| Groups try ecologically sound
ranching model
(Note: 40,000 acres is owned by a 'businessman,' and there's no doubt that getting $1.53 million for 788 acres is a business decision. TNC is gobbling up private property faster than Pac-man. Note that three more miles of stream has been added to the TNC water control portfolio.) October 9, 2003 Sheila Gardner, Reno Gazette-Journal To submit a Letter to the Editor: rgjmail@rgj.com Can the tiny leopard frog live alongside a 1,500-pound bull? Will the western tiger swallowtail butterfly prosper sharing the same habitat as a cow? A partnership between Bently Agrowdynamics of Minden and The Nature Conservancy at the 788-acre River Fork Ranch on Carson Valley's west side hopes to demonstrate that a viable cattle operation can coexist with environmental protection and restoration of the property's fish, bird and wildlife habitat. Since December, Minden businessman Don Bently's agriculture operation has leased the ranch from the conservancy to test the theories. It is based on a rest-rotational grazing plan for 150 crossbred cattle while fencing off 30 to 40 percent of the ranch from grazing. By limiting the cattle's access to the water, the wildlife and vegetation along both banks of the water are less likely to be trampled or disturbed. The Nature Conservancy estimates that 200 species of plant and animal life inhabit the ranch at the confluence of the east and west forks of the Carson River. "Most ranchers fight like crazy against the California trout," said Bently. "We treat them as friends. "Our goal is to make a viable agricultural piece of ground available for the long term," he said. "With the regeneration process, it stays a ranch forever and gets better and better. Little by little, we turn it into a profit-making ranch." With Bently's extensive land holdings -- 40,000 acres in Nevada and California -- there is plenty of room to move the cattle off the ranch to give the land a rest. "It's a work in progress," said Matt McKinney, cattle division manager for Bently Agrowdynamics. "As far as a set time limit, there is no time limit. In the first year, we've gotten to know each other and the ranch. "This is not something we can take a recipe to and get fixed. It will be a benefit ecosystem-wide -- from the plants to the birds to the cattle," he said. The first phase involved the installation of 12,000 feet of new fencing at a cost of $25,000, according to Laura Crane of The Nature Conservancy. The ranch was purchased in July 2000 by The Nature Conservancy and the Timken-Sturgis Foundation for $1.53 million. The acquisition secured wetland and riparian habitats along a three-mile section of both forks of the Carson River and the Brockliss Slough. "We believe our partnership with Mr. Bently is very compatible," Crane said. "We're not expert ranchers. They help us manage the land and the day-to-day issues you have with a ranch. "They are providing the more time-intensive management," she said. "They figure out when the cows have to be rotated off one area to another and deal with the weed problems." "We anticipate a resurgence in willows and other riparian vegetation that cattle are fond of eating," she said. "But we will be watching closely to see how significantly the absence of grazing allows invasive weeds to thrive and spread." The two-year lease is for $20,000 a year, Crane said, and is renewable. McKinney said the project represents a changing philosophy among some ranchers. "Riparian restoration has never been a hot item in the past," he said. "It's a money issue and ranchers want access to the water." |