Several
ranchers have been notified that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
and/or the National Park Service (NPS) may again try to impound
cattle from Nevada ranges. The cattle are running at large upon
historic open range ranches of Nevada or lands claimed by the
Western Shoshone Indians under the Ruby Valley Treaty. Earlier
this month the BLM was on the radio and in the regional press
announcing their intentions. Impoundment Notices have also been
posted in local newspapers and post offices.
Jim Whitmore long time rancher from Mesquite, Nevada has
cattle running upon lands the Mormons settled over 140 years ago
adjacent to Lake Mead, on both the Nevada and Arizona lines. Mr.
Whitmore is a Mormon himself and has lived in the area for over
60 years. He owns water rights on his range. "I don't plan
to let them take anymore of my cattle, they have done enough to
me, my family and my cows," said Whitmore.
The National Park Service has stated in a Memorandum dated
March 13, 2002, to Dennis Curtis, Acting Manager, Parashant
National Monument from Superintendent Bill Dickinson, of the
Lake Mead National Recreation Area that "It is our
understanding that in the vicinity of 25 to 30 head of cattle
remain within the Tassi Allotment. This allotment was
administratively closed on March 15, 2001, in accordance with
the desert tortoise recovery plan and implementing biological
opinion. While the majority of the cattle have been removed, a
number of the more difficult to capture animals remain."
Curtis suggested in the Memorandum that "It is felt that
the use of a motorcycle in wash bottoms will enable the cattle
to be cut and herded into temporary corrals, whereas horses
would not be fast enough to herd the few remaining cattle."
Range Management Specialist Linda Price "will be on-site to
monitor such activity," said Curtis.
Reasons, stated Curtis, for this action affecting several
thousand acres of land was, "removal of these cattle is an
important action for the desert tortoise, and for the federally
protected listed Southwestern Willow Flycatcher. These cows have
been noted using newly emerging lakeside habitat which could be
available for Southwestern Willow Flycatchers later this
spring."
A copy of this memorandum was sent to Mr. Whitmore by Acting
Manager Curtis. This would initiate the first destruction of a
ranch in the Parashant National Monument and Arizona Strip.
Cliven Bundy, Clark County Director for the Nevada Live Stock
Association said from his ranch in Mesquite, Nevada, "now
they are claiming through more of their Lynx and Spotted Owl
land grab science that 25 to 30 cows, all this man has left, are
somehow going to cause harm to the tortoises and Willow Fly
Catcher on several hundred miles of lake shore line as well as
other ground? We don't believe it and we are not going to allow
any further impoundment of cattle. It is rustling pure and
simple under the color of law. They'll probably kill more
tortoises and Willow Fly Catchers running over them with their
souped up motorcycles and hired henchmen trying to run down some
poor scared cow and her calf than the cattle themselves would
ever do. Is this Price (BLM) woman going to ride on the back of
the motor cycle at 40 miles an hour to assure us with her
"specialist" federal title that they aren't harming
anything? Horses and cattle naturally avoid holes and nests,
motorcycles don't. It's all ridiculous. The cows aren't hurting
anything but, possession is 9/10th's of the law and we plan to
uphold Mr. Whitmore's possession."
Several Directors of the Nevada Live Stock Association and
the Chief of the Western Shoshone met with Eureka County Sheriff
Ken Jones in Eureka, Nevada last week. He was informed of the
possible impoundment actions by BLM against local family
ranchers in his county. Jones was given copies of the
impoundment Notices.
The livestock group told Sheriff Jones that they and others
planned to show up at any possible impoundment action by BLM.
Sheriff Jones, President of the Western Sheriffs' Association
and the longest running elected Sheriff in Nevada, told the
group, "I will insist that any seizure of property by
federal agents must meet the same standards as if it were seized
by the sheriff himself." When asked if that included due
process of law as generally understood and a court order, he
replied, "Absolutely!"
While the group was in meeting with Jones, he received a
telephone call from Washington, D.C., from U.S. Congressman
Chris Cannon of Utah. Jones later returned the call. In that
conversation Cannon asked Jones how he felt about BLM rangers
and county Sheriffs' Departments entering into 'cooperative
agreements' or 'memorandum of understanding' where federal
funding was given to the Sheriffs to help the BLM in their law
enforcement duties.
Jones latter told Nevada Live Stock Association Secretary
Jackie Holmgren in a telephone conversation that he didn't take
any federal funds and didn't plan to. That he felt it put him in
a position of having to choose between those whom he had sworn
to protect and the wishes of a federal agency.
The Nevada legislature has never authorized the so-called BLM
law enforcement rangers to have the power to arrest in Nevada.
All of this comes on the heels of a Nevada Legislative Report
Grazing Statistics and Economic Impact completed and released in
2001 which indicates that over 470,000 AUM's (Animal Unit Months
of Grazing) have been lost to Nevada and Nevada ranchers from
1980-1999 through government agency action. Almost half of these
have no stated purpose for the reduction. "The amount must
now be way over 500,000 AUM's amounting to millions and millions
of dollars lost to our cow counties and Nevada's tax base each
year. So, the result is...Nevada burns and her wild life and
so-called endangered species with it because there aren't enough
cows and sheep to keep the forge build-up down. It doesn't make
good common sense unless you are a federal bureaucrat looking
for more ways to line your own pocket at Nevada's expense. Yucca
Mountain is just another example," said David Holmgren,
Chairman, Nevada Live Stock Association.
The Dan sisters, ranchers from the Southern Shoshone Tribe
are also targeted. Carry Dan in the mid-1990's stood in a BLM
loading chute and even though a BLM official had damaged her arm
and hand trying to restrain her, held off BLM agents from
loading her cattle. The trucks went home empty.
A network is being formed amongst Nevada ranchers and Indians
to monitor BLM movements within their counties and to sound the
alarm if any impoundment actions are observed. The Western
Shoshone have a "minute man" system in place that
reaches over treaty lands. The Nevada Live Stock Association is
implementing a first and second responder program of individuals
who will come to the impound site as soon as notified. Immediate
notification to both local and statewide press of any BLM or
other agency menacing movements and actions against private
property will also be relayed.
Jackie Holmgren, Secretary for the Nevada Live Stock
Association said, "We shouldn't be afraid of taking such
response. These are legitimate methods of sounding our
displeasure with how these agencies are abusing our
constitutional rights and have reversed the intent of the Taylor
Grazing Act. Our founding fathers would have done much, much
more...of which the Boston Tea Party is but one example. Many
people do not know it, but the British Parliament rescinded
several of their Parliamentary Acts after they understood the
colonists' point of view. They would have never done that if the
Colonials hadn't acted to protect their own property and rights.
However, because of their deep beliefs, the great American
Revolution was still fought. Now we are fighting for that very
Constitution they formed. Cows are property. The BLM is not
above the law."