There has been a conversation to re-wild the Prairie by the left who is concerned about the environment. The push to demonize cow farts as a detriment to the environment is one of their excuses. The global warming/climate change agenda is pushing to declare animal agriculture and agriculture in general, the cause of everything bad with the climate. Really? What about the concentration of people by the millions, in cities? Is it possible that one city, such as New York, puts out more methane gas and other supposed carbon gasses than the whole of agriculture? I want the research on cities vs agriculture in who deposits more negative things into the atmosphere!
The “agenda” to re-wild areas less populated may be a “good” idea but where will be get our food from? Do you really want to eat lab created substances that have carcinogens in them when you can get a good quality piece of REAL meat from livestock? Where will all the farmers and ranchers go? Who will compensate them for the land they will lose in order to re-wild the prairie? Do you really think the federal government is going to give them a fair price for generational farms that have been owned by families for over 150 years?
What about the land? Do you really think the land can be returned that easily to pre-Louisiana Purchase conditions? THAT is impossible. Lewis & Clark said that Kansas was a desert. Really? Let’s think about this a little. When did Lewis & Clark explore Kansas? It is my bet that it was shortly after the buffalo had moved further north, leaving in its path, land that was grazed to nothing because of the millions of buffalo pounding the ground after eating all they could. No trees could grow on the prairie because the buffalo wouldn’t let them grow without eating them down. But the United States government paid for the buffalo to be exterminated to let the white man and rail roads cut through. With the Homestead Act, the Timber Act was passed in 1873 to give an additional 160 acres to those who planted trees on 1/4 of their land because the government felt that a prairie was useless. The prairie had no trees yet the Government wants to re-wild the prairie. What do they think they will get if they get rid of all Agriculture and run all the people off the land?
It is simple to explain as small patches of re-wilding does occur with the governments CRP(Conservation reserve program). They pay farmers and ranchers to take a portion of land out of production and let it stand for wildlife and nature. If not properly managed the land becomes overgrown with advantageous weeds, brush and woody plants that aren’t native to the land. A once pretty area of prairie is now covered with elm, locust & hedge trees or overgrow with musk thistle or worse, Sericia Lespedeza with no chance of the original bio-flora to recover. In addition, the ground litter accumulates and all it takes is one dry summer to make a tinder box set to burn from a lightning strike or a spark from a train, cigarette or a hiker.
The long and short of re-wilding is they want to control people, they want to limit their abilities to own land and make it work for them. They want to save the planet but in reality they are going to burn it up with wildfires. But who are they? Simply put, people who have no land ownership and think that they know better how to manage land but have no experience or investment to the land. Do we want the Great Plains to burn like California? I certainly don’t because of the South Wind that blows and would push the fires through towns and cities.
Our prairie is best left to those who have an investment in the land. They can at least mimic the buffalo with intensive grazing and re-generation of the soil practices. People who have money invested rarely neglect managing the land because the land provides them with an income as long as they properly manage said land. Outsiders who push an agenda just want to take away from those who bust their butts to preserve the land in a way that is beneficial for all, now that the millions of buffalo are gone from the land. We cannot go back to what was and re-wilding won’t be a good option because it isn’t going to return us to yesteryear.
Re-Wilding is a joke and those who think that this idea will work are probably vegan and haven’t gotten enough animal fat proteins to their brain for proper brain function. It is a simple choice, let animal agriculture manage the land and improve it as necessary and keep your food or let re-wilding grow weeds and wildfires.
Educated Cowpuncher 