Isn better grazing a better solution than no grazing on public lands?
No grazing is still preferable to “better grazing” under new, progressive management schemes on public lands. The best science has demonstrated that any livestock grazing is detrimental to native ecosystems. Reducing livestock grazing tends to reduce impacts, but not necessarily in a linear fashion, and it certainly does not eliminate those impacts. Changing the season of use, or constructing additional fencing or herding livestock to keep livestock out of the most sensitive areas, can mitigate but not prevent damage to natural resources. Forage eaten by domestic livestock is simply not available to native wildlife. Grazed watersheds yield less water – much of it polluted or otherwise severely degraded – than ungrazed systems. Better grazing practices usually require less grazing and/or more labor and capital from the permittee to build fences and herd livestock from pasture to pasture. Fences, for example, are quite expensive and can cost $10,000 per mile to build. Maintenance is anot
