Bighorn sheep need protection from a highly contagious disease carried by domestic sheep. But the question, according to some lawmakers, is: How much?
U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Cortez, and about 40 other lawmakers signed a letter to secretaries of the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Department of Agriculture in late April asking for grazing rules that will provide alternative areas for ranchers to graze their land, if sheep must be moved to protect wild herds.
But environmentalists argue there is not very much alternative grazing land available, and bighorn sheep need ample protection because respiratory disease can cause major die-offs.
A previous letter was sent in June 2014, but lawmakers did not feel they had received satisfactory answers.
"Multiple questions and concerns were not addressed in your responses, and there continues to be a general lack of clarity on the issue," the letter stated.
The sheep industry is particularly concerned by a decision in Idaho that reduced grazing in the Payette National Forest by 70 percent, according to a statement from the American Sheep Industry Association.
"You can't afford to play out the Idaho example across the West," said Peter Orwick, executive director of the association.
The letter also asks federal agencies to work with the Agricultural Research Service to make decisions about herd management.
"The key scientists, they haven't been contacted in the last year," Orwick said.
But the Colorado director for the Western Watersheds Project, Jonathan Ratner, argues that plenty of research already exists about the necessary boundaries needed between bighorn sheep and domestic sheep, and any research done by the Agricultural Research Service would be highly suspect.
Between 25 to 30 miles between populations is generally recommended because bighorn sheep are known to cover long distances, he said.
In La Plata County, the number of domestic sheep has declined from about 9,000 to about 5,000 from 2007 to 2012. But producers still rely on public land to support herds.
The U.S. Forest Service is currently considering how to handle sheep grazing in the Weminuche Wilderness. In this area, producers are allowed to graze domestic sheep on bighorn-sheep habitat, Ratner said.
"Domestic sheep are radioactive waste for bighorn sheep," he said.
The response to the congressmen's letter is unlikely to impact the decision about grazing in the Weminuche, Ratner said.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife monitors the bighorn-sheep herds in Colorado. The agency makes recommendations to the Forest Service and the Bureau of the Land Management to try to keep allotments in areas where domestic sheep don't come in contact with wild bighorns, said Joe Lewandowski, a spokesman for the agency.
mshinn@durangoherald.com
