Craig walks tightrope to avoid Global Warming’s contribution to wildfire
July 31st, 2007 by beIdaho’s Senator Larry Craig on the relationship between the increased fire-frequency and intensity in the West and global warming:
Craig, Crapo, and Otter blow hot air on Murphy Fire
July 31st, 2007 by be
Idaho Senators Craig & Crapo together with Governor “Butch” held a press conference in response to the devastating Murphy Complex Fire.
Idaho Governor Butch Otter succinctly - and with his characteristic flare - describes what Idaho’s politicians have in store for fire management on your public land:
A lot of BS and hot air… ~ I dunno Butch… that seems like the ingredients for a flare up to me…
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Wild horse round-up begins in southwest Idaho
July 26th, 2007 by beQuestion:
How many wild-horses does it take to get BLM to cry “Over-grazing” !?
Question:
How many domestic-cattle does it take to get BLM to do the same !?
Answer: There is no answer…
Wildfire myopia
July 25th, 2007 by beRalph Maughan writes of more ranchers blaming grazing regulations on recent wild-fires. The article in question gives Bert Brackett, Republic state rep. of Idaho and public lands rancher, a forum to throw his livestock constituents a bone by making short-sighted and scientifically baseless statements about the cause of recent fires in Idaho.
The ranchers claim their stock could clear out fuels to prevent fire - a remedy representing more of the same aggravating distrubances livestock have on our public land - cheatgrass is only green for a couple of weeks - and cows prefer fire-resistant natives (Miller et al. 1994). This leads to the monocultural cheat spreads so characteristic of grazing allotments on public land ! Cattle spread cheatgrass (Belsky & Gelbard 2000) in the long term NOT the other way around.
The bottom line is this:
The livestock industry uses simple imagery and superficially apparent anecdotes to direct land management policy - they do it with wolf management using “Little Red Riding Hood.” Now they’re doing it with range-fire and the apparent fact that cows munch grass.
But imagery that evokes intellectual ease and politically contrived bureaucratic ascendancy isn’t science. It’s been tried ~ their stock has been allowed to graze on our public lands for decades ~ and the fires burn brighter - that’s the relevant causal relationship. It is their stock, not the lack of it, that has thrown off the balance.
The livestock industy’s “common-sense” solutions aren’t at all ‘common’ with the sound, scientifically informed management of our public land that our children and plant & animal communities deserve.
It’s time to take a step back and look at the big picture. To give the naturally occurring fire resistance of natives - and the intact soils which prevent weed infestation - the ability to do what we have been unable to. Rehab the burned areas with native seed - not more productive non-native cattle-forage as has been the case. And don’t pick the scabs by re-running stock an inadequate 2 years after fire - native plant communities need more time than that.
Executive Order 13422
July 25th, 2007 by beBush’s executive order 13422 went into effect yesterday.
“The executive order bans any regulation from moving forward without the approval of an agency’s regulatory policy officer, who would be a political appointee.”
Check out UCS’s release:
Union of Concerned Scientists
A Great rundown of the executive order from Public Citizen
And finally, an interview with John Dean:
