A hundred and fifty years ago, nobody wanted the West. Much of it was land that couldn’t be farmed. Back in those days, everyone had a connection to agriculture—farming and ranching was a way of life. The West has always been dry and desolate country, but some men realized they could grow cattle and sheep. Hunting bison was a way to destroy the Native American culture; the 1860s was a rough and selfish time in America. Nobody but the toughest of men and women would travel west to homestead and ranch on what was once called “the commons.” It was every man for himself and consume as much grass as you can.
The Taylor Grazing Act put an end to the uncontrolled use of public lands, and the allotment system was started. Everything seemed to work fine, and the western lands were productive. Then Congress in the 1970s ushered in a bunch of new environmental laws such as the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act. The Environmental Protection Agency was started, which gave us the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act. From that point in American history, we changed our world—some for the better, some for the worst.
Ever since these environmental laws went into effect, there has been no new infrastructure developed in the West. No dams, no roads. All the West has received is a host of national monuments and wilderness areas. These environmental laws have gone far beyond their intended use by Congress and are now complicating our nation’s progress.
The western United States is where the cowboy originated, which has become such an iconic symbol of the West that others have gravitated to it, but they want to change the culture. They like the boots and hats but bring a lot of environmental ideals.
American Prairie in Montana is changing a culture. It’s like the new neighbor that moved in and wants to start changing the neighborhood at your expense. This is a private conservation program that is being paid for by a bunch of wealthy people in Europe. They have been purchasing ranches and now they want the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to change their allotment system to accommodate bison.
The state of Montana is in an uproar about wealthy citizens coming into an area and changing the culture. These folks want a million-acre nature preserve, and they are doing it with foreign money and government help. The BLM is moving away from traditional use and will more than likely accommodate their objective because the government has the same objective.
How is the Yellowstone bison situation working out? Last I heard, they had disease zones because bison have been known to carry brucellosis. Yellowstone Park is about as wild as it gets. If you want to see wolves, bison or bears, go to the campgrounds or the dump. These apex predators will follow the path of least resistance.
Conservation has a new definition, and it doesn’t have much to do with preservation or evolution. The new definition is more about returning lands to their most original state with all the original creatures, regardless of man’s presence. That’s fine, but you can’t do it where I earn my living. “Not in my backyard.” It seems like everything in the West has an environmental footprint. We killed the timber industry for an owl. We are hampering energy production. The Endangered Species Act has become a weapon for environmental groups.
Let’s look at wolves. Ever since wolves were introduced to the Northwest, there has been nothing but trouble. It has separated people over ideology: “My ideals are better than yours, and I won’t bend.” This is where we are at when it comes to developing natural resources and even developing some urban ones too. We are in a cultural war in this democracy we call home.
The Biden administration’s only criterion for making decisions is climate change. They won’t give oil companies the freedom to produce because they want to shove electric vehicles down our throats, even if they are powered by electricity made from fossil fuels. And what about all the other oil products, like polymer resins? It’s shameful the way decisions are being made in Washington, D.C. What in this government is working for you?
Now they want to introduce wolves to Colorado. The beasts have already been here for the past 10 years. This is what happens with states that have voter initiatives. Folks try to impose decisions on others that they know little about. Only 26 states offer ballot referendums, and folks are using them to change our culture, whether you like it or not. Pray for rain. — PETE CROW
