Ranchers fight to keep grazing in Grant County (OR)

The Oregonian ^ | May 9, 2009 | Richard Cockle

[jazusamo]

Richard Cockle/The Oregonian

Ken Holliday is among Grant County ranchers who have banded together to fight for grazing rights on public land. Environmentalists are seeking to ban grazing on six Malheur National Forest sites, saying cattle trample stream banks and damage steelhead habitat. Holliday says a ban would force ranches out of business and cause other problems. "There's a lot of increased fire danger when nobody's grazing cows," he says

[jazusamo]

Enviros won’t be happy until every steer is off BLM and Forest Service land and raised in feed lots.

[AuntB]

Good folks in Grant County. VERY conservative. I almost moved there.

[Rockiette]

These enviro nazis have overstepped their bounds, no one elected them to anything, they are strickly self-appointed terrorists. I feel terribly sorry for the ranchers and farmers who are losing the war against these useless people. However, electing the moronic Senator there says much about the PC thinking that has infected many Oregonians. Sad.

[jazusamo]

I have relatives in Harney County and it’s the same, the folks there good people also. When areas are as sparsely populated as those counties people look out for one another.

[jazusamo]

There’s not a lot of money in ranching contrary to what many believe. Ranchers are very hard pressed to keep up with the constant attacks from the enviro nutjobs who play to the emotions of the do-gooder city people to raise millions.

[Flycatcher]

Environmentalists "are beating ranchers over the head and trying to put us out of business," he says. "I don't understand it."

What's not to understand? Environmentalists are absolutely clueless about private property rights and that private landholders can actually be GREAT stewards of the land. Private landholders & ranchers have to be. They make their livelihood from it.

Thanks for the ping, Jaz.

[Born to Conserve]

One of the great things about private ownership is that the owners tend to care about their property.

Grazing on public land does not have this selfish incentive, in fact, it seems somewhat socialist.

Logging on public land has the same drawbacks.

[jazusamo]

Well said, Fly. And without being able to graze cattle on lease land it will run the smaller private ranchers out of business. They can’t buy enough land to make a go of it and most of the lease land is not used by the public anyway.

[Born to Conserve]

“private property rights”

Is this about private land or public land?

[jazusamo]

Ranchers act as stewards of the land on leases in Eastern OR, I know that for a fact.

[Born to Conserve]

“Ranchers act as stewards of the land on leases”

Stewards or not, it is not their land, and they have no long term incentive to protect it.

[Cheetahcat]

Ranchers were there before the Enviro trash were and it is not their land it is ours and I have no problem with the grazing.

[jazusamo]

The incentive they have is knowing they’ll be out of business without it. Many of the ranches I’m familiar with have been in operation over half a century and longer and have used those leases.

[BooBoo1000]

Lets differentiate between public and private land

[jazusamo]

I believe it has been differentiated here. Lease land is public land and ranches I’m familiar with have their private land but also lease public lands for grazing.

[microgood]

Stewards or not, it is not their land, and they have no long term incentive to protect it.

Grazing on lands in the West is essential in keeping wildfires down as they keep the grasses shorter which curtails spreading of fires, something that was previously taken care of by other animals (elk, buffalo).

It is in the public interest for the ranchers to use that land for grazing. It also keeps the price of meat down, just as logging on public lands reduces the cost of housing.

[george76]

http://www.orcattle.com/Press%20Releases/Five.Rivers2.27.09.htm

[george76]

Just more BS from the eco-wackos trying to kill the entire state economy so they can use it as their back yard

[jazusamo]

Thanks for linking that, George. It’s good to see people coming together to fight the enviros and USFS over these issues.