News Releases for November 2002
November 15, 2002
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Hoeven, Stenehjem Announce Grasslands Protective Appeal
BISMARCK, N.D. - Governor John Hoeven and Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem today announced that the State of North Dakota has filed a protective appeal against the U.S. Forest Service’s recent grasslands plan, which was released in August.
The state’s appeal seeks a balanced approach toward the environment on the Little Missouri National Grassland and the Sheyennne National Grassland, while protecting the livelihoods of ranchers and making sure the counties are not negatively impacted.
“We want to make sure we adequately protect our ranchers, counties and rural businesses from economic hardship,” Hoeven said. “We want to be good stewards of the land, but we cannot sign off on any plan that does not respect our rural economic interests.”
Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem said, “The grassland management plan is severely flawed. It fails to meet the minimum legal standards required. I am especially concerned that the plan fails to recognize the substantial and historical interest of the State of North Dakota in the section lines in the affected area.”
The state’s appeal cites three areas of concern:
- Economic impact - The economic impact of the plan will be substantial. An estimated 99 jobs will be lost as a result of changes in the grazing portion of the plan, resulting in a loss of $1.4 million in income to ranchers. As many as 53 jobs will be lost in the oil industry. At least 60 wells will not be drilled as a consequence of new restrictions at a total cost of $78 million in drilling activity alone. In addition, counties will lose more than $652,000 for local schools over the life of the plan.
- Property interests -The Forest Service’s grasslands plan represents a potential reduction of 25 percent of available grazing land. Although the plan claims to make 95 percent of the grasslands available for oil drilling and exploration, it effectively replaces productive areas with less productive areas, restricts surface use and reduces standard oil lease terms. Only 75 percent of the available acreage will actually produce oil.
- Legal interests - The new grasslands plan takes control over building roads and other local projects out of the hands of North Dakota and county government by interfering with the state’s section lines, which are protected by federal law.
The impact of the plan on the state is far-reaching and substantial, according to Hoeven and Stenehjem. They say it is essential to continually monitor the grasslands implementation by a scientific review team, and change portions of the plan relating to section lines and oil industry access.
“The cumulative effect of this plan, together with various other federal initiatives that have been imposed on the state, have not been properly taken into account,” Stenehjem said. “Consideration of the effect of all these federal regulations on the state is required, but is severely lacking.”
The state’s roadless suit, which challenges the Forest Service’s restriction on motorized travel within the grasslands, is ongoing. The complaint seeks to reverse the Forest Service’s ban on new road construction and overland, motorized travel through grasslands.
“The grasslands plan as written shows too little regard for the legitimate ranching, economic and legal interests of North Dakota,” Hoeven said. “It needs to be fixed or rewritten. That’s what we’ve been saying all along, and that’s what this appeal seeks to accomplish.”
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