The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) recently reached a settlement with the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) and Maricopa Audubon Society to remove trespassing cattle from the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area on the Arizona/Mexico border.
The agreement follows an October 2021 lawsuit against BLM, where the conservation groups alleged the agency put the Huachuca water umbel—an aquatic plant—and its wetlands habitat at risk. The groups claim cattle have destroyed the largest population of the plant, and in turn they have filed nearly 50 complaints against the BLM over the past two years for its failure to remove the cattle.
At a meeting for the conservation area last September, Scott Feldhausen, BLM Gila district manager, said he had not been removing trespassing cattle due to fear of conflict with local ranchers. Feldhausen said he was “never again putting his staff in such a situation,” according to a follow-up email sent by CBD members.
The recent agreement was settled in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona and requires the BLM to carry out a program to conserve the plant by removing trespassing cattle and maintaining fencing to keep cattle out of riparian areas within the conservation area.
“Finally we have an enforceable agreement with the BLM to remove the trespass cows annihilating the San Pedro’s streamside vegetation,” said Robin Silver, a co-founder of the Center for Biological Diversity. “Cows don’t belong along the San Pedro River, much less anywhere else along any desert streams.” — Anna Miller,WLJ managing editor
