Taylor Grazing Act: A Case Study

In a bid to encourage people onto the Plains advertisements told success stories of those who had claimed land under the terms of the Homestead Act and had become successful. It divided 2.5 million acres of Plains land into sections or homesteads of 160 acres. People could now claim 160 acres of land. The only requirement on their part was that they paid a small charge and built a house or added something to the land such as a house or a well and lived on the land for at least 5 years.

Farmers came to the Great Plains is great abundance, as this was heavily encouraged by government land policies and cheap land that was readily available. One of these policies was The Homestead Act, which would provide free or inexpensive land to farmers. The ever-growing railroad industry also offered attractive deals to those wishing to move onto the plains. All of these incentives were very enticing at first for farmers, but when they arrived in their new land they were met with a few problems. This new environment was difficult and dry. The animal and plant life was strange to the farmers. Not only that, but the native inhabitants of this land were warlike. However, farmers soon adapted to their new environment by implementing a few solutions. Lack of wood was solved by sod houses and barbed wire. Windmills and dry farming techniques were used to overcome the lack of water, and new machinery was used for farming. But expensive machinery soon led to debt and this debt led to bankruptcy. Farmers were faced with the same issue as the cattleman and many had to sell out to corporate

One of the basic arguments for the restoration of bison back onto the prairies involves the economic benefits. Five of the nations ten poorest counties are located on Indian reservations (Manning, WWW). With decreasing beef prices and increasing land values, the margin of profit continues to narrow. A majority of the cattle industry that once was present in the midwest have sought greener pastures east in states such as Florida, Tennessee, and Kentucky (Popper, D). Another possible opponent, the Forest Service also no longer seems to focus on maximizing their timber yields in the midwest, but rather in northern California, Oregon, and Washington (Popper, D). Bison offer a plausible solution due to their low cost (about half as much as cattle). Bison are also better adapted to the environment and produce the same amount of meat which is higher in protein, lower in cholesterol and fat, compared to cattle. In terms of land usage, bison graze and then move while cattle remain where they are thus damaging the soil. Bison also eat a greater variety of grasses, something which lacks with cattle. A proposal made by conservationists suggest that, "Ranchers can easily switch to buffalo and sell hunting rights, meats, hides, horns, and skulls at healthy prices (Popper DE, 1994)." Care of bison is also simple because unlike cattle, bison can withstand plains' winters. Land value also increases when it offers game

Wild horses and burros are starving in the ten western states consisting of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming. The Grazing service combined with General Land office creating the Bureau of Land Management. The Bureau of Land Management or BLM manages, protects, and controls the wild horse and burro population under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. This law authorizees the BLM to regulate the population to sustain a healthy environment. The wild horses and burros are found in herd management areas across the ten western states. The estimated total wild horses and burros in California is 8,316 with the maximum limit of 2,200. In Nevada, 34,531 wild horses and burros are

One of America’s greatest conservation achievements is the Wilderness Act of 1964. Fifty-two years later, this act has a legacy to withhold. A legacy that meant something in 1964 and remains the same today: to protect unspoiled land. Even though, through this act millions of acres have been conserved, the key word is continue. That is why America should pass laws to preserve the wilderness before developers spoil them.

All organizations are in business to make money, but there are rules that the employer and the employee must follow as well. Any influence that management and labor have over the organization should be equal. The “Landrum-Griffin Act also knows as the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act.” Was passed in 1959 through U.S. Congress. This is the result of certain improper activities that was going on between labors, management, employers and certain union officials. Many of the officials in higher positions misused numerous labor funds as well as being involve in violent activities. This act regulated union affairs internally and also controlled the use of union funds.

The American Government did their part in encouraging farmers to venture out into the Great Plains. Back during the Civil War, political parties battled with deciding whether to promote the west as proslave or anti-slave; officials would send citizens of their party to claim residence in western territories to populate the newly forming states with enough supporters to strengthen their power in Congress, in this particular debate. Later in the 1800s, regulations and accommodations were passed to make obtaining land cheaper and transportation more efficient. One of these regulations, developed and supported by Abraham Lincoln, was the Homestead Act of 1862. Under this law, any citizen could claim up to 160 acres from the government if they promise to improve the land. Costing close to nothing, many small farm owners saw

Now that thousands of people had claimed their 160 acres, the government had to sustain the land's fertility so it would remain cultivatable for years to come. It would also reduce any chances of the settlers moving again and coming in conflict with the Natives. The government encouraged the development of the area by constantly aiding the frontiers with the Timber Culture Act and the Newland Reclamation Acts. The Timber Culture Act was produced to help the farmers successfully grow crops on their land for long periods of time by keeping the soil fertile and preventing erosion. The Timber Culture Act gave away free land to people who would plant forty acres of trees on it. They believed planting more trees would increase humidity and increase rainfall, which was beneficial for farmers. The Newland Reclamation Act of 1902 funded irrigation projects for the dry land of the west. Congress passed many laws to protect the west from harm.

With many farmers having such high yields, there was an abundance of crops so the prices fell and a farmer had to plant more in order to have enough money to support their families. The Enlarged Homestead Act guaranteed 320 acres of land to farmers who were willing to take land that were considered to be marginal and could not be irrigated well. They plowed up the virgin soil and planted acres and acres of golden wheat, leaving the land vulnerable to the elements after the yearly harvest. The farmers also implemented the use of fossil fuel ran machinery that made it easier to plow up hundreds of acres in a short period of time, which exposed even more soil than what would have been open to the elements had the farming been done by an animal pulled plow. The massive influx of farmers because of that act caused major soil erosion which was made worse by the Dust Bowl of the 1930s.

The author wanted to emphasize the expansion of the westward movement of the United States and the substantial increase in population. Cowboys and range cattle companies started to multiply with the population. The U.S. needed more food and people wanted more meat. So, why not create a way around the law? When looking at the legal reservations that the U.S. government set up throughout the northern Great Plains it was hard for companies to accumulate money and cattle to stay in business because of the competition on each reservation. The author wanted to show more than just the reasoning of why George Lemmon and Dave Clark were the greatest cowboys. Lemmon and Clark were able to create a system in which other cowboys would not dare to try. Lemmon illegally trespassed on the Dakota reservations that belonged to the Sioux Indians. The reasoning was because other range cattle companies did not want to deal with legal problems, if they were caught with grazing cattle they were most likely going to be prosecuted and they were also taking the risk factor of encountering

Additionally Constitutional rights and laws are being used from both sides of the issue. Yes, Light vs US and US vs Grimaud were two landmark decisions decided by the Supreme Court, that stated Public lands are public lands. Meaning Federal ownership of the land is unquestionable. Also giving the federal land management agencies the right to manage and do what they want with those lands given relevant rules and regulations. Bundy states that this power is being abused and the system is too corrupt, using examples from the Hammonds case and how in their case alone the Hammonds first, fifth, and Eighth amendments were violated. Most heinously their their fifth and eighth amendments were violated in Bundy’s eyes. Starting with the fifth

First, one has to remember that dissenter rancher, Cliven Bundy, raised an important statehood question during the hair-raising show-down between the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the armed citizen militia supporting the cattle rancher. Originally Bundy was legitimately and faithfully paying grazing fees to Clark County, but that the county stopped accepting his payments. Bundy's legal claim is that Nevada State, not the U.S. government, owns the land where his cattle where grazing next to his family's homesteaded ranch property for nearly a century even before BLM was ever created. The legal argument before the courts, and presently fully accepted by Nevada's own State Government, is that federal government was legally in control of every territory before it became a state, but once statehood was reached, the majority of land rightly becomes the property of the new state. Presently, the federal government has not pursued any further legal issue or any overture governmental response concerning the Bundy's standing, and quietly in the background is a state movement to ensure the Federal Government's monopolizing 85 percent control of Nevada is fairly proportionally diminished and given to the state as rightfully due. Some could say that the Bundy standoff incident was the historical and productive apex needed to get the ball rolling in

In 1965 the Solid Waste Disposal Act was passed, providing for reductions in waste, environmentally friendly waste management, resource conservation, and aimed to safeguard citizens from the effects of hazardous waste. Eleven years later this act was amended to become the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976. The amended act created a regulatory system that embraced reduce, reuse, and recycle; it also banned open dumping. Dumping of hazardous chemicals came under the control of RCRA and rules governing storage, disposal, and treatment were made. RCRA focuses on three areas: solid waste, hazardous waste, and underground storage tanks. All aspects of RCRA affect the oil and gas

"Cowspiracy" is a documentary by Kip Anderson and Keegan Kuhn.   The film explores the multi billion dollar cattle industry, specifically focusing on cows. For years environmental organizations and the government have encouraged society to car pool, ride bikes, take quick showers, conserve electricity and water, compost, and recycle. But is this enough? What if cows in actuality are the leading cause of pollution?

Soil is the major terrestrial reservoir of carbon, storing more than twice the amount of carbon than the atmosphere1 as decomposed plant litter and residue2. Any changes in soil carbon storage have the potential to modify the global carbon cycle and influence climate change3. Studies have estimated that adopting appropriate land management practices alone might offset about a third of the global annual greenhouse-gas emissions4. Grasslands comprise approximately 40% of the earth’s land area and play a critical role in the global carbon cycle5. Grazing, as the most geographically expansive grassland use today, can exert significant influence on more than a quarter of the global potential for soil carbon storage6. Although grazing practice converts consumed plants into CO2 and other greenhouse gases, multiple studies have shown that good grazing management can often lower net ecosystem carbon emissions and promote soil carbon storage7, especially in dry ecosystems8. Thus, facilitating soil carbon sequestration through improved grazing regimes in these regions is an important measure for offsetting greenhouse-gas emissions to mitigate current climate change (ref).