Former Nevada Governor Helps Embattled Ranching Families

Since the 1950s, Nevada cattle rancher’s grazing rights have been reduced by more than 50 percent and sheep grazing rights by more than 90 percent. Now former Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons is helping the Tomeras and Filippini families turn their cattle out south of Battle Mountain, as they fight the Bureau of Land Management’s latest decision.

“Most people don’t have to fight to make a living. These folks do,” Gibbons said.

BLM District Manager Doug Furtado told the ranching families in February that he was not going to allow any grazing on the Mount Lewis pasture of the Argenta Allotment because of drought concerns. His decision left the families facing financial ruin.

On May 23rd, the BLM agreed to allow a partial turn out of the ranchers’ cows. The BLM termed the agreement temporary, claiming it would have formal grazing licenses prepared by the first week of June.

However there is concern over the BLM’s past history when it comes to temporary agreements.

In 1964 the BLM forced the ranchers on Mount Lewis to cut their cattle and sheep grazing by 50 percent, even though half of the land was privately-owned, as are all of the water rights. The ranchers had been grazing their cattle on the mountain since 1862, two years before Nevada became a state.

In the 1980s Nevada bought out the Tomera Ranches in Elko County to build the South Fork Reservoir. The Tomera family then bought ranches on Mount Lewis, where they and the Filippini’s, have been grazing ever since.

The Tomeras own 80 percent of the grazing rights and most of the water on the mountain. They also own more than 80 springs, 12 wells and 183 miles of streams and have always paid their grazing fees.

The federal government owns no water and only 44 percent of the land, yet they tell the ranchers when and how they can graze,” said Elko County Commissioner Grant Gerber. “It is an intolerable situation. Why should the federal government be able to control an individual’s private land?”

In February the BLM informed the Tomeras it was cutting 2014 their grazing rights by 100 percent, leaving them no place to graze 1,800 head of cattle. This was after the families built an $80,000, 16-mile fence in an attempt to satisfy the BLM’s demands — all to no avail.

The current closure led to the ‘Grass March,’ a group of cowboys and girls carrying petitions to Governor Brian Sandoval, seeking Furtado’s removal from office and the lifting of restrictions by the BLM.

“You have my assurance I will continue to speak with the BLM as well as the Department of the Interior to ensure all Nevadans are heard,” Sandoval said in response to receiving the petitions.