The Public Lands Rule recently enacted by the BLM has the potential to be a positive step in the direction of flexible grazing management on public lands, or a significant challenge to the ranching industry in their ability to access affordable grazing options. It will be in livestock producers’ reaction, and subsequent forward action to this rule, that the outcome is written. 

The first line of fire defense in many rural areas are Rangeland Fire Protection Associations (RFPAs). These groups of volunteers, mainly farmers and ranchers, are trained and authorized to respond to fires and help protect 9 million acres of Idaho lands.

Last spring, the U.S. Department of the Interior published a proposal with the potential to shift priorities on 245 million acres of public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management. A public comment period yielded thousands of substantive comments for the BLM to consider.