04/0405 Oregon cattlemen claim grazing victory

American Rancher April 4, 2005 The Oregon Cattlemen's Association is cheering the action of a Federal District Court Judge in a case over grazing brought by the Oregon Natural Desert Association, or ONDA, against the Malheur National Forest. The OCA had intervened in the case and Pat Larsen scientific advisor for the cattlemen, says the judge ruled against ONDA, which among other things had wanted to halt grazing in the forest for 20-30 years. Larsen, who spent last summer back tracking sites ONDA had claimed were damaged by grazing, calls it a tremendous victory for public land grazers. Larsen: "And so this is outstanding for the permittees. It says a lot about the management they are providing when the livestock are out there. I didn't find any of that kind of devastation that ONDA was claiming. That is a plus for the livestock industry." The judge asked the parties to work out a stipulated order to address ONDA's concerns and that has yet to be finalized. Also, still unresolved is the Murders Creek Case in which a final hearing was held this past month. But Larsen says; Larsen: "We expect the resolution on it to be very similar to this because the issues that were brought out in that case are the same as what were brought out in the Malheur case." The Oregon Cattlemen's Association says it has had a tremendous amount of support from the public in helping to defend public land grazing, including a recent donation form Northwest Farm Credit Services and a donation from the Jordan Valley Rodeo Association. I'm Bob Hoff.