HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 05152007 - PR.3 IIT THE MATTER OF HONORING RESOLUTION NO. 2007/244
THE CALIFORNIA RANGELANDS
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WHEREAS. These rangelands include a rich and varied landscape of grasslands. oak woodlands.
ernaI pools, riparian areas, and wetlands,.-,hich support numerous imperiled species, mane native plants
once common in die Central Valle--. and are home to the highest diversin-and densis- of w-intermg i
raptor_ an1.-,vhere in \orth Ametica: and
WHEREAS.The rangelands are often located in Californias fastest-growing counties and are at
significant risk of conversion to development and oilier uses; and
WHEREAS.These rangelands, and die species that reit- on these habitats, largely persist toda.-
due to the positive and experienced grazing and other land stewardship practices of the ranchers that
have owned and managed These lands and are committed to a-health- future for their working
landscapes and y
WHEREAS. these rangelands are a critical foundation of the economic and social fabric of
California's ranchit g industr. and rural communities. and will only continue to provide this important �
working landscape for Cahfornia`s plants. fish. and wildlife if private rangelands remain in ranching: j
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT THE CONTRA COSTA COUNTY �
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS declares that it is our goal to collaboratively work together to protect
and enhance the rangeland landscape that encircles California's-Central Valle- and includes adiacent
grasslands and oak woodlands b;:
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♦ heeping common species common on private working landscapes:
♦ Working to recover imperiled Species and enhancing habitat on rangelands while seeking to
lninunize regularions on private lands and streamline processes-.
♦ Supporting tie long-term viability of the ranchi-ng industr.-and its culture b;providing economic, �
social. and other incentives and bh-reducing burdens to proacrive stewardship on private ranchlands:
♦ Increasingpri:-ate. state, and federal funding, technical expertise, and other assistance to continue
and ex,.unci rhe ranclvn? communin-'s beneficial land stewardship practices that benefit sensitive
species and are f iil- comparable w=ith normal ranching practices.
♦ E-ncoura_ing volunta+.-. collaborative and locall:--led conservation that has proven to be ver
effective in ma.ntahnuhg and enhancing working landscapes;and �
♦
Educating the public about the benefit: of grazing in these rangelands.
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` JOHN GIOIA 1 % AI'LE$x-ILPENLA i
Dhz-Slc�I Supero;nor DiiL_Ci 11 J!:172�1e:o
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SUSAN A. BONILLA
UAL FEDERAL D. GLOVER
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Uontra Costa Resource Consery
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March 55. 2007 i
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Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors
Administration Buildin.
651 Pine Street y — -
Martinez, CA 9=1553-1229
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Dear Honorable Board of Supervisors:
On February 21, 2007, the-Contra_Costa=Resource.E onsen-2tBoafdd
ion-Distrjet �d -_
D_i �ors�t°eted-to-beeeme-a-si`nator to �zz-enelesed Califo^iia R-ana�land Reselutfon.
Note the unusual coalition of diverse groups who have come together over the past two
rears to collaborate toward these objectives. We were pleased to see that theAlarneda- j
Count,.Board=of Super,i-sors-is among the-signatories.=Th-e'R�D=Board though that-our
Qvu Cousnty-Board of Sapen-is5is-might-like-to-add=d eir support:
If vou would lice more information on the process that led to the Rangeland Resolution
and this unique coalition, I would be pleased to discuss it-,izth you. i
Sincerely.
Thomas Brumleye, Director i
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Guardians of the range- sacbee.com Page 1 of 3
JI�GJIC�I
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This story is taken from Sacbee/ News.
Guardians ®f the range
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A conservation group that aims to protect 13 million acres �
is doing the unthinkable: getting ranchers and j
environmentalists to Mork together
By Matt Weiser e Bee Staff Writer
Published 12a®® am PDT Tuesday, May 8, 2007
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On a golden morning in the hills of western Yolo County, Scott and Casey Stone sort cattle
for shipment to summer pasture.
The brothers, on horseback, silently weave through the noisy herd. With practiced eyes, they
match cows with their calves before the truck arrives.
All around them Is their 7,500-acre family ranch, a picture-perfect slice of a California
landscape that is increasingly at risk.
Open space like this -- rolling hills, ancient oak trees, flower-filled meadows -- defines the
state's scenery and supports a huge share of its wildlife. It Is also the rallying cry for an I
unlikely coalition bent on keeping rangeland away from developers eager to satisfy demand
for housing.
"There's been a lot of really nice ranches In California that over the years have been
purchased and subdivided," said Scott Stone, 50. "We don't want to do that. We're trying to
do ecologically friendly, sustainable ranching that benefits both us and the watershed and i
wildlife."
That's why the Stone brothers and their father, Hank, in 2005 preserved rangeland by selling
development rights on their ranch. It's why they support-the California Rangeland
Conservation Coalition, which alms to protect about 13 million acres of oak woodland and
grazing land between Redding and Bakersfield.
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Taking on such a task shouldn't be a big deal for the coalition. After all, It's already achieved
the unthinkable: getting environmentalists and cattle ranchers to work together.
Last year, 32 environmental and agriculture groups launched the alliance by signing the
"California Rangeland Resolution." They committed to keeping grazing lands In the hands of
cattle and sheep ranchers and helping them preserve the land by funding conservation
projects.
For this, entities like the California Cattlemen's Association joined longtime adversaries such
http://www.sacbee.com/101/V-pfint/story/171250.html 5/8/2007
Guardians of the range-sacbee.com Page 2 of 3
as Defenders of Wildlife, known for battling ranchers to reintroduce wolves in the Rocky
Mountains.
Despite historic differences, the two found they care equally about the same California
landscape.
California lost 105,000 acres of grazing land to urbanization between 1990 and 2004,
according to the state Department of Conservation. The California Oak Foundation projects it
could lose 750,000 acres more by 2040.
"We have a common threat, and that is the conversion of ranchland to homes and strip malls
and sprawl," said Kim Delfino, California program director at Defenders of Wildlife. "It's
actually nice to have a project where we're all working together rather than at cross-
purposes. It is ambitious, but there's a great potential for success."
Steve Thompson, regional boss of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, is credited with inspiring
the coalition. In 2004, when he first came to Sacramento, he met separately with ranchers
and environmentalists.
He got an earful about perceived inadequacies of federal environmental law. He challenged
them to draft position papers on their environmental priorities, which he later shared with
the other side.
"I kept saying, 'I understand what you're against. What are you for?' " Thompson said. "It
turned out both the cattlemen and the environmental groups had a tremendous amount of
overlap. It didn't surprise me, but I think it surprised them."
The groups later met for a barbecue on a ranch in Sunol in August 2005. The discussion
continued a few months later at the cattlemen's annual conference, including a panel
discussion called "Boots and Birkenstocks" focusing on common ground.
By January 2006, the resolution was signed and an agenda began to take shape. The Fish
and Wildlife Service and cattlemen kicked in money to hire a full-time employee to staff the
effort, and environmental groups are raising money to hire another.
It's all a dramatic reversal from rangeland conflict in the 1990s.
"A lot of It had to do with miscommunication, a lack of understanding, and just not sharing
Information with each other," said Tracy Schohr, director of rangeland conservation at the
cattlemen's association -- and the first staffer hired by the coalition. "By working together,
we can achieve so much more than going on parallel tracks."
Oak groves and their associated grasslands are one of the most diverse habitats anywhere.
More than 300 species depend on them, from birds of prey to songbirds and bears to
salamanders.
Thompson hopes the coalition helps prevent more California wildlife from joining the
endangered species list, which increases taxpayer costs and regulatory burdens.
"Just adding another species on the (endangered) list doesn't give me much satisfaction,"
said Thompson. "What really gives me satisfaction is watching species recover. We do that
by working with people."
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vuaralans or me range-sacoee.com Page 3 of 3
One of the coalition's immediate goals is more money, from the new federal Farm Bill, to buy
development rights on California grazing lands.
The Stone family sold a conservation easement on 6,983 acres of their ranch to California
Rangeland Trust in 2005. The process took three years, Scott Stone said, and drew funds
from the state Wildlife Conservation Board and Packard Foundation.
Money is the limitation to more such deals, not demand, Stone said. The trust has 50
pending applications from ranchers for conservation easements, representing a half-million
acres of grazing land. Easements typically sell for several million dollars for large parcels of
land.
Coalition members complain that the federal Farm Bill has short-changed California on
conservation funding for years, despite its prominence as a farming state. Over the last 10 I
years California received an average of only $1.2 million a year for farm and ranch
easements under the Farm Bill, said Delfino of Defenders of Wildlife.
The group hopes to secure more money for replanting native grasses and managing streams
and ponds differently to Improve wildlife habitat. Money is also needed to continue programs I
like "safe harbor." In this plan the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ensures that property
owners who accommodate endangered species don't face new restrictions when those
species return.
Though the goal is to keep ranching lands private, everyone will benefit, supporters say, i
because of improved water quality and richer wildlife diversity.
The public also benefits from protection of scenery that defines much of California, advocates
say. Grazing has replaced fire in keeping the state's oak-studded interior open and grassy.
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Without grazing, millions of acres could become choked with shrubbery, changing the
scenery and fostering a catastrophic fire threat.
"For too long, all of us have taken these rural lands for granted, and now population
pressures are pushing out on them," said Janet Santos Cobb, president of the California Oak
Foundation, another coalition member. "It's our signature landscape, In many ways, and it I
needs protection."
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