I’m going to start out this blog post by openly admitting that I came to Burns with the mindset that beef is the root of all evil. I stopped eating beef when I was 15 years old because of the environmental implications; it takes an estimated 2,000 gallons of water and 12 pounds of grain to produce just 1 pound of beef. That’s pretty darn inefficient, and a completely unsustainable way to feed humanity over the long term. With that in mind, let’s just say I had a fairly uncomfortable transition to an area where ranching is so common and cows are beloved by all. In fact, the BLM was formed from the former U.S. Grazing Service, so basically my job revolves around making sure the beef cows I am so adamantly opposed to have good land to graze.
There was a lot to be learned about cattle ranching in the Wild West, however. First of all, the cattle here are all free range, making it an entirely different ball game than beef production in the industrial system. I still wasn’t convinced, though, because I was frustrated by the fact that people seemed to prioritize grazing land over conserving the natural plant communities. For example, many of the wildfire rehabilitation sites that I monitor were seeded with “desirable non-natives” such as forage kochia and crested wheatgrass. These are highly palatable plants that cows love to eat, but they aren’t native to Oregon. So what’s the point in using plants that don’t even belong here? To me, it didn’t seem like a very environmentally-conscious rehab plan.
Vegetation monitoring at a fire rehab site
Here’s where it gets interesting. As I’ve mentioned before, wildfires are a huge issue out here. They burn hot and fast, and scorching all of the good plants like sagebrush and native bunch grasses in their paths. In the past, these plant communities would’ve bounced back naturally; however, with the introduction of invasives like cheat grass and Medusa head, the natives just can’t compete. Which means that if the fire sites are left to their own devices, cheat grass and Medusa head will completely take over (no animals will eat them and no other plants will grow back). That’s why the BLM uses non-native plants in their seedings – they do a better job at competing with and blocking out the invasives, whereas the native plants would never have survived. By preventing the invasives from taking over, there is a better chance that the native plant communities will eventually regrow and live cohesively with the desirable non-natives.
A fire site overrun with invasive cheat grass
That’s still hard for me to swallow. I am disappointed that the only way to prevent the spread of invasives is to plant non-natives, but I suppose that is the lesser of two evils. And I’m happy to know that they don’t plant things like crested wheatgrass because they want to make the cows happy, but rather because it’s the only choice they have. However, I still think more research is needed on how to control the invasives, and while the BLM does a good job stabilizing and rehabilitating the land after a fire, there really is no push to restore the native plant communities. So in that regard, I do wish the BLM put a little more emphasis on conservation and preservation, not just grazing.
All in all, I had a lot of misconceptions about how things are run out here. I’m not saying that I’ll be cooking myself a juicy T-bone steak anytime soon, but I’ve certainly learned a lot about fire ecology and beef production in the West. I hope to continue having my opinions challenged and horizons widened during my time here. Because that’s the beauty of exploring new places – you may not recognize how close-minded you are until you truly open your mind to the thoughts of others.
On a lighter note, here are some pictures from the past two (exceptionally muddy) weeks:
We were headed out of the field just as a huge storm rolled through…
…and things got messy real fast.
The very next day our truck got thoroughly stuck in the mud.
This week, we did stream restoration. Hauling all of those rocks was a dirty & tiring job!
Austin Yantes
Burns District BLM
Hi Austin,
I completely sympathize with your uneasiness with the prioritization and addressing of cow issues in the BLM! I was thinking about writing a similarly conflicted blog post about the subject. I’ve read excerpts from the book “Cowed” that I think you might find interesting, here’s a short review I found online: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/denis-hayes/cowed/.
Diana Gu
Shoshone, ID BLM
Howdy friend! 😉
I empathize, from going veggie at 15 for the same reasons to having a feeling of indignation at some agency practices. While I am definitely not in an office deeply embedded in ‘cattle culture’ to the extent of some of those E. OR spots (and which has a few full time employees who recognize its issues and actively work to responsibly restrict its duration and proliferation) the tradition the office is steeped in definitely rears its head-and it’s hard to escape the feeling that cattle run the show.
Like you say though, it’s hard to break a mold, when an agency is formed to cater to an industry, but it’s later found out that that very industry opposes many of its other subordinate mission objectives and tenets. It’s a sort of collective cognitive dissonance in the agency, the growing pains of learning that settings weights to balance can be near impossible when personal welfare of individuals on one side, and the environmental well-being of many species are also concerned. It especially hurts that so many ranchers have taken BLM land for granted (it’s theirs right (Nevada!)!?) and would likely go out of business if their leases weren’t renewed-and would shudder at the notion of “Multiple use”. As bad as cattle seem, imagine how you would feel if you were in fracking land!
And yeah, the non-native plantings hurt, I use to work in landscape and order a lot of seed- SO much native seed is a magnitude of order more expensive than non-native plants that have been in cultivation for awhile; but yep gotta have a lot of faith in the transitory nature of vegetation communities and that locally adapted ecotypes will mostly win out over time-even if we won’t be there to appreciate it.
One of my big life lessons this season has been to appreciate “Cultural Landscapes”, prairies, meadows, and well now the steppe. I come to terms, and fall out with them, that humans are natural and so are our perverse actions-oh the anthropocene! It’s interesting to see that some forbs that thrive in the disturbed areas, but lack in the adjacent undisturbed areas, i’ve been working a lot to ensure that these species can persist and attempt to struggle with Bromus for cover. Some rare plants seem to be preserved by these types of disturbance, and which few other agency (DFW, DNR, FS, etc) land managers would intentionally impose (due to the threat to their other rare species)-and so now are in decline!
And what I’m trying to get at with that is, every agency I’ve ever worked with has drawbacks equal to or greater than cattle culture. I’d love to imagine that other places are ideal-but I can’t. We can only try to do the most good in a framework. No black and white anymore, shades of grey hoping for seas of green.
Anyways, a ton of inconclusive ramblings, from my mind on the same topic, maybe something in there will comfort. I know your post helped me. I’m real happy you (and Diana) are in the field and cognizant of this and able to criticize your own work. My only mission is to leave a place better than when I left it…. baby steps… “keep on truckin'”
Thank you both, I’m bummed I didn’t read your comments earlier. I really appreciate your helpful insight, and it’s great to know others are having similar thoughts. Hope your internships are going well!
Well said, Austin. I was also frustrated out in the field, when it seemed like a site was getting over-grazed, or mismanaged, yet there seemed like there was little/nothing that could be none to fix the problem (at least in a timely fashion). It was a true wake up call to see that free-ranging cattle can be so detrimental.
Planting non-natives makes me want to scream, but I’m glad you explained why it happens. Still frustrating.
Kathleen
Prineville, OR BLM
Thanks for this post, and all of the comments! I too have felt this frustration. I worked in Vale OR last summer which is also full of cattle culture. One thing I learned was that while the cattle are free-ranging on those lands (mostly our public lands), once the calves are old enough they are sold to larger farms where, chances are, they aren’t free-range. The mother cows reproduce every year and the calves are, for the most part, sold to be raised in less ideal conditions for slaughter. When I first arrived in OR I was pleasantly surprised to see so many free-ranging cows, however I quickly learned the truth. Just thought I’d share, from one vegetarian to another.