vol. xiv, no. 2 fall 2007 - western watersheds project€¦ · vol. xiv, no. 2 fall 2007 watersheds...

MESSENGER

V i s i t W W P o n t h e I n t e r n e t ! • w w w . w e s t e r n w a t e r s h e d s . o r g

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Western Watersheds Project: Working to protect and restorewestern watersheds and wildlife through education

public policy initiatives and litigation.

Vol. XIV, No. 2 Fall 2007

Watersheds

More Than Just A Beautiful Birdby Jon Marvel

Sage grouse are one of the largest and mostdramatically beautiful of all native North Americanbirds, and as the keystone species of the sage-steppelandscape of eleven western states they are thesymbol of myriad other sage-steppe obligate speciesranging from pygmy rabbits to sage thrashers that aredependent on this little-respected ecosystem.

Western Watersheds Project has worked hard toprotect and restore the habitat and populations ofsage grouse across the western landscape. That workcontinues for us every day because the destructiveimpacts of human activities on the arid westernlandscapes of the sage-steppe deserts are acceleratingeverywhere.

Among those impacts are increases in wildfirebrought about by climate change and the proliferationof non-native and highly flammable weedy specieslike cheat grass, expanding oil and gas development,power lines, fences, roads and off road vehicles,urban and exurban sprawl, agricultural development,dewatering of streams and springs for hydroelectricityprojects and agriculture and west Nile virus, but thehuman activity that affects more sage grouse habitatthan any other is livestock grazing.

Both cattle and sheep have destructive impacts onsage grouse habitat including the annual removal ofhiding cover by grazing, the destruction of sage brushthrough battering effects of livestock, the tramplingand compaction of riparian areas necessary for latesummer brood rearing habitat and the enormousimpacts of livestock management installations rangingfrom fences that directly kill sage grouse through inflight collisions to the dewatering of springs, seepsand wet meadows in order to pipe water longdistances for livestock.

photo ©USFWS

Watersheds Messenger is published periodically byWestern Watersheds Project

P.O. Box 1770 • Hailey, ID 83333208-788-2290 • [email protected]

Articles published in Watersheds Messenger may or may notreflect the opinion of Western Watersheds Project. All

materials copyright ©WWP 2006 unless otherwise noted.

Continued from Page 1

Western Watersheds Messenger

Much research has been carried out that shows thatsage grouse are totally dependent on large continuousexpanses of sage brush and the associated perennialbunch grasses that provide nesting habitat throughouttheir long lives. The birds also need healthy wetlandriparian areas during the driest part of the summer.Without these habitat being in a healthy condition sagegrouse are at high risk of death from habitatfragmentation and predation, and long-term populationcounts of the birds show that compared to historicnumbers they are greatly reduced and continue todecline in most areas of the west.

Western Watersheds Project has chosen to influencethe management of sage grouse habitats by variousmeans, but one of the most important is to bring theforce of law to bear against the mismanagement ofcritical landscapes on which sage grouse depend. Atthis time WWP is awaiting the release of a federal courtdecision in litigation we filed in 2006 contesting theU.S. Fish and Wildlife Services denial of a petition co-filed by WWP to list sage grouse under the protectionsof the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The litigation hasbeen fully briefed and argued since early summer 2007,and WWP expects a decision at any time.

Should WWP prevail in court, the Fish and WildlifeService will be obliged to reconsider its decision not tolist sage grouse, and more than likely will carry out anew status review of the condition of sage grouse

populations and habitat across the west. That reviewwill need to assess all the growing threats to the speciesand could well result in the full protection of thespecies under the ESA.

The importance of this litigation and long-termeffort by WWP and our partner groups cannot beunderestimated. As the symbol of the sage-steppeecosystems of the arid west sage grouse, if protected,will be the single most important force for change inending the destructive activities that have so clearlydegraded our western landscapes and brought myriadspecies including sage grouse to the brink of extinction.

Changing human beliefs about dominion over theearth that brought us to this point of high risk to manynative species may not be fully possible, but sagegrouse alone may lead the way in altering thedestructive ways we have chosen in our relationshipwith our earth’s web of life.

Sage grouse are truly much more than just abeautiful bird of the western steppes of North America.

Jon Marvel is executive director of WWP.He lives in Hailey, Idaho.

Sage Grouse need healthy habitat to reproducephoto ©USGS

photo ©USFWS

Vol. XIV, No. 2

A Foul Wind Blowingby Jonathan Ratner

Just a short time ago, I waswalking on the Camel’s Hump Glacieraround 12,000 feet in the southernend of the Wind River Range, and Icaught a now familiar odor. At first, I

didn’t recognize it because it was so out of place but itdidn’t take long before I realized it was “the smell ofmoney”. The smell of money is what the oil and gasindustry calls the toxic witches’ brew of compoundsthe industry spews into the atmosphere in the quest formethane or what is commonly known as natural gas.This smell of money is a mix of VOC’s (VolatileOrganic Compounds) and HAP’s (Hazardous AirPollutants) including benzene, toluene, formaldehydeand a few dozen other toxic goodies. Living inWyoming, I have become familiar with the sickly sweetpetrochemical odor of these substances over the lastfew years as the state has plunged into its final petroboom.

Sublette County once had the cleanest air in thelower 48 and now we have ozone exceedances similarto Denver or Salt Lake City. Though the boom started 7years ago, no one has bothered to start monitoringlevels of VOC’s and HAP’s. So we have no idea whatthose levels are. Only recently has research started tocome in on the impacts of this ‘development’ on a fewwildlife species, and of course, the picture is not pretty.One such study by University of Montana ProfessorDavid Naugle showed an 86% decline in sage grousepopulations in the Powder River coal-bed methanefields between 2001 and 2005. In similar areas thathave not yet been drilled, Dr. Naugle found “only” at12% decline. There is some preliminary information ona pygmy rabbit research project in the PinedaleAnticline field that also looks bad.

Looking through this month’s “Hot Sheet”, theWyoming BLM State Office’s list of current projects,one sees many of the Field Offices currentlyundertaking Resource Management Plan (RMP)revisions which are listed as “Bureau Time SensitivePlans.” The latter is bureau-speak for those plans thatcover areas of large amounts of hydrocarbons wherethe plans must be completed prior to January 20th,2009 so that the decisions to rape, pillage and plunderwill be in place for at least 15-20 years.

The “Hot Sheet” lists NEPA analyses taking placeright now for nearly 20,000 new wells. A recent studyby University of Wyoming predicted from currentprojects and trends that around 35% of BLM lands inthe state of Wyoming will be in full field developmentwithin 15 years.

When you combine this acute explosion of oil andgas drilling with the chronic habitat degradationcaused by private livestock grazing on over 99% of ourpublic lands, you have a recipe for disaster on amassive scale.

Recently, we have joined Biodiversity ConservationAlliance in a case filed in D.C. to protect public landsin the Atlantic Rim area from further fragmentation by2,000 new wells, hundreds of miles of new roads andall the other construction to deliver us “clean burningnatural gas”. As we move forward, we will be takingmore action to protect sage-dependent species and thehabitat on which they depend from the leviathan thatis the oil and gas industry. Unfortunately, whileWyoming is ground zero for this petro boom, Montana,Colorado, New Mexico and parts of Utah are alsofacing an onslaught by the industry and their friendsrunning the government. I just hope some wild landssurvive after we have sucked every last molecule ofhydrocarbons to feed our addiction.

Jonathan Ratner is Wyoming director of WWP.He lives in Fremont County, Wyoming.

Gas development near Green River, Wyoming photo ©Skytruth www.skytruth.org

Inset: Attempt at “restoration” in the same area.photo ©Skytruth


WWP BlogNow Online

For a look at a more irreverent and personaltake on public lands watershed and wildlife issuesby a few dedicated WWP authors, WWP invitesreaders to check out the new WWP Blog:http://wwpblog.com. Comments are alwayswelcome or join in as an authorized author bycontacting WWP: [email protected].

News From theGolden State;The California Reportby Dr. Michael J. Connor

This list may have something of aHalloween flavor to it, but working toprotect imperiled frogs, toads, beetles,ground squirrels, desert tortoises,

bighorn sheep, cacti and other sensitive plants and theirhabitats made for a busy summer in WWP’s CaliforniaOffice.

The California Office consists of Mike Connor andTodd Shuman with tremendous support from GretaAnderson and Erik Ryberg in WWP’s Arizona Office.Working together and in partnership with otherconservation groups we’ve reviewed and contested anumber of grazing proposals promoted by the US ForestService and the BLM. Some of these reviews are nowbeginning to bear fruit.

One of our first successes has been to get the BLMto withdraw its decision to authorize grazing on theirportion of the Hunter Mountain allotment that straddlesthe Death Valley National Park’s western boundary.

This 59,580-acre allotment has an interestinghistory. It originally stretched from the boundary ofDeath Valley National Monument west to Santa RosaFlat. In 1994, the California Desert Protection Actcreated Death Valley National Park by expanding theMonument and transferring jurisdiction to the NationalPark Service. Most of original allotment was now insidethe Park with about 30% remaining under BLM control.Because all of the allotment’s water sources were onlands in the National Park, all the AUMs weretransferred to the National Park allotment. HunterMountain Allotment is the only active grazing allotmentin Death Valley National Park. The Park Service isworking to buy out the permittee to permanently retirethe allotment.

The waterless BLM portion has not been grazedsince 1994. However, this spring the BLM’s RidgecrestField Office issued plans and ultimately a decision to

authorize cattle grazing there. Careful review by WWP’sCalifornia office revealed major flaws in the NEPAdocumentation. After we pointed these out to BLMofficials, the Ridgecrest Field Office issued a newdecision vacating the cattle grazing authorization onthe grounds that they “had uncovered certain potentialinconsistencies in the EA.” These potentialinconsistencies included a 20 square mile expansion ofthe allotment into the Milpais Mesa Wilderness that wasdesignated in 1994 and use of an invalid EA to justifythe waterhaul sites that would needed. We willcontinue to work closely with the BLM to ensure thatany future decisions on this high desert allotment arebased on sound environmental documents and fullyprotect the area’s sensitive resources.

We have commented on and protested BLM effortsto continue or expand livestock grazing on landsadministered within the California Desert District.These include the Olancha, Hunter Mountain,Whitewater Canyon, Shadow Mountain, StoddardMountain, Pahrump, Ord Mountain, Valley Well,Rattlesnake Canyon and Round Mountain allotments.Between them, these amount to over 520,000 acres ofCalifornia Desert.

We also continue to participate in collective effortsto transform BLM’s livestock grazing management onCalifornia’s “Serengeti” - the Carrizo Plain NationalMonument.

We are prodding the Forest Service to conduct fullenvironmental analyzes for allotments in a number ofdifferent National Forests covering some 190,000 acres.This includes allotments in the Sequoia National ForestService, San Bernardino National Forest, StanislausNational Forest and Giant Sequoia National monument.We are now working with lawyers Laurie Rule ofAdvocates for the West and Klaus Hamm to contest theuse of categorical exclusions on national forest lands inCalifornia.

Dr. Conner is WWP’s California Science Director.He lives in Reseda, California.

Desert Tortoisephoto ©

Mike Connor

The Environment Losesa Valuable Friend and Ally

Western Watersheds would like to celebrate thelife of long time WWP supporter and environmentalchampion, Brad Crowder. Brad passed away recentlyafter a short battle with cancer.

Brad loved wild places, backpacking andcampfires with friends, the Canyon Country ofsouthern Utah, missed his dog who passed beforeBrad, loved his parrots and was so sad and disgustedat the place the current Administration has taken us.He was full of humor and caring for our wild friendsand worked exhaustively under adverse conditions toprotect them. Those of us who knew Brad will misshim deeply as will those he worked to protect.

Brad worked in the NEPA division of EPA,providing insightful and valuable comments on manyprojects on Forest Service and BLM lands which werepointed out to him by WWP staff and others asespecially egregious. Brad was reprimanded forproviding these comments which pointed out theflaws in these projects. He filed a grievance, wasdenied arbitration and subsequently felt compelled totransfer out of the NEPA division. He knew thefrustration and futility of having a job the purpose ofwhich is to protect the environment and yet wasprevented from doing so. Friends and colleagues of

“This is the true joy in life:The being used for a

purpose recognized byyourself as a mighty one.

The being a force of nature,instead of a feverish, selfishlittle clod of ailments andgrievances complainingthat the world will not

devote itself to making youhappy. I am of the opinionthat my life belongs to thewhole community, and as

long as I live, it is myprivilege to do for it

whatever I can.”~George Bernard Shaw

Vol. XIV, No. 2

We miss you Brad and wethank you for all that you did.

Brad know that he was instrumental in lettingjournalists and environmentalists know aboutRepublican attempts to bypass Congress in theattempt to gut the Endangered Species Act. Duringthe past two years, Brad talked about retiring andleaving EPA and the politics that were driving baddecisions, yet he hung in there, unwilling to give up.

Brad was that most rare being - an ethical personwho was willing to stand up for science and theenvironment against political pressure and threats tohis job. Our society would be so much better off ifwe had leaders who had a mere speck of Brad’scourage and integrity.

To be able glance inside a valued individual issometimes a way in which our understanding andappreciation of the person can be brought to bear.Debbie Crowder offers this quote from GeorgeBernard Shaw as capturing the way in which Bradapproached life.


We beat all expectations again in this year’s Old Bill’s Fun Run in Jackson Hole,Wyoming! The philanthropic momentum that Old Bill’s Fun Run generatescombined with the increased challenge grant from the Earth Friends WildlifeFoundation has allowed us to greatly expand our efforts in the Teton County area.This year we also broadened our support from members of the community. Thesuccess of Old Bill’s Fun Run does more than just support and expand our effortsin Teton County, it also allows more funding for our activities elsewhere in thestate. Withmore funding

for our Teton County activities, then we canshift regular funding to other locations suchas the southern half of the Bridger-TetonNational Forest, the Bighorn and ShoshoneNational Forests and problem BLM areassuch as the Lander, Kemmerer, Rock Springs,Pinedale and WorlandField Offices.

Thanks again to all those who madeOld Bill’s Fun Run 2007

such a great success.

Old Bill’s Fun Run a Great Success

Up84%

Up113%

WWP expandsinto Arizonaby Greta Anderson

Southern Arizona is no place forcows. The saguaro forests, dry washes,sporadic rainfall, and hightemperatures make the environment

inhospitable for livestock, but heaven knows it hasn'tstopped any livestock operators from trying. We're hereto change that.

Western Watersheds expanded into Arizona in thespring of 2007 by hiring Erik Ryberg, attorney, to starttackling public lands grazing. In September, GretaAnderson, a botanist, came on board to assist. Together,this team in Tucson is planning to ensure thatunsustainable grazing in the hot deserts, and on thedesert National Monuments, ceases to threaten species,ruin soils, and denude the landscape.

Arizona is not dissimilar from other western statesthat have been propping up a dying industry withfunding. On just one forest, the Tonto NF, the ranchershave received $3.5 million dollars (including $20,000 ayear just for signing on) to build water developmentsand better distribute cows. The backstory, though, ismore ominous- cows were pulled off the Tonto in 2002after drought and the lands haven't healed enough torestock without this massive infrastructure. We arefinding ways to challenge the appropriateness of thislandscape manipulation, including a legal challenge of

the administrative process that is being used. The drought, while problematic for the landscape, is

beneficial for the buy-out. We’re teaming up with theNational Public Lands Grazing Campaign to pursuevoluntary relinquishment opportunities on the IronwoodForest National Monument, an area so marginal forgrazing that many operations consist of paper cowsonly. The resource management planning process isunderway for this and other National Monuments inArizona, and we fully intend to engage in agencyplanning, in addition to waving the carrot of incentive-based retirement.

Because the lands of Arizona are just too fragile tosustain grazing, and because many of the imperiledspecies in the Sonoran Desert are directly and indirectlyharmed by livestock grazing, we have high hopes that alittle bit of pressure will bring a lot of change.

Greta Anderson is WWP’s Arizona Director.She lives in Tucson.

photo ©Erik Ryberg

Increased WWP funding from “Old Bill’s”

Vol. XIV, No. 2

Sage Observations;Ecological Conscience andPublic Lands Ranchingby Dr. Erin Anchustegui

Sage-grouse often add to thepeacefulness of my walks in thefoothills around Boise. I walk alongeyes closed taking in the sage brush

aroma and listening to all of the sounds. Of course, Ihear crickets, and sometimes birds are rustling in thebushes. Other times I hear and then spot a rabbit racingunder some brush. The sage grouse captivate me withits blooping noises, drumming like sounds and oddturkey-like appearance. Whenever I see one I feel luckybecause it doesn’t happen very often and I am hopefulthat its presence is a sign that the area in which it livesis healthy.

Once plentiful in the west, they were described byLewis and Clark in their 1804 expedition. They arelarge birds that can grow up to 30 in. in length and twofeet tall. Sage-grouse cannot live without sage brushand in the wintertime, their diet is 99% of sage brushleaves and buds. So many different wild species rely onsage brush for their existence: larks, burrowing owls,sage sparrows, sage thrashers, loggerhead shrikes andpygmy rabbits.

Though my walks through the sage brush aren’t nearthe Murphy Complex area, I couldn’t help but wonderabout the devastation that had taken place after theconsiderable fires swept through that region. I followedall the hubbub of who was to blame—ranchers vs.environmentalists—but what really mattered were thosespecies that had been affected by the fire. So, I lookedat the Murphy Complex post-fire pictures at the WWPwebsite. As I expected, parts of it reminded me of theViking Lander images of Mars: desolate, empty andbarren of any life. There were large ashen regions withno wildlife, no sage-brush, dry creek beds, and much tomy surprise; many of the pictures had cows in them.This meant to me that whatever plant and animal lifewas left in the area would be further distressed bygrazing cows. I couldn’t help but ask: doesn’t anyonethere have an ecological conscience?

My chagrin, I’m sure, is not due to an overflowingecological conscience to the other extreme.

Aldo Leopold, my favorite conservationist, believedthat conservation must spring from a conviction of whatis ethically and esthetically right. He said:”A thing isright only when it tends to preserve the integrity,stability and beauty of the community and thecommunity includes soil, waters, fauna, and flora, aswell as people.” The economic uses of land without thebalancing of conservation strategies is exactly whatLeopold would count as evidence of neither a landethic nor ecological conscience.

Invasive non-native grasses precipitated conditionsfor the fire: cheat grass, drought-like conditions andheat. The spread of cheat grass was aided by thepresence of cattle and range “improvements”supporting cattle grazing where there is virtually nowater. So, this use of the land that was not balanced bywise conservation strategies produced even a greatereconomic burden for taxpayers in order to pay for theman-power and materials to extinguish the series offires in the region.

Sage-grouse won’t be thriving in the MurphyComplex area for a long time. I doubt anyone will betaking walks to enjoy the esthetic and ethical balanceof the land there for quite a long time.

Erin Anchustegui teaches philosophyat Boise State University

She has a Ph. D in philosophy and does research inenvironmental ethics.

Loggerhead Shrikephoto ©USFWS

Flowering Grey Rabbitbrush in the Boise Foothillsphoto ©Rick Hobson

How Public Lands Ranching


Sets the Stage for Wildfires

Natural sage habitat has evolved to be fire resistant, with space between each plant.Natural sage habitat has evolved to be fire resistant, with space between each plant.This space also provide habitat for sage grouse and other fauna. Furthermore, sageThis space also provide habitat for sage grouse and other fauna. Furthermore, sage

has evolved so that wildfires actually help it germinate, speeding recoveryhas evolved so that wildfires actually help it germinate, speeding recovery

1. 1. Preparation for GrazingPreparation for Grazing: Chaining - Stringing heavy chain between bulldozers and: Chaining - Stringing heavy chain between bulldozers anddragging it through existing flora - destroys the natural habitat utterlydragging it through existing flora - destroys the natural habitat utterly

and juniper stands vanish, as does the wildlife associated with them. Crestedand juniper stands vanish, as does the wildlife associated with them. Crestedwheatgrass is planted for forage. Crested wheatgrass provides little value to cattlewheatgrass is planted for forage. Crested wheatgrass provides little value to cattle

and creates a denser fuel source for wildfire.and creates a denser fuel source for wildfire.

2. 2. Introduction of CattleIntroduction of Cattle: In the arid west, cattle must be supplied with water: In the arid west, cattle must be supplied with waterartificially through vast systems of pumps and pipes. This further disrupts habitat.artificially through vast systems of pumps and pipes. This further disrupts habitat.As water tables drop, ground is pulverized and fragile water courses disappear intoAs water tables drop, ground is pulverized and fragile water courses disappear into

muddymuddy, cow-created quagmires. Cheatgrass is introduced and spread by, cow-created quagmires. Cheatgrass is introduced and spread bycattle, adding to the fuel load.cattle, adding to the fuel load.

3. 3. Fire and AftermathFire and Aftermath: The Crested wheatgrass and cheatgrass burns hot: The Crested wheatgrass and cheatgrass burns hotand fast, destroying what little wildlife remains. The intense heatand fast, destroying what little wildlife remains. The intense heat

sterilizes the ground, leaving a barren, mars-like wasteland which willsterilizes the ground, leaving a barren, mars-like wasteland which willtake much longer to recovertake much longer to recover1

Photos ©WWP unlessotherwise noted.

How Public Lands Ranching

Vol. XIV, No. 2

Sets the Stage for Wildfires

2 3

Natural sage habitat has evolved to be fire resistant, with space between each plant.Natural sage habitat has evolved to be fire resistant, with space between each plant.This space also provide habitat for sage grouse and other fauna. Furthermore, sageThis space also provide habitat for sage grouse and other fauna. Furthermore, sage

has evolved so that wildfires actually help it germinate, speeding recoveryhas evolved so that wildfires actually help it germinate, speeding recovery..

: Chaining - Stringing heavy chain between bulldozers and: Chaining - Stringing heavy chain between bulldozers anddragging it through existing flora - destroys the natural habitat utterlydragging it through existing flora - destroys the natural habitat utterly. Sage, pinion. Sage, pinion

and juniper stands vanish, as does the wildlife associated with them. Crestedand juniper stands vanish, as does the wildlife associated with them. Crestedwheatgrass is planted for forage. Crested wheatgrass provides little value to cattlewheatgrass is planted for forage. Crested wheatgrass provides little value to cattle

and creates a denser fuel source for wildfire.and creates a denser fuel source for wildfire.

: In the arid west, cattle must be supplied with water: In the arid west, cattle must be supplied with waterartificially through vast systems of pumps and pipes. This further disrupts habitat.artificially through vast systems of pumps and pipes. This further disrupts habitat.As water tables drop, ground is pulverized and fragile water courses disappear intoAs water tables drop, ground is pulverized and fragile water courses disappear into

, cow-created quagmires. Cheatgrass is introduced and spread by, cow-created quagmires. Cheatgrass is introduced and spread bycattle, adding to the fuel load.cattle, adding to the fuel load.

: The Crested wheatgrass and cheatgrass burns hot: The Crested wheatgrass and cheatgrass burns hotand fast, destroying what little wildlife remains. The intense heatand fast, destroying what little wildlife remains. The intense heat

sterilizes the ground, leaving a barren, mars-like wasteland which willsterilizes the ground, leaving a barren, mars-like wasteland which willtake much longer to recovertake much longer to recover, if it recovers at all., if it recovers at all.

Photo ©USDA

Global Warming,Western Ranching, andthe Bovine CurtainBy George Wuerthner

Just like the old Iron Curtain thatsquelched any critical discussion ofCommunism’s failures, we in the Westlive behind a “Bovine Curtain.” The

Bovine Curtain is-like the Iron Curtain-operated by thestate, using taxpayer dollars to continuously broadcastpropaganda about the virtues of ranching in the Westand suppressing any negative or critical information.The mantra “cows are good” is repeated so often that ithas attained cult status, even among many conservationgroups-who should know better.

Eating meat (domestic livestock), particularly beef,has one of the biggest environmental impacts on theplanet. In many ways making a change from alivestock based diet to plants s one of the easiest thingsthat most of us can modify in our personal behavior tolessen our collective burden upon the planet. Producingone calorie of animal protein requires more than 10times as much fossil fuel input-releasing more than 10times as much carbon dioxide-than does a calorie ofplant protein.

In the summer 2007 report, Livestock’s LongShadow, UN researchers concluded that livestockproduction is one of the … most significant contributorsto the most serious environmental problems, at everyscale from local to global.” According to the UN,livestock contributes to “problems of land degradation,climate change and air pollution, water shortage andwater pollution, and loss of biodiversity.” But fewenvironmental groups mention this report or itsfindings, particularly if they are located in the cowboyWest behind the Bovine Curtain. They would have toadmit that the findings conclusions apply equally aswell to the western U.S.

In particular the report singled out livestockproduction as a major contributor to global warmingemissions, yet even Al Gore ignored livestock’s role inglobal warming during his Live Earth Concert. I don’twant to denigrate Gore’s efforts for he has broughtmuch needed attention to global climate change.Nevertheless, while it’s well and good to ask people toscrew in fluorescent light bulbs to reduce energydemands, the single biggest change that anyone coulddo to immediately reduce their contribution togreenhouse gases is to eat less meat.

Eating less meat has a surprisingly big bang foreffort. Ranch and farm raised livestock produce millionsof tons of carbon dioxide and methane annually. Thesetwo gases account for 90 percent of US greenhouseemissions. For instance, all the trucks, SUVs, cars,airplanes, trains and other transportation combinedaccounts for 13 percent of global warming emissions,while livestock production is responsible for anastounding 18 percent of all global greenhouse gases.

Not only are there the carbon dioxide emissionsfrom livestock production, but livestock, particularlycattle, are responsible for the majority of emissions ofseveral other greenhouse gases. According to the U.N.,animal agriculture is responsible for an whopping 65percent of worldwide nitrous oxide emissions. Bear inmind that nitrous oxide is about 300 times moreeffective as a global warming gas than carbon dioxide.

Methane is another gas produced by livestock.Methane traps 20 times more heat than carbon dioxide.The EPA reports that livestock production is the singlegreatest source of methane emissions in the US.

But when you live behind the Bovine Curtain mostpeople are afraid to speak the truth or have internalizedgroup think so completely that it does not even occur topeople to ponder livestock’s central role in a host ofenvironmental and health problems. Given their role asobsequious hand maidens to the livestock industry, it’snot surprising that federal and state governments hidethe connection between meat production and global


The natural sources and cycles of nitrous oxidesare not as well understood as those of carbondioxide and methane, but its primary naturalsource appears to be bacterial breakdown of

chemicals in soil. Human activities that increasenitrous oxide levels in the atmosphere, and as aresult the risk of climate change, include use of

nitrogen-based fertilizers in producingfeed for livestock.

Greenhouse Nitrous OxidePrimary Source: Agriculture

Agriculture 70%

Transportation 15%

Electricity 2%Building & Industry13%

Source: Massachusetts Technology Collaborative

Vol. XIV, No. 2

warming. But it’s totally unacceptable forenvironmental organizations to ignore this inconvenienttruth.

For instance I recently checked the Sierra Club’sglobal climate change web site. They list ten things onecan do to reduce global warming, from driving a moreenergy efficient auto to supporting renewable energysources-but eating less meat is not one of them. It’s hardto believe that the Sierra Club is not aware of the UNreport or other recent research linking livestockproduction with global warming, but one must assumethat saying anything about livestock production is offlimits when you live behind the Bovine Curtain. Worseyet, some Sierra Club chapters even promote ranching,despite the obvious impacts on global climate. A recentarticle the Sierra Club’s California/Nevada desertnewsletter extolled the virtues of livestock grazing inthe Great Basin-a region that is likely to suffer greatlyfrom global climate change.

Similarly I reviewed National Parks andConservation Association’s new report, “UnnaturalDisaster,” which describes the multiple ways that globalwarming will impact our national parks. The reportsuggests a host of solutions that range from moreefficient energy use to adoption of renewable energy,but I could not locate any mention of eating less meatin the 48 page report. And the Wilderness Society,while advising members to support carbonsequestration, mileage efficiency for vehicles, and othercommon remedies, did not mention of the role oflivestock production and a meat diet in contributing toglobal warming.

Given that these national groups do not appear tosee or more likely wish to avoid talking about aconnection between diet and environmental issues, it’snot surprising that many regional or localenvironmental groups seldom mention livestockproduction as a global warming issue. They mayexpress great concern about the decline of whitebarkpine or large wildfires due to higher global

temperatures, but they don’t go the next step to tiethese issues to ranching and livestock production. Try toraise any linkage to ranching and livestock and theBovine Curtain slams down. In the West, we don’t talkabout cows except to laud the ranchers for being “goodstewards of the land” or some other fawning palaver.

Global warming is only one reason to end livestockproduction, particularly western ranching. Productionof livestock is the single greatest source of non-pointpollution in the West. Livestock are among the primereasons for the spread of invasive plants like cheatgrass.Producing hay and other irrigated forage for livestock isthe reason our rivers are dewatered each summer.Livestock are the reason bison and wolves are killedoutside of national parks. Livestock spread disease towildlife. Livestock are the reason native wildlife likeprairie dogs are being slaughtered. The list goes on, butfew groups are willing to even list these impacts, muchless tackle the source of the problem-cows.

The obvious omission of diet preferences among theproposed solutions to global warming is particularlynoteworthy, especially when it involves no newtechnologies, no major policy changes in government,and no significant investment in new infrastructure.Eating less meat won’t cure global warming, but it’s theeasiest and more cost effective mechanism available toordinary citizens to start us on a new pathway towardsglobal sustainability.

If you can’t afford a Prius, you can afford to eat lessmeat. Even if you can’t switch to solar energy, you canswitch to a reduced meat diet. While most of us can’tdesign a wind mill, we can design a better diet. Eatingless meat is not only good for the planet’s health, it’sgood for your health. It’s time for all of us to begin toview eating and our choice of diet as more than aculinary decision, but as an environmental act.

George Wuerthner is a WWPadvisory board member who lives

in Richmond, Vermont.

Feedlots create vast quantities of greenhouse gases,and represent just one way the meat industrycontributes to climate changephoto ©USDA

Proving that BLM doesnot follow Science in itsGrazing ManagementBy: Laird Lucas

Federal agencies are supposed tomanage our public lands to protecttheir ecological health. That legalimperative means the agencies are

supposed to follow science in their managementdecisions.

Yet as WWP’s supporters know all too well, federalagencies typically ignore science – and the law – intheir management decisions, capitulating instead toresource industry demands.

Nowhere is this more true than the 160 millionacres of western public lands on which BLM authorizesdomestic livestock grazing. Very little of this landscapeescapes grazing impacts, even today. The constantgrazing has resulted in widespread loss of sagebrush,native grasses and other historic habitats; destruction ofstreams, springs, and wet meadows; and a downwardspiral of many species like sage grouse, redband trout,pygmy rabbit, and a host of others.

These effects are widely documented in thescientific literature – yet are ignored by BLM in itsmanagement decisions. The result is unlawful agencyaction, as several of our recent lawsuits haveestablished.

Keeping The “Public” In Our Public LandsIn one of our biggest wins to date, Judge B. Lynn

Winmill of the Idaho federal court ruled in June thatBLM violated several federal laws when it adopted newgrazing regulations in July 2006; and he permanently

enjoined BLM from ever using the new regulations. The Bush Administration adopted the new

regulations as a favor to western ranchers and theirpolitical allies, mainly to gut existing requirements thatBLM is supposed to protect watershed health and otherecological values on public lands from grazing damage.The regulations also would have excluded the publicfrom most grazing management decisions – includingBLM’s issuance of grazing permits – and would givenlivestock operators new ownership and control overpublic lands water rights and range projects.

In a scathing decision, Judge Winmill reversed thenew regulations, finding that BLM ignored scientificliterature – and even the advice of its own experts –when it claimed the regulation changes would have noadverse ecological effects. To the contrary, JudgeWinmill noted, the new regulations would cause long-term harm to many sensitive resources includinguplands and streams, as well as fish and wildlifepopulations, which BLM wrongly failed to disclose tothe public.

In addition to ignoring science, the court also heldthat BLM violated the law in its effort to exclude thepublic from grazing management decisions across theWest. Judge Winmill emphasized that public inputcannot “be jettisoned simply to reduce the agency’sworkload,” and he found that BLM was arbitrary andcapricious in failing to acknowledge the important rolethat public input plays in improving BLM’s grazingmanagement decisions.

This case has national significance – not only inprotecting 160 million acres of public lands in theWest, but in affirming that the health of our publiclands depends on scientific management and strongpublic involvement.


Pygmy Rabbit in the WildPhoto ©Len Zeoli, Graduate Student

Washington State University

“Conclusive Proof” That BLMIgnores Science At Nickel Creek Trial.

We also won another recent victory underscoringthe fact that BLM does not manage livestock grazing onpublic lands according to scientific principles – thusallowing unacceptable resource damage to continue, inviolation of law.

This win involves the 75,000 acre Nickel Creekallotment, which is part of BLM’s Owyhee ResourceArea in southwestern Idaho. Nickel Creek featuresstunning canyons, large upland habitats, and a host ofimportant species including bighorn sheep, sage grouse,and redband trout.

Unlike most of our cases, which are brought infederal court, the Nickel Creek case involved a 15-daytrial before an Administrative Law Judge in theDepartment of Interior. We used WWP experts Dr. JohnCarter and Katie Fite to present detailed scientificinformation about the harms that grazing has caused tothe public lands and natural resources of the NickelCreek allotment. We also explained the modernscientific principles relating to grazing management,which BLM claims it follows – but in fact does not.

In a 125-page decision issued in September, theAdministrative Law Judge held that WWP’s evidencewas “overwhelming” and “conclusively proved” thatBLM violated modern range science in its managementof the Nickel Creek allotment. Among his specificfindings, the judge ruled that:

• The “overwhelming consensus of scientific evidence”establishes that setting the correct stocking rate is themost important step in proper grazing management.The judge ruled that BLM thus wrongly attempted torely on a complex rest-rotation grazing system, insteadof cutting livestock numbers to improve conditions onthe allotment. • BLM “relied on inadequate utilization and forageproduction data” in setting its stocking rates, while“WWP offered convincing evidence” that BLM hasallowed excessive livestock utilization of nativevegetation, causing damage to plant vigor and habitatconditions.• The “preponderance of the evidence” also showedthat BLM’s grazing scheme would not make even“limited improvement” to achieve the ecologicalstandards for rangeland health on the allotment. • BLM violated NEPA by failing to given seriousconsideration to either a “light grazing” or “no grazing”alternative, either of which offers much betterecological improvement. The judge ordered BLM toimplement one of these alternatives in 2008, if it hasnot adopted a new and lawful grazing decisionbefore then.

We believe this case is unprecedented in puttingBLM’s basic grazing management on trial – and inestablishing conclusively that BLM is violating the basic“range management” principles that are taught atschools around the West.

We will now be presenting similar challenges toequally inadequate BLM grazing decisions elsewhere inIdaho and other western states.

Laird Lucas is Executive Director ofAdvocates for the West.He lives in Boise, Idaho.

Vol. XIV, No. 2

Current Creek, in the Nickel CreekAllotment, Owyhee Canyonlands.Photo ©Katie Fite

Fraida & Bob AlandAnonymousRosemary & Leo BensonThe Bullitt FoundationCommunity Foundation

of Jackson HoleRoger CristBarbara DargatzLouis & Kathleen DerschBryan Dixon & Jean LownEarth Friends

Wildlife FoundationRichard Easterly &

Debra SalstromRoxanne & Tom FactorBarbara GraceCharles HallAnn HarveyFrederic HoffmanBruce HayseKathe Henry

Dr. M. Keene HueftleE & H Humbly Bumbly

FoundationJames JohnstonMary V. JonesJohn J. KingJames & Sylvia KirkViesia & Robert KirkThe Lazar FoundationLinda & David LiebScott & Lynda MacButchAl & Lee McGlinskyRobert & Marjorie MooreStuart MurrayPatrick OlmsteadPatricia & Carl OlssonGilman OrdwayRoberta Parry - in memory of

Brad CrowderRobert & Sharon PhillipsMike Quigley & Bonnie Olin

Richard RobertsLisa & Steve RobertsonMary & Clee SealingThe Shapiro Family CharitableFoundationEmily & T.R. ShelbySp Holdings, Inc.Sperling FoundationPatricia & Gerald Swope -

in memory ofBrad Crowder

Meredith & Troy TaylorTerra Nova FoundationAmy & Steve UnfriedChristine Vigil - in memory of Brad CrowderCharles WalterDavid & Karen WardTamara & Anthony Yocus

WWP extends special thanks to the following supporters, each of whom contributed $100 ormore to our efforts since the last newsletter. This generous assistance helps to

preserve and restore habitat for many species.


Book Review: Western Turf Wars:The Politics of Public Lands Ranching (2007) by Mike HudakReviewed by Todd Shuman, WWP Advisory Board member

This book, which is based upon video-taped interviews of retired agencyscientists, land managers, non-government scientists, and conservationists, presents awealth of valuable historical information through the stories of 27 people who havebeen resisting abusive livestock grazing management practices on public lands. Fourof the people interviewed in the book are currently associated with WWP (RalphMaughan, Julian Hatch, Larry Walker, and Todd Shuman).

The range of issues, regions, concerns, and historical periods addressed in thebook is immense. From Martha Hahn, we hear about the battles to transform BLMgrazing management in Idaho in the 1990s. From Douglas Barber, Leon Fager, and

Renee Galeano-Popp, we receive blow-by-blow accounts of reform and counter-reformwithin the Apache-Sitgreaves and Lincoln National Forests while Mike Sauber lays out the campaign tostop the construction of massive stock tanks in the Aldo Leopold Wilderness of the Gila National Forest.Julian Hatch and Patrick Diehl lay out the political economy of livestock grazing in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument while also reminding us of the chilling consequences rural grazing reformactivists face when challenging the status quo. Ralph Maughan then presents us with a most concise,informative overview of issues and facts concerning bison and wolf "control" in the Northern Rockies.

When we get a hankering for some hard-core science, we can turn to Clait Braun for the lowdown onthe history and science behind efforts to protect the Gunnison sage grouse, as well as for a detailedcritique of a western states conservation assessment of "Greater Sage-grouse and Sagebrush Habitats" thatneeded "holes . . . to be shot in it." Different interviews address livestock-related issues concerning HartMountain NAR, the grasslands of the Black Hills, Malheur NWR, pygmy rabbit habitat in Washington, theGolden Trout Wilderness, among many others.

Hudak gently "prodded" his subjects to recount the events, conflicts, and perceptions that promptedthem to address livestock-on-public-land issues in the first place. Buy it and start "mining" it for theunusual history and accumulated wisdom that it contains.

Western Turf Wars can be purchased over the Internet at http://westernturfwars.com or by contactingMike Hudak directly at Biome Books, 38 Oliver Street, Binghamton, NY 13904-1516. You canalso call 607.330.0351.

Western Watersheds ProjectJon Marvel..............................................Executive Director

Teri Stewart-Curtis ..............................Office Administrator

Greta Anderson ........................................Arizona Director

Erik Ryberg ......................................Arizona Legal Counsel

Dr. Michael J. Connor ..............California Science Director

Dr. John Carter..............................................Utah Director

Jonathan Ratner ....................................Wyoming Director

Katie Fite ............................................Biodiversity Director

Larry Walker ..........................................RangeNet Director

Rick Hobson ....................................Newsletter Production

Julian Hatch ............................Southern Utah Coordinator

Jen Nordstrom............................Contract NEPA Comments

Stuart Murray......................Contract Public Lands Monitor

Debra Ellers ..................................Western Idaho Director

Dale Grooms........................Western Idaho Data Specialist

Miles Johnson........................................Winter 2008 Intern

Legal CounselLaird Lucas......................................Advocates for the West

Board of DirectorsKelley Weston ......................................................President

Dr. Erin Anchustegui ....................................Vice President

Louise Wagenknecht ............................Secretary-Treasurer

James Gillespie ......................................................Director

Dr. Bruce Hayse ....................................................Director

Dr. Ralph Maughan ................................................Director

Dr. John Carter ......................................................Director

Advisory Board

Western Watersheds Project Offices

Gene E. BrayDebra Donahue

Brian ErtzDr. Steven Herman

Dr. M. Keene HueftleDr. Don Johnson

Louise Lasley

Stan MooreDr. Elizabeth Painter

Dr. Tom PringleTodd ShumanLarry Walker

Dr. Bruce WelchGeorge Wuerthner

Main Office ..................P.O. Box 1770 • Hailey, ID 83333(208)788-2290 • fax: (208)788-2298

[email protected]

Idaho (Boise office) ......P.O. Box 2863 • Boise, ID 83701(208)871-5738 • [email protected]

Idaho (Western) ..............P.O. Box 1030, McCall ID 83638(208)634-9946

Director Email: [email protected] Specialist Email: [email protected]

Arizona ................................................................Box 2264Tucson, AZ 85702

(520) 622-3333 • [email protected]

California ....................P.O. Box 2364 • Reseda, CA [email protected]

Utah ............................P.O. Box 280 • Mendon, UT 84325(435)881-5404 • [email protected]

Wyoming ..................P.O. Box 1160 • Pinedale, WY 82941(877)746-3628 • fax: (707)597-4058

[email protected]

Vol. XIV, No. 2

All readers of the Watersheds Messenger can keepup on the activities of Western Watersheds Project

by signing up for WWP’s Online Messenger.

To join WWP’s Online Messenger, send an email [email protected] with the word subscribe

in the subject line.

WESTERN WATERSHEDS PROJECT

P.O. Box 1770Hailey, ID 83333

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CONTENTS

^ Habitat loss is driving the sage grouse relentlessly towards extinction. Recent legal effortsby Western Watersheds Project could help reverse this. (Story, Page 1) photo ©USFWS

Page

1 More than Just a Beautiful Bird

3 A Foul Wind Blowing: Oil and Gas in Wyoming

4 News from WWP’s California Office

5 Remembering Brad Crowder, Activist and Friend

6 Western Watersheds Project Expands into Arizona

7 Ecological Conscience and Public Lands Ranching

8 Photo Feature: The Public Lands Ranching-Fire Chain

10 Western Ranching and Greenhouse Gases

12 Science and the Law; Holding the BLM Accountable

14 Book Review: Western Turf Wars

14 A Thank-You to our Donors

vol. xiv, no. 2 fall 2007 - western watersheds project€¦ · vol. xiv, no. 2 fall 2007 watersheds...

Documents