Thunder Basin Up For Grabs- A Rare Opportunity to Protect and Restore Wyoming's Only National Grassland
by Jeff Kessler and Biodiversity Associates
staff
America’s prairie grasslands have been altered
more than almost any other ecosystem on the continent. As settlement expanded
westward, prairies were plowed up for agriculture, grazed over by livestock
and, more recently, roaded, drilled and mined for oil, gas and coal and
swallowed in some places by urban sprawl. Fortunately, pockets of wild
prairie still remain. The largest and most significant of these are on
our National Grasslands.
Though heavily impacted in places, Wyoming’s only
National Grassland — the Thunder Basin — is one of the most intact prairie
ecosystems in the entire northern Great Plains. Six roadless areas on the
Thunder Basin still retain their wild character and remain eligible for
wilderness designation.
Many troubled wildlife species make their homes
on the Thunder Basin, including ferruginous hawks, Swift foxes, burrowing
owls and black-tailed prairie dogs (a keystone species in the prairie ecosystem).
In addition, the nation’s highest-priority reintroduction site for black-footed
ferrets lies within the Thunder Basin.
A new management plan
The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) has released draft
management plans for all of the National Grasslands in the northern great
plains, including the Thunder Basin. The proposed plan makes some improvements
over the past decades of management, which focused excessively on production
of coal, oil, gas and domestic livestock. But it still falls short in some
critical areas, as discussed below.
At the same time, powerful political forces are
working to prevent protection and restoration of America’s precious prairie
heritage. Notably, as a result of the boom in coal bed methane and conventional
natural gas development, there is enormous pressure from industry to develop
— anywhere and everywhere. This would require thousands of miles of new
pipelines and roads, and thousands of new well pads on our public lands.
Where the buffalo roam?
Fifty million or more bison roamed the prairies in
the early days of America. But these majestic creatures were wiped out
by overzealous market hunters and government eradication policies. Today,
our National Grasslands represent one of the best places to restore bison.
However, in its draft management plan and draft
environmental impact statement, the Forest Service failed to consider restoring
bison to the Thunder Basin. This blatant omission must be corrected. Bison
are ecologically adapted for life on the prairie and are completely natural
in this environment. Restoring wild populations of bison to the Grasslands
by establishing reserves not only makes sense from an ecological standpoint,
but it is difficult to envision a healthy prairie ecosystem without bison.
Prairie dogs and ferrets at
risk
Black-tailed prairie dogs are an important member
of the prairie ecosystem; more than 170 wildlife species have been found
in prairie dog towns. But black-tailed prairie dogs now occupy less than
one percent of their historic range nationwide. In Wyoming, prairie dog
populations have declined by more than 75% since 1915 due to poisoning,
conversion of grassland to farms and subdivisions, diseases like plague
and recreational shooting. Since the 1970’s, nearly 30% of prairie dog
colony acreage on the Thunder Basin has been lost.
Many species associated with prairie dog colonies
have declined as well. The Swift fox, ferruginous hawk, burrowing owl and
mountain plover, although declining and in trouble, are all still found
in Thunder Basin.
Probably the best known endangered prairie animal
is the black-footed ferret. Once thought to be extinct, black-footed ferrets
live only in prairie dog towns and now exist in the wild in only four places
in the entire world.
Because more than half the remaining prairie dog
colonies occur on private land where poisoning and shooting will likely
continue, the public lands of the National Grasslands will play a crucial
role in the survival of the prairie dog ecosystem and recovery of the black-footed
ferret and other threatened wildlife. For this reason, prairie dogs and
associated species need the strongest possible protection in the Thunder
Basin management plan.
But the USFS’s preferred plan takes only half-measures.
It allows prairie dog poisoning and shooting everywhere on the grassland
except for a few thousand acres and proposes only a small portion of the
Thunder Basin for black-footed ferret reintroduction. The Thunder Basin’s
Cheyenne River area is the highest-priority region in the entire country
for the reintroduction of black-footed ferrets, but the USFS inexplicably
proposes to manage less than half of the available habitat for ferret restoration.
This will not go far enough to help recover one of the most endangered
mammals in North America.
Last chance for wilderness
Right now, not a single acre of the 550,000-acre Thunder
Basin Grassland is designated as wilderness. There is no permanently protected
example of native prairie in Wyoming. However, citizens have identified
six primarily wild, roadless prairie grassland areas which still meet wilderness-designation
criteria: Cow Creek Buttes, Ha Divide, Red Hills, Downs, Miller Hills and
Duck Creek. Together, they total 59,280 acres, just 10.7% of the Thunder
Basin.
In its proposal, however, the USFS recommends only
one of the six roadless areas, Cow Creek Buttes, for designation as wilderness.
Because of increasing development pressures on the Thunder Basin, it is
likely that if these six remaining wild areas are not protected no, there
will never be a chance for more wilderness.
Meaningful protection needed
Among the most important parts of any grassland management
plan are its environmental protection rules, called standards and guidelines.
Standards are "must do" requirements, while guidelines are "should do"
statements that don’t actually require any protection.
For example, a standard to protect prairie dogs
from poisoning would be enforceable. However, a guideline that prohibits
prairie dog poisoning doesn’t have any force; it’s just a suggestion. On
the ground, guidelines mean nothing. In the proposed management plan, many
of the measures needed to protect and recover wildlife and other natural
values are only guidelines. To make the plan meaningful and enforceable,
many of the guidelines must to be changed into standards.
Proposed alternatives fall short
Of the alternatives analyzed in the draft environmental
impact statement, Alternative 4 would make the most positive changes: it
would protect all six roadless areas, protect prairie dogs from poisoning
and recreational shooting and protect special biological values by designating
Research Natural Areas. However, this alternative still fails to meet the
needs of grassland wildlife, leaves out bison restoration and omits Wild
and Scenic River designation for the Cheyenne River. While Alternative
3 makes some positive steps, it too fails to adequately protect the Thunder
Basin’s natural legacy.
Regardless of the alternative, we recommend the
following:
• All six roadless areas should be recommended
for wilderness designation.
• Prairie dogs, black-footed ferrets and all native
wildlife should be given stronger protection. The entire 129,060-acre Cheyenne
River ferret site should be designated for ferret restoration, rather than
the proposed 51,400 acres. Prairie dog shooting and poisoning should be
completely prohibited in ferret reintroduction sites and in occupied prairie
dog towns.
• Research Natural Areas should be designated to
protect the Thunder Basin’s natural values and special ecological communities.
• Wild bison should be restored to Thunder Basin.
The Cheyenne River ferret reintroduction site and other areas should be
evaluated for use as bison reserves. The USFS should also consider replacing
cattle on some allotments with bison.
• Livestock grazing should be better controlled
to protect riparian areas and wildlife habitat.
• Some areas should be off-limits to oil, gas and
coal bed methane development. All Roadless Areas, Special Interest Areas
and other important wildlife and recreation areas should be protected.
• Environmentally friendly non-motorized trails
for hiking and horseback riding should be established.
• Streams and rivers need better protection. The
Cheyenne River should be re-evaluated for designation under the Wild and
Scenic Rivers Act.
• Wishy-washy guidelines should be changed into
measurable and enforceable environmental-protection standards.
(WOC board member Jeff Kessler is Conservation
Director of Biodiversity Associates in Laramie.)
What You Can Do
Governor Geringer has announced his opposition to
even the most modest improvements the Forest Service has proposed for managing
the Thunder Basin National Grassland. Please contact the governor and the
Thunder Basin planning team and express your support for strong protection
for Wyoming’s only national grassland!
Governor Jim Geringer
State Capitol Building
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Tel: (307) 777-7434/Fax: (307) 777-7398
email:
governor@missc.state.wy.us
Northern Great Plains
Planning Team
USDA Forest Service
125 North Main Street
Chadron, NE 69337
308-432-0300
email:
ngpmail/r2_nebraska@fs.fed.us
In addition, please write letters to the editor
of your local paper and the Casper Star-Tribune expressing your views.
Letters Editor
Casper Star-Tribune
P.O. Box 80
Casper, WY 82602
email: letters@trib.com |
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