January 2017 Articles

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NCBA, PLC meet to Discuss Federal Land Priorities for New administration

NCBA, PLC meet to Discuss Federal Land Priorities for New administration Source: www.BeefUSA.org

In the past eight years, ranchers and other multiple use interests in the West have witnessed an almost wholesale shift in federal land management policy. What was once - and statutorily continues to be - a clear directive to manage BLM lands for multiple use and sustained yield has instead shifted towards a wholesale focus on "conservation" without responsible management. As such, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, Public Lands Council, and the American Sheep Industry Association met in Denver last week to discuss the both short-term and long-range actions needed from the new Administration to restore balance to federal land management and set an agenda that will ensure that ranchers can continue their tradition of stewardship well into the future. Within the first 100 days in office, the associations are calling on the administration to address the critical habitat designations which are imposing stifling restrictions on landowners, an immediate halt to the Sage Grouse Resource Management Plans, repeal of monument designations that were made through abuse of the Antiquities Act, and further, the immediate withdrawal of EPA's "waters of the United States" rule and the Bureau of Land Management's planning 2.0 rule. Long-term, attention must also be paid the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) as reform is necessary to stream and improve the process. Additionally, the incoming administration must take the steps necessary, in conjunction with Congress, to reauthorize and reform the Endangered Species Act (ESA). It is time to restore some balance to this failing law. Recovery plans must be structured for achievable on-the-ground results - not intangibles like climate change; prioritization must be on recovery, not simply the "listing rate," and resources must be directed toward delisting of those species that have been successfully recovered. It is our hope that the incoming administration will reevaluate this shift in policy and take advantage of the tremendous benefits and opportunities available through restoration and enhancement of responsible grazing on federal lands. The livestock community stands ready to help in this process however possible and look forward to a mutually beneficial relationship for all of the multiple uses of our lands.