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WASHINGTON – The Bureau of Land Management today announced 11 demonstration projects in six states for its outcome-based grazing authorizations initiative, which is designed to provide BLM managers and grazing permit holders greater flexibility in the management of permitted livestock.  This initiative emphasizes the Trump Administration’s goal of promoting shared conservation stewardship of public lands while supporting uses such as livestock grazing.

The flexibility allowed under the outcome-based grazing authorizations, which were first announced in September 2017, will demonstrate management practices that BLM managers and livestock operators can use to respond to changing, on-the-ground conditions such as wildfires, high moisture years, or drought.  This will better ensure healthy rangelands, high-quality wildlife habitat, and economically sustainable ranching operations.

“The demonstration projects will play an important part in establishing outcome-based grazing authorizations as a standard practice,” said Brian Steed, Deputy Director of Programs and Policy.  “We will consider the success of the demonstration projects as we develop guidance for future authorizations.” 

Outcome-based grazing emphasizes conservation performance, ecological, economic and social outcomes and cooperative management of public lands.  This initiative will help demonstrate that permitted livestock grazing on public lands can operate under a less rigid framework than is commonly used in order to better reach agreed upon habitat and vegetation goals. 

The demonstration projects will provide BLM, working in partnership with ranchers and other partners, with an opportunity to enhance its guidance and best management practices to use when issuing grazing permits.  The projects will also be used as models for developing cooperative monitoring plans and land health evaluations that will be implemented in future authorizations under this program.   

The permit holders chosen to serve as demonstration projects are:

• Little Snake Land Company in Craig, Colorado (Little Snake Field Office)
• Deep Creek Ranch LLC in Burley, Idaho (Burley Field Office)
• Joe King and Sons, Inc. and Gran Prairie Limited Partnership in Lewistown, Montana
  (Lewistown Field Office)
• Winecup-Gamble Ranch in Elko, Nevada (Wells Field Office)
• Elko Land and Livestock Company in Elko, Nevada (Tuscarora Field Office)
• Willow Ranch in Battle Mountain, Nevada (Mt. Lewis Field Office)
• Smith Creek Ranch, Carson City, Nevada (Stillwater Field Office)
• John Uhalde and Company in Ely, Nevada (Bristlecone Field Office)
• Roaring Springs Ranch in Burns, Oregon (Andrews/Steens Field Office)
• Fitzgerald Ranches in Lakeview, Oregon (Lakeview Field Office)
• PH Livestock in Rawlins, Wyoming (Rawlins Field Office)

The BLM looks forward to working with ranchers and other partners on the selected projects to develop innovative, flexible, and forward looking best management practices that can be applied more widely on the public lands.

For more information on outcome-based grazing authorizations, please visit http://www.blm.gov/programs/natural-resources/rangelands-and-grazing/livestock-grazing.