, Kailee, and grandpa (me), took a horse to ole Doc Charlie to have his teeth floated. He’s been droppin’ more grain on the ground than he’s been a’swallerin’. (The horse, not Doc Charlie, is needin’ the dental work!) However, after we got the ole pony calmed down with a little shot to the neck, Doc Charlie’s aide started in tellin’ me about how Doc got calmed down recently. Seems an ole cow freight-trained him and knocked him, according to his aide, just about 60 feet on initial contact. She, of course, like all snotty ole cows, followed through and did a little tap dance all over him. Ole Doc was knocked completely out and after the cow was distracted and Doc was revived, he raised up and asked, “Is it November?” The first thing that he saw was a pen full of heifers and some with calves....
DIAMOND BAR CATTLE COMPANY
More cattle being shipped from Diamond Bar Ranch
Another 162 head of Diamond Bar cattle are to be shipped today from corrals at Beaverhead to undisclosed auction facilities.
That will bring to 414 the number of cattle impounded and trucked away from the allotment on the Gila National Forest, where courts determined that ranchers Kit Laney and Sherry Farr were grazing livestock illegally.
Forest Service officials estimate another 20 to 40 head still need to be captured. Regular employees will do the job during weekend patrols, or when hunters or others report seeing cattle on the allotment, according to Wilderness District Ranger Annette Chavez.
She said contract cowboys the government hired to do the roundup will leave today or Wednesday.
Last week, 252 head of Diamond Bar cattle were sold at auction, according to the Forest Service. The sale, at an undisclosed location, netted $121,000, the agency reported.
The livestock being shipped today includes 55 cows, 31 heifers, 25 steers, 12 heifer calves, eight bulls, five steer calves and two bull calves owned by the Diamond Bar Cattle Co.; 11 cows and one bull owned by Farr; and 12 unbranded cattle.
Fourteen horses reportedly captured while grazing on federal land without a permit remain in a corral at the Forest Service's Me Own fire base, adjacent to the Diamond Bar.
All but four of the horses belong to the ranch, according to Chavez. Three are owned by Farr's sister, and one belongs to Catron County Sheriff Cliff Snyder, the ranger reported.
Chavez said officials are "in the process of evaluating (Farr's) request to release the horses."
Farr has said the horses escaped deeded land by passing through a gate that had been left open.
"This is not willful trespass; this is incidental trespass," she recently told the Daily Press. "I have acted in good faith."
"These people (with whom the Forest Service contracted to remove the livestock) have left every gate open on this ranch since they've been here," Farr added.
Forest Service spokeswoman Andrea Martinez responded that roundup personnel "have been very conscientious ... and are very familiar with livestock operations. ... We have been leaving some forest gates open, but they were within the national forest."....
Column: USDA's Mark Rey drags feet on releasing info about forest policymaking Rey and his department have been dragging their feet in response to requests for public release of documents regarding the Bush administration's proposed overhaul of forest-management practices. Critics suspect the documents might confirm that logging-industry executives wielded undue influence over the process. The current tussle began in October 2002, when Defenders of Wildlife and the Endangered Species Coalition slapped the USDA with a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. They wanted documentation of the Bush administration's motivation for suspending Clinton-era rule updates under the National Forest Management Act, which governs America's nearly 200 million acres of national forest -- parcels of land that make up 8 percent of the country. NFMA was passed in 1976 and implemented under the Reagan administration to better manage national forests and protect wildlife.... Thomas introduces bill to stop 'venue shopping' Wyoming is being steamrolled on federal land issues by judges thousands of miles away who ignore expert findings and are unfamiliar with Western issues, Sen. Craig Thomas, R-Wyo., said Tuesday. To stem that trend, Thomas has drafted legislation meant to stop a practice known as "venue shopping," in which lawsuits are filed in jurisdictions viewed to be more friendly to a group's interests. "I don't think someone from Washington, D.C., would want a judge in Wyoming to tell them what to do in the nation's capitol," he said. "Why should a judge in Washington be able to tell us what to do in our backyard?" Under the bill, lawsuits against the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service would be heard in district courts affected by the litigation.... Editorial: Nibble on the Biscuit If nothing changes by summer's end, thousands of dead trees in the Biscuit fire zone will have lost much of their economic value and provide little but political fodder for the November presidential election. It would be a terrible waste if all these trees go from pulp to political fiction while environmentalists, loggers and the U.S. Forest Service slug it out in the courts. The Southern Oregon towns that surround the Biscuit are struggling with Oregon's highest jobless rates. They badly need the work, and the wood, that would come from salvage.... Aerial gunning of coyotes to resume The controversial killing of coyotes on Anderson Mesa will again become one prong of the pronghorn antelope recovery plan. Arizona Game and Fish officials announced Monday that the agency plans to have more coyotes removed from two sections of the mesa -- located southeast of Flagstaff -- after two years of successes with the pronghorn recovery program.... Military renews drive to reshape environmental laws The Defense Department wants the government to ease environmental laws to avoid costly cleanups of military ranges and give states more time to handle air pollution from training exercises. The proposed changes were submitted to Congress on Tuesday, part of the Pentagon's renewed drive to ease several environmental laws in the name of military readiness. Since 2002, the Bush administration has sought more flexibility in complying with the laws, claiming that environmental restrictions are compromising training and readiness.... Go here for a transcript of the DOD press briefing....Hold all land users accountable, ranchers tell BLM official All users of public lands should be held to the same high standards that ranchers with grazing permits must follow, cattle industry representatives told a federal official Tuesday. Kathleen Clarke, director of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, met with the ranchers and area leaders at the BLM’s Carlsbad field office. Describing the tone of the meeting as “robust,” Clarke said the ranchers made it clear to her that everyone who uses multiple-use lands — such as those administered by her agency— should be accountable in protecting the land for future generations. A major grievance among ranchers is that while they are required to follow strict regulations in how their BLM-leased land is used, the oil and gas industry is held to a lesser standard.... Nevada congressman seeks to cut red tape in mining permit process One of mining's staunchest congressional allies is trying to win relief for what he calls an over-regulated industry with a plan to speed up federal action on backlogged mining claims and permits. At the urging of the Nevada mining industry, Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., is pressing House leaders for an extra $2.3 million for the Bureau of Land Management's 2005 budget. Gibbons wants most of the money to go toward 11 new BLM positions to speed the review of mining claims and of permits for new mines and exploration in Nevada, the nation's top gold-producing state.... OHV: Don't pay for plant count out of our pockets Off-highway vehicle groups are petitioning Congress and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, furious that user fees from the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area are the sole funding source for a mandated plant survey of the Peirson's milk-vetch. "We're not opposed to monitoring. We realize that has to be done and we support good science," said Roy Denner, president of the Santee-based Off Road Business Association. Denner claims the four-month monitoring program, being conducted by BLM staff and contract workers in the dunes, is being paid for by the user fees of off-road enthusiasts who flock to the outdoor attraction during major holidays.... Group fails to sway Burns on drilling ban Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., sat down Tuesday with several Montana ranchers, but he was not convinced by their request that he support a moratorium on drilling along the Rocky Mountain Front. Hugo Johnson, Karl Rappold, Chuck Blixrud and Montana Wilderness Association community organizer Candi Zion were only expecting to meet with a couple of Burns' aides; but a few minutes into their conversation with the aides, Burns joined them. After listening to them, Burns did not change his mind.... Column: The Senate's Stockholm Syndrome The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs treaty) will soon become binding international law. The stage is now set for potential U.S. Senate ratification of a document that will allow U.N. and other international bureaucrats to implement future global bans on various chemicals and give the Environmental Protection Agency sole authority to accept those bans for the United States. This alone should generate rancorous debate over sovereignty and constitutional law issues. However, other elements will raise the stakes even higher.... White House Minimized the Risks of Mercury in Proposed Rules, Scientists Say While working with Environmental Protection Agency officials to write regulations for coal-fired power plants over several recent months, White House staff members played down the toxic effects of mercury, hundreds of pages of documents and e-mail messages show. The staff members deleted or modified information on mercury that employees of the environmental agency say was drawn largely from a 2000 report by the National Academy of Sciences that Congress had commissioned to settle the scientific debate about the risks of mercury. In interviews, 6 of 10 members of the academy's panel on mercury said the changes did not introduce inaccuracies. They said that many of the revisions sharpened the scientific points being made and that justification could be made for or against other changes. Most changes were made by the White House's Office of Management and Budget, which employs economists and scientists to review regulations.... Yellowstone bison: To shoot or not to shoot? Mike Mease calls himself a "bison shepherd." And on the sagebrush-covered flats of Horse Butte, he and others from the Buffalo Field Campaign (BFC) are bracing for their biggest confrontation of the year. Armed with video cameras and walky-talkies to coordinate strategy across hundreds of square miles, this ragtag group of environmentalists is on a mission: Usher Yellowstone bison out of harm's way when the rangy animals leave the national park and cross into Montana.... To Save Salton Sea, Engineers Consider Dividing It in Two With Causeway Farmers, environmentalists and water experts have tussled for decades over what to do with the Salton Sea, the malodorous saltwater lake fed by agricultural runoff that is also an oasis for millions of birds and fish. The latest challenge is how to preserve the wildlife habitat while reducing the amount of water that supports it, which is required by a recent pact involving nearby Imperial Valley farmers, the city of San Diego and the federal government. Now, some engineers may have a solution: slicing the huge lake in two.... Study: Canada takes too much water; 1921 pact apportioning water from rivers in dispute Canadian irrigators have been wrongfully taking 90,000 acre-feet of Montana water a year for more than 80 years, a state study shows, and Gov. Judy Martz is pushing to renegotiate the international agreement that created the problem. "I know that water users experience shortages almost every year in the Milk River basin," Martz said. The issue dates to 1921, when U.S. and Canadian officials signed an agreement to share the waters of the St. Mary and Milk rivers. Both rivers have their headwaters in Montana's Glacier National Park and flow north into Canada. The Milk River later flows back into Montana north of Havre.... Comments on border due today Today marks the last day the U.S. Department of Agriculture will accept public comments on plans to reopen American borders to Canadian cattle. Last month, Alberta Premier Ralph Klein predicted trade barriers would be lifted as soon as this June. The head of the USDA debunked that idea Tuesday. "I will not project when we will publish a final rule," Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman said.... Small meatpacker seeks mad cow testing While government regulators try to reassure Americans and international customers the U.S. meat supply is safe from mad cow disease, a fledgling Kansas meatpacker is willing to prove it. Its survival might depend on it. Creekstone Farms Premium Beef is one of the nation's smallest meatpacking companies. But it has set off a firestorm at the U.S. Department of Agriculture and within the cattle industry by seeking permission from regulators to privately test all the animals processed at its Arkansas City slaughterhouse for mad cow disease.... Bull Riding: Extreme-ly Profitable Men who ride 1,800-pound bucking bulls for a living do not as a rule say "yee-ha," although they tend to speak with cowboy drawls thick as braided rope. They keep fit with hundreds of push-ups and sit-ups a day, developing granite physiques and extra allure for rodeo groupies, known as "buckle bunnies." At just about any rodeo, the bull riders are relatively easy to spot: They're the ones whose faces are creased and splotched by scars; they're the ones who limp. Bull riding is so dangerous, and the bulls are bred for such reliable ferocity, that the pros wear flak jackets, mouth guards and, increasingly, helmets. Nonetheless, a bull rider is injured every 13 or so rides -- stomped by hooves, head-butted in midair, dragged by his own rope, bludgeoned by horns the dimensions of warped baseball bats -- and every year or so someone is killed. Increasingly, and largely because of the sport's dependable violence, Americans beyond the traditional country rodeo audience are embracing bull riding. Capitalizing on its notoriety as the most dangerous eight seconds in sports, the event has hit the big time, attracting television deals, huge crowds, serious money and major corporate sponsors.... Doc Charlie, the cats, and politics My daughter, Sunni, her daughter, Kailee, and grandpa (me), took a horse to ole Doc Charlie to have his teeth floated. He’s been droppin’ more grain on the ground than he’s been a’swallerin’. (The horse, not Doc Charlie, is needin’ the dental work!) However, after we got the ole pony calmed down with a little shot to the neck, Doc Charlie’s aide started in tellin’ me about how Doc got calmed down recently. Seems an ole cow freight-trained him and knocked him, according to his aide, just about 60 feet on initial contact. She, of course, like all snotty ole cows, followed through and did a little tap dance all over him. Ole Doc was knocked completely out and after the cow was distracted and Doc was revived, he raised up and asked, “Is it November?” The first thing that he saw was a pen full of heifers and some with calves....
DIAMOND BAR CATTLE COMPANY
More cattle being shipped from Diamond Bar Ranch
Another 162 head of Diamond Bar cattle are to be shipped today from corrals at Beaverhead to undisclosed auction facilities.
That will bring to 414 the number of cattle impounded and trucked away from the allotment on the Gila National Forest, where courts determined that ranchers Kit Laney and Sherry Farr were grazing livestock illegally.
Forest Service officials estimate another 20 to 40 head still need to be captured. Regular employees will do the job during weekend patrols, or when hunters or others report seeing cattle on the allotment, according to Wilderness District Ranger Annette Chavez.
She said contract cowboys the government hired to do the roundup will leave today or Wednesday.
Last week, 252 head of Diamond Bar cattle were sold at auction, according to the Forest Service. The sale, at an undisclosed location, netted $121,000, the agency reported.
The livestock being shipped today includes 55 cows, 31 heifers, 25 steers, 12 heifer calves, eight bulls, five steer calves and two bull calves owned by the Diamond Bar Cattle Co.; 11 cows and one bull owned by Farr; and 12 unbranded cattle.
Fourteen horses reportedly captured while grazing on federal land without a permit remain in a corral at the Forest Service's Me Own fire base, adjacent to the Diamond Bar.
All but four of the horses belong to the ranch, according to Chavez. Three are owned by Farr's sister, and one belongs to Catron County Sheriff Cliff Snyder, the ranger reported.
Chavez said officials are "in the process of evaluating (Farr's) request to release the horses."
Farr has said the horses escaped deeded land by passing through a gate that had been left open.
"This is not willful trespass; this is incidental trespass," she recently told the Daily Press. "I have acted in good faith."
"These people (with whom the Forest Service contracted to remove the livestock) have left every gate open on this ranch since they've been here," Farr added.
Forest Service spokeswoman Andrea Martinez responded that roundup personnel "have been very conscientious ... and are very familiar with livestock operations. ... We have been leaving some forest gates open, but they were within the national forest."....
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