Hunters helping Ranchers 1

Hunters helping Ranchers 1

David Sparks Ph.D.
David Sparks Ph.D.
Harsh winter conditions in Idaho's Upper Salmon River country have resulted in big game herds coming into the lower valleys looking to feed... as in hay that has been grown and stored in bales by ranchers. This causes problems for cattle ranchers because hungry elk, deer and even moose are taking the easy route... Eating stacked hay by the ton. One rancher told me that once the animals arrive, nothing works to drive them out. Once they come in to eat, he can't keep them out of there. So my thought is this is a perfect opportunity for sportsmen to get involved in an effort to help ranchers with the problem. It turns out, a meeting sponsored by the Lemhi County Farm Bureau was held last week where cattlemen and Idaho Fish and Game talked about what to do. Fish and Game Commissioner Will Galen told the crowd that some fixes may need to come from lawmakers in Boise. "A lot of this is legislative. The depredation program is not statute. So there are statutory things in that or other ranchers who say, listen I don't necessarily want sports men on my property. But I want some compensation here. Again that is in the statute, reasonable access to sportsmen. It falls in line with the compensation program. If we are going to address that, we are going to have to address the statute itself and not just change decisions." Somehow, someway it always seems to get back to politics. Doesn't it seem reasonable that sportsmen, who so often request and are granted hunting access to ranchers properties, should be allowed to come in and help solve a ranchers problems with the way he makes his living.
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