Latest Version (yet to mail)....
Mr. Jeremy Martin
Supervisory Park Ranger, Monticello Field Office
Bueau of Land Management
POB 7
365 N. Main St.
Monticello, Utah 84535
Wednesday, June 5, 2019
Dear Mr. Martin:
This hyarz a vituperative rant so needz tuh be red with 'n' ear cocked for the nuances of inflection.
My wyf an' I spint the past sevrl weeks hikin' an' campin' upwards from Bluff, Utah to a few mylz south uv Jacob's Chair.
We'd took note of the fact -- in a 1998 issue of Archeology Southwest Magazine -- that cattle'd bin banned from much uv the Cedar Mesa beginnin' in the 1940s. Thus, we wuz EXTREMELY upset tuh see the profUSION of cow shit and depreedations occurring in Butler Wash, Comb Wash (Snow Flat Rd), Johns Canyon an' in the Kane Gulch area.
Whenz this gonna stop?!
Seein' this, it's damned hard tuh take seriously any of ya'll's exhortations an' admoenishunz tuh Leave No Trace, hopscotch, stay on trailz tuh prezrve cryptobiotic soils.
WHEN ar our public lands gonna be returnt tuh providin' habitat for the indigenous species? A frequent question from people we meet is: "Haz u seed enny wyldlife?" In over 50 yarz uv travel we ain't NEVER had no-one 'citedly ast: "Didjoo see thet thar cow?!"
The time has LONG past tuh keep BSin' folks 'bout sustainin' the myths o' duh West.
PLEASE do all you kin tuh reemove lifestock fum our public lands.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
MFH
Whaddya tink?
Popular opinion about ranching in the West has shifted over the past couple of decades. There's increasing pressure to retire grazing allotments on public lands, especially in places such as Cedar Mesa and Bears Ears Natl Monument. Overgrazing has so devastated the West scientists predict the ecology will EVOLVE rather than recover. I first wrote this in a standard, straightforward manner, but it just seemed too boring. Ms. Cook thot I'd get a better response by leaving out the crudities (since expunged) and returning to standard english. Y Usted?
Showing posts with label public lands. Show all posts
Showing posts with label public lands. Show all posts
Thursday, June 6, 2019
Monday, June 1, 2015
The Reek of Cattle
It's been barely more than 150 years since the days of open range. In that time over-grazing has changed the Western Landscape so dramatically it'll likely evolve rather than recover.As I roam about, I often notice the flies and reek of cow manure. I'm disturbed by how many otherwise beautiful places are compromised by the disgusting odor of cow shit. And when I sit down to enjoy a meal and have to continually wave away flies, it's impossible not to think about what they're depositing on my food.
Additionally, the use of water to grow hay for stock has caused streams to dry up; where trout once were common, they are no more. Nearly every lake in the region has dropped by significant amounts. And many water-tables are only memories. All in the name of producing 3 percent of the nation's beef. The other 97 percent comes from the Midwest where there's lots of water and grass.
"Exclosures" keep the livestock out.
They've been kept from getting at the vegetation on the "near" side of the fence.
There are many organizations attempting to preserve what's left, but two I admire are Advocates for the West and Western Watersheds Project. Both these non-profits file lawsuits (often collaboratively) against the National Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management to help mitigate the impact of livestock grazing. Both are renowned for their uncompromising approach to achieving their goals...something, in this case, I consider laudable.As you enjoy the magnificent grandeur of our lands, please consider supporting either (or both) of these organizations. Your contribution will make a difference for all of us.
Here's a recent case from Advocates for the West
and one from Western Watersheds Project
http://www.westernwatersheds.org/2015/03/om-307/
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