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- The Bureau of Land Management
(BLM) is considering grazing policy changes that would provide more management
flexibility and promote innovative partnerships. These potential policy changes
would complement the various grazing regulatory changes that the BLM is already
considering. (Refer
to our 3/4/03 action alert)
- BLM
intends to provide tools that allow local partnerships to craft creative solutions
to obtain the goal of sustainable rangelands and sustainable ranching.
- Your
input will be collected and provided to the BLM interdisciplinary "Sustaining
Working Landscapes" policy development team which is meeting in early May.
What
is "Sustaining Working Landscapes"?
The BLM recently published
two grazing-related documents in the Federal Register that deal with possible
regulation changes. (For details on these documents, click
here) "Along with our regulatory effort," BLM Director Kathleen Clarke
said, "other grazing policy changes - some of which can be carried out within
existing grazing rules - are also vitally important to consider." The policy changes
under the BLM's consideration, like the potential regulatory changes announced
in the Federal Register on March 3, are aimed at promoting citizen-based stewardship
of the public lands. The potential policy changes would provide more options and
flexibility for resource managers, ranchers, conservationists, and others to work
in partnership to achieve healthier Western rangelands. The
policy changes comprise what the BLM is calling its "Sustaining Working Landscapes"
initiative. By "working landscapes," the BLM means landscapes on the public lands
that are both economically productive and environmentally healthy. "Sustaining
Working Landscapes" is proposed to develop BLM framework for partnering with permittees
to cooperatively explore and promote their management knowledge and experience
in meeting conservation and restoration needs. "SWL" is also expected to improve
BLM framework for providing incentive for partnership among stakeholders to improve
resources while maintaining the vitality of ranching. "Sustaining
Working Landscapes" Concepts
Conservation Partnerships
A Conservation Partnership would enable
a grazing permit holder, on a strictly voluntary basis, to enter into a performance-based
contract with the BLM aimed at promoting environmental health. Performance-based
actions would include those that help restore stream banks and wetlands, enhance
the quality and quantity of water flow, improve wildlife or fisheries habitat,
and support the recovery of species listed as threatened or endangered. In return,
the grazing permittee would be eligible for such things as stewardship grants,
management flexibility within certain prescribed limits, and the potential for
increased livestock grazing made possible by successes in conservation efforts.
Reserve Common Allotments
Reserve Common Allotments would represent
a new type of grazing unit. These allotments would be created with ranchers cooperatively
and voluntarily to promote healthier grazing lands and to help ranchers who temporarily
cannot use their permits for various reasons. Grazing permittees could use these
reserve allotments for livestock forage while their regular allotments undergo
range improvement. Existing regulations, however, would limit implementation of
this concept for use by the BLM, individuals, livestock grazing associations,
and non-profit third parties. As a result, the BLM is considering rules changes
that would overcome current limits on action, thus enhancing the ability of the
Bureau and its partners to promote sustainable rangelands and sustainable ranching.
Voluntary Allotment Restructuring
Voluntary Allotment Restructuring
would merge grazing allotments of two permittees. One of the permittees temporarily
would not graze, while the other would graze his or her herd over the newly combined
area. The net result would be lighter grazing use over the entire area, thus improving
range conditions while sustaining a working landscape.
Conservation Easements
Conservation Easements involve obtaining voluntary
land-use restrictions. Under this exchange system, the BLM would offer grazing
permittees the opportunity to acquire lands already identified for "disposal"
through the BLM's land-use planning process; in return, permittees would place
conservation easements on their adjacent private land. The aim would be to preserve
open space and better manage landscapes and watersheds. The BLM is also examining
the concept of acquiring conservation easements with funds that could potentially
be made available from land-disposal revenues. According
to BLM spokespersons attending a SWL workshop last week in Washington, DC, there
would be substantial benefits and potential risks to the private property rights
of grazing permitees and near by land owners. On the positive side is the voluntary
nature of the proposed SWL programs and the genuine prospect of BLM working cooperatively
with willing grantee/landowners to further conservation and rangeland improvement
goals. However, there is a risk that these voluntary measures could evolve into
mandatory land use requirements in the future, especially if a majority of permitee/landowners
participate in the voluntary SWL programs. In that case the political pressure
to make SWL programs mandatory on the minority of permittee/landowners who have
not participated in SWL programs, could be substantial. The
second potential benefit is the creation and recognition of new and valuable property
rights from the SWL programs that could generate additional income for grantee/landowners.
These rights might include improved habitat for wild game which would allow grantee/landowners
to sell hunting rights and enhanced habitat for endangered species, which could
be sold to developers as mitigation for building somewhere else. One potential
drawback to the creation of these new income producing property rights is the
clear preference that BLM seems to be placing in cooperative ventures with non-profit
organizations. The question then becomes: will BLM implement the SWL programs
so that the potential economic benefits of new and existing private property rights
to own and manage these lands go to grantee/landowner ranchers or will the programs
be administered primarily to create new sources of income for the non-profit organizations
that are working with BLM? What
You Can Do
Please contact the BLM office to express your ideas
about how these concepts could be implemented efficiently and fairly. If there
are other concepts you would like to offer don't hesitate to let the BLM know
about them. A BLM interdisciplinary "Sustaining Working Landscapes" policy development
team is meeting in early May. Your input will be collected and grouped by subject
matter and provided to this team for their use. Implementation policy and guidance
would be completed by November, 2003. Phone/E-mail:
Tim
Reuwsaat, Group Manager (Rangeland, Soils, Water and Air Group)
202-452-5179
Mike
Holbert, Senior Rangeland Management Specialist 202-452-5191
Ken Visser
202-452-7743 Mailing
Address:
Attention: Ken Visser
The Bureau of Land Management
1849 C St. NW
MS-LS 204
Washington DC 20240 The
National Grange policies on this issue you may refer to are: -
The National Grange recognizes the states' rights to own and/or manage Bureau
of Land Management (BLM) unreserved lands, not including national forest lands,
and supports legislation to assign control of lands in the 13 western states to
respective state governments. Revenues that are now received by counties should
be protected when control of any federal land is assigned to state governments.
- The National
Grange opposes increasing grazing fees and reducing allotments until it can be
demonstrated that any proposed increase in grazing fees or reduction of grazing
allotments is based upon solid economic principles and good conservation practices.
We favor legislation that would further limit any overall reduction in grazing
to 10 percent or less on any given allotment except in the case of emergencies
such as drought. We strongly believe that grazing permittees on federal lands
should be consulted as grazing plans are developed.
- The
National Grange opposes any legislation that restricts cattle grazing in riparian
areas (areas between the stream banks) that fails to give adequate consideration
to the economic impact that such restrictions have on ranchers.
- The
National Grange opposes allowing the Bureau of Land Management or the U.S. Forest
Service to sell grazing permits to anyone other than someone using the permit
for grazing purposes. We also request the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S.
Department of Interior to change the current grazing fee pricing formula and,
annually establish grazing fees that are based on current livestock market prices.
If you
have any questions or comments please contact Legislative Research Analyst Chil-Sook
Hwang by fax: 202-347-1091 or by phone: 1-888-4GRANGE, ext 109. Thank you
for your grassroots participation in the National Grange Legislative program.
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