May is always my favorite time of year living in Montana. The grass is turning, calves are getting branded across the territory, and most ranchers up here are working on one of their favorite projects of the year, getting cows out to grass. This May, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) made a decision that was favorable to ranchers and what they hold dearest, their grass.
On May 8, the BLM announced its final decision to rescind seven grazing permits held by American Prairie (formerly the American Prairie Reserve). This reverses a Biden administration-era decision that allowed bison managed by American Prairie to graze on federal lands. This final decision has been widely covered by media sources across Montana, and if you read the comment sections, they have not been short of controversy on the topic.
The BLM made its decision to rescind the grazing permits under the Taylor Grazing Act. Under the Taylor Grazing Act, the bureau may issue permits only for domestic livestock primarily managed for production purposes. The bureau ruled that the bison herd managed by American Prairie was for conservation and ecological restoration purposes and not for production purposes. They have until Sept. 30 to remove the bison from the federal ground.
American Prairie has disputed these claims. They are now claiming that they run these bison for production, although I looked all over their website and have not found anything about Bison production being the goal. There is a lot on that website about rewilding the prairie, but nothing about raising the bison for sales or meat production. This decision is not an attack on all bison production. It only affects the seven grazing permits held by American Prairie for their conservation herd.
This decision has been seen as a small win for ranchers and livestock producers across north-central Montana. The Montana Stock Growers Association and producers across the area have been fighting for this decision to slow the massive land grab American Prairie has been taking. If this decision makes it through the almost certain appeal coming, this could be a big win for ranchers throughout the West.
Some of the reasons the Taylor Grazing Act was enacted were to prevent environmental damage, regulate and manage grazing, and stabilize the livestock industry. The conservation herd of American Prairie did not fit the law of the land.
I know it has been said before repeatedly, but food security is national security. The Taylor Grazing Act is in place to allow us to continue raising food on our federal lands. If we continue to take our federal and private ground out of production, we will put more weight on our already narrowing agricultural producers to fill that gap. I know, personally, I have this conversation a lot with my friends who are young producers, given this record-low cow herd, grass is still hard to find for those looking to expand their operations. Why is that? We continue to see ground going out of production due to urbanization, and these ranches are being bought by organizations with the goal of taking that ground out of production. Nobody’s pastures are getting any bigger.
This decision is also a small win for the local communities of North Central Montana.
I know this will probably only slow the expansion of American Prairie, but it’s certainly something. American Prairie has already put together over half a million acres in North Central Montana. With every ranch they gather up in the name of their nonprofit, that is one less family that could potentially send their kids to the local school, one less branding for the community to gather at, and fewer people around the community to support the local businesses. With these record cattle prices, I’ve watched producers across the region reinvest in their operations, and most of those purchases come from local retailers that serve their communities.
A lot of the time, it’s easy to think that we as livestock producers are forgotten about by the federal government. For now, it feels good to see one small victory for the American Cowboy. — KEVIN MURNIN
