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Thursday, August 1, 2013 • Issue # 1007
Grazing Authority Draws Crowd in Boulder by Bob Phillips Contributing Writer
BOULDER - A move toward more intensive livestock grazing management — rather than reducing or removing cattle from public lands — could benefit public rangelands as well as livestock operators, a specialist in sustainable grazing management told a crowd of 60 people Saturday night in Boulder. The presentation at the Boulder Community Center featured the Permaculture Research Institute’s Owen Hablutzel, a consultant who tours the world advocating holistic but intensive livestock grazing schemes developed by African grazing researcher Allan Savory. Those methods, which to some seem to fly in the face of conventional wisdom, seek to mimic historic relationships between native vegetation and ungulates such as once existed in post-glacial North America and still exist in the African Serengeti. “These plants and animals have lived together for a very long time,” Hablutzel said. “Grass and herbivores function as a single whole. Nature isn’t dainty. Nature doesn’t try to avoid stepping on plants.” Hablutzel told the audience that years of research have demonstrated that significantly higher numbers of animals can be grazed on a given amount of rangeland, if they are forced to remain clustered and on the move and plants are then given sufficient time to recover. The result, he added, can be greater soil and vegetative health as well as an improved bottom line for livestock operators. The trampling of vegetation and other “herd effects” from livestock mimic historic processes by native ungulates, he said, and can actually be
used to improve degraded rangeland, especially in arid environments. Land grazed intensely but briefly then left for periods of months frequently shows greater soil and vegetative health than areas with no ungulate grazing at all, Hablutzel said. Hablutzel cited a number of examples of ranchers in Wyoming, Arizona and elsewhere who had succeeded in having their livestock numbers increased — including on Bureau of Land Management and other public land allotments — due to range improvements based on the methods he advocates. On the other hand, lower numbers of animals left on a piece of land for long periods — the model now essentially in place on public lands — is a formula for degradation of the range, he said. “Most of the West is understocked and overgrazed,” he said. “They’re spread out very thin and they’re overgrazing plants every day.” Hablutzel emphasized that the total removal of livestock from rangeland will not necessarily produce healthy vegetative communities. He cited an example of ecologist and author Dan Daggett, who once vocally advocated removal of cattle and other livestock from public lands, but has since written a book (“Gardeners of Eden”) in which he advocates the highintensity, long-rest methods developed by Savory. Fundamental to the entire equation is precipitation and how it affects soils, Hablutzel said. Ungulate trampling of vegetation for brief, but Grazing
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Western Farmer-Stockman
Intensive grazing management clusters livestock herds on rangelands, grazing areas intensely but briefly and then leaving that location for long recovery periods. Some western ranchers have succeeded in increasing their stocking rates using this management method.
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The Garfield County bookmobile and librarian Lyle Talbot offer continually rotating stock, friendly and knowledgeable service, and links to the world.
Mobile Treasure Trove
County bookmobiles provide valuable resources to rural comunities ESCALANTE - Garfield county’s bookmobile librarian Lyle Talbot is a lean guy with a big smile, and offers a gracious and relaxed welcome to visitors who venture onto his coach. Talbot, actually the bookmobile’s “new” librarian, has been at his job for about three months, replacing Kent Osborn, who retired from the position after 20 years. Though relatively new to his post, Talbot’s enthusiasm for what the bookmobile has to offer is infectious. Some may think that the bookmobile is just a resource for little kids, or that
it’s been driving around the county for years with the same musty old titles. On the contrary, what it offers is a continually rotating stock of new material, as well as a link to valuable resources available through the Utah State Library system. Pointing out the contemporary nature of his stock, during a recent browse of the stacks, Talbot noted, “Over, there, in adult fiction, the oldest release on our shelf is from 2011.” The bookmobile offers a wide variety of materials, including eight or nine shelves
Famed Landscape Photographer Donates Work to Monument “Friends” Group KANAB - Imagine a magic window that could bring a dramatic western vista or iconic landscape image right into your office or living room. Nationally renowned photographer Darby Hayes’ large-format, panoramic landscape photographs make such an experience possible. Mr. Hayes recently donated four of his stunning pieces to Grand Staircase Escalante Partners (GSEP). Three images are on display at the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument Visitor Center in Kanab, and the fourth is displayed in Escalante, Utah, at the Circle D Restaurant. Darby Hayes’ fine art photographs hang in the collections of 21 national parks, monuments, and national forests, in addition to four museums. Several of his images are currently displayed in the offices of the Director of the National Park Service and the Secretary of the Interior in Washington, DC. Mr. Hayes says, “I enjoy donating images to national parks and forests, monuments, and seashores because they give the public a glimpse into
their public lands.” Mr. Hayes specializes in western landscapes and wildlife images. His photographs feature dramatic lighting and color, and images of well-known western areas. They are printed directly from digital negatives onto archival photographic canvas, which makes them look threedimensional. Through his camera lens, Mr. Hayes captures the magnificent beauty of the lands that belong to all Americans, and he made his donation to Partners because, “Most of my wildlife and landscape images are taken on public lands, [and] it only seems natural that I should ‘pay’ for the privilege by giving something back and providing images of the scenery and wildlife that I enjoyed during my visits.” Grand Staircase Escalante Partners is the not-for-profit “friends” group of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Mr. Hayes’ donation (along with support from BLM, members and foundations) enables GSEP to Photographer cont’d on page 2
each of adult fiction and non-fiction, and four shelves of DVDs including movies, travel videos and documentaries. Audio books are available both on CD and as well as a stand-alone format called a “playaway,” which is an MP3 you can plug into your earbuds and be on your way. And, of course, there are lots of little kid’s books -- the collection offers about 1,300 picture books for 6-7 year olds on down. All that’s required to use the bookmobile is a library card, and getting a card is really easy. There is no I.D.
Bookmobiles cont’d on page 9
Scoping Process Opens on Torrey Town Chlorination System TORREY - Torrey Town has a special use permit (LOA186) with the Forest Service for a culinary water system. Torrey Town has submitted a request to amend special use permit LOA186 to include a chlorination facility on National Forest lands. The proposed site of the chlorination facility is in the Sand Creek drainage, approximately 50 feet east of FR 207 between Birch Springs and the junction of FR 207 and FR 1597 (NE ¼ Section 34, T28S, R4E, SLB&M). An access road to the site would be constructed. The chlorination facility would consist of: a buried 500 gallon propane tank; a partially buried concrete vault measuring approximately 8 inches above ground, 12 feet long and 6 feet wide; and a concrete closet measuring 10.5 feet tall by 6.5 feet wide by 5 feet deep. The chlorination facility would be enclosed by a non-reflective chain link fence 10 feet tall covering an area 20 feet long by 22 feet wide. The purpose of the project is to ensure that Torrey Town continues to supply its residence with potable water. The location was selected so that one chlorination facility could treat water that flows to two
different storage areas. Your comments are being requested to help identify potential issues related to the proposed action. Please be as specific as possible in expressing your comments so they can be effectively addressed. Comments received, including names and addresses of those who comment, will be considered part of the public record for this project and will be available for public inspection. Scoping comments should be sent to Fremont River Ranger District, Fishlake National Forest, Attn: Cody Clark, P.O. Box 129, Loa, UT 84747. Although your comments are always welcome, comments received by August 29, 2013 will be most helpful. E-mailed comments must be submitted in MS Word (*.doc) or rich text format (*.rtf). Send e-mail comments to: comments-intermtn-fishlake-loa@ fs.fed.us. For more information about this proposal, please contact Cody Clark, 138 South Main, Loa, UT 84747, phone: (435) 896-1023 or on the web at www.fs.usda.gov/projects/ Fishlake/landmanagement/ projects. —Fremont River Ranger District, Fishlake N.F.
Phone: 435-826-4400 Fax 1-888-370-8546 PO BOX 105 Escalante, Utah 84726 snapshot@live.com
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THE WAYNE & GARFIELD COUNTY INSIDER is owned and operated by Snapshot Multimedia, LLC and is distributed weekly to all of Wayne and Garfield Counties, Utah. Its purpose is to inform residents about local issues and events. Articles submitted from independent writers are not necessarily the opinion of Snapshot Multimedia, LLC. We sincerely hope you enjoy the paper and encourage input on ideas and/or suggestions for the paper.
required, and the form takes about two minutes to fill out. And…it’s absolutely free. “Really, it’s a great resource to the community. We want more people to come,” says Talbot. Headquartered at the Panguitch library, this bookmobile covers both Garfield and Kane counties. It is one of eight bookmobiles provided to rural areas of the state as part of a cooperative arrangement between the Utah State Library and the counties in which they
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BOXHOLDER
PRE-SORT STANDARD PAID RICHFIELD, UTAH PERMIT No. 122