ranch hand said:
Did you go to the meeting on the free roaming bison? What exactly are their plans?[/u]
I didn't make it as I had forgot about it and had other commitments already...I had already sent them my written comments ...I know there were folks in here from as far west as Havre- as earlier in the day I talked with a former State Senator from over that way that was in town for the meeting...Everyone I talked to said it was a good turnout almost entirely anti buffalo - but they were unhappy with the way the F&G broke it into small "work" groups rather than taking comments from everyone from the floor... Thats what caused about 20 to walk out I understand...
Main comment from this area was "No Bison"..... Someone suggested that since buffalo used to roam the Helena area that they turn them lose in the Helena valley and let them roam up Last Chance Gulch past the capitol building ... :wink:
I had a chance to get together a couple weeks ago with several local ranchers- who most fear that down the line-- maybe 20-30 years we will probably lose much of the bison battle.. The green groups are coming back in with larger and larger offers to buy folks out... Rumor running rampant around the area is that a large local ranch co-owned by a local and some Kansas folks have already struck a deal to sell out to them... It would be land in the Missouri breaks that would be near that south of Malta they have already made into a bison range...
A couple years ago the bison range folks made an offer to a local grazing association to buy them out...They turned it down- altho some members were in favor of it...And as these ranchers age- if more of the younger members don't take over their shares- with the increasing price offers- eventually they may buy them out... If all that went thru- they would have bison range from Fort Peck Lake to Robinson Bridge south of Malta...
Also more and more folks trying to put their land under conservation easements- which with the restrictions that usually accompany those giving the greeny groups an inside track at buying them...
These International Greeny Weeny groups have unlimited amounts of money...