Adriana Sulak

Public Land Grazing in California: Untapped Conservation Potential for Private Lands?

June 2007 The growing interest in conservation of working landscapes and the attention paid to ranchland protection refl ects a growing recognition of the environmental values of production landscapes, dissatisfaction with what sometimes appears to be gridlocked, under-funded public lands management, and decreasing public funding for fee title acquisition. Yet productive private rangelands are often linked to public land leases. In this research, we examined the relationship between the accessibility and management of these leases and ranch sustainability in 2 areas of California. Findings suggest that an overlooked tool for the conservation of working landscapes is the use of public land grazing for stabilizing livestock operations. Public land grazing could be the glue holding many ranching communities together in the face of strong pressures to convert private rangeland to more intensive uses.

Public Land Grazing in California: Untapped Conservation Potential for Private Lands?: Working landscapes may be linked to public lands

June 2007 The growing interest in conservation of working landscapes and the attention paid to ranchland protection refl ects a growing recognition of the environmental values of production landscapes, dissatisfaction with what sometimes appears to be gridlocked, under-funded public lands management, and decreasing public funding for fee title acquisition. Yet productive private rangelands are often linked to public land leases. In this research, we examined the relationship between the accessibility and management of these leases and ranch sustainability in 2 areas of California. Findings suggest that an overlooked tool for the conservation of working landscapes is the use of public land grazing for stabilizing livestock operations. Public land grazing could be the glue holding many ranching communities together in the face of strong pressures to convert private rangeland to more intensive uses.

Working LandscapesPublic Land Grazing in California: Untapped Conservation Potential for Private Lands?: Working landscapes may be linked to public lands

June 2007 The growing interest in conservation of working landscapes and the attention paid to ranchland protection refl ects a growing recognition of the environmental values of production landscapes, dissatisfaction with what sometimes appears to be gridlocked, under-funded public lands management, and decreasing public funding for fee title acquisition. Yet productive private rangelands are often linked to public land leases. In this research, we examined the relationship between the accessibility and management of these leases and ranch sustainability in 2 areas of California. Findings suggest that an overlooked tool for the conservation of working landscapes is the use of public land grazing for stabilizing livestock operations. Public land grazing could be the glue holding many ranching communities together in the face of strong pressures to convert private rangeland to more intensive uses.