BROOKS, Alta. – When vacationers accidentally burned three acres of grass on Sandy Henry’s leased grazing land, it steeled his desire to keep the public out of his pasture.
The uninvited guests started the fire with a barbecue and if the neighbors hadn’t spotted it, the situation could have been worse, he said.
That anecdote was one of a number of presentations from ranching families who have leased government-owned land for four generations or more.
Stories of gates left open, fences cut, cattle running loose and land torn up by intruders were presented to a special panel traveling the province to hear concerns from all users of public land in Alberta.
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The province is reviewing its public lands act and expects an interim report from the panel in early 1998.
Henry, who ranches near Milo, made his plea for protection at a meeting in Brooks.
He admitted the fire incident on his lease is not common but such situations raise concerns among leaseholders.
“As a tenant on public land I should be able to control access,” said Henry.
Every presenter at Brooks asked government to strengthen trespassing laws and give leaseholders control so they can protect their livelihood.
Controlling public access is a management tool, said rancher Stan Krause, of Jenner, during the hearing.
“The real issue is the management of these public lands to maintain their productivity for generations,” he said.
About 80 percent of the land he uses to feed his 200 cows is under a grazing disposition. The remainder is deeded land.
Part of the terms of his lease make him responsible for fire control, vehicle traffic control, hunting control and grazing pressure.
His land is popular with hunters and at one time he said he found 20 hunting parties on a strip of land about 1.5 kilometres by eight km.
The right to restrict access has been upheld by Alberta courts, but some of the public is confused about why the controls are there, said Krause.
He wants the new act to clarify what access means and believes a review of the petty trespass act is in order.
For Marg Schonhofer, of Buffalo, a tighter definition of public lands is in order.
Her family operates two ranches in the designated Special Areas where there are five million acres of land, of which 2.4 million are leased. She said a public land is a park while crown lands are under grazing dispositions.
“These lands are our livelihood,” she said.
“I do not expect access to a public housing unit in the city,” said Schonhofer.
Besides access, ranchers also wanted longer-term leases saying people plan their futures around these agreements. Tenure adds to community strength because people know they are going to stay, many argued.
Stratton Peake and Brent Horner, of Finnegan, operate neighboring ranches in the Special Areas, a vulnerable ecosystem that holds a number of endangered species.
Leaseholders in the special areas would like protection and assurances that they can control access so the public doesn’t inadvertently destroy wildlife habitat.
“People who wish to enter have good intentions but they need to know what impact their entering the land would have,” said Horner.
Further, lack of tenure does not encourage good management, said Peake.
“With short-term leases, it’s rob and run,” he said.
Horner said they have 20-year leases in the Special Areas with the right to renew in the 15th year. His family has been on that land for more than 50 years and he wants leases set at a minimum of 20 years.
Steve Bertshy, of Milo, said his family has held a grazing lease for 51 years.
“People have to be assured of where they will be tomorrow,” said Bertshy.
Clayton Curry, of Sunnybrook, said if a lease is terminated because someone didn’t make the rent payments, they would like to see an appeal board hear the case.
They would prefer a local board to handle local problems, said Curry. He suggested local agriculture service boards could handle disputes.
Other presenters suggested they would like the right to purchase small tracts of crown land surrounded by private property.
Another hot issue is the fact that leaseholders receive compensation from oil companies for access to well heads.
Tom Livingston, of Duchess, dismissed suggestions that money paid to leaseholders by oil and gas companies for access should go to the government.
Renters are experiencing loss of use and inconvenience by having oil and gas activity on their land.
“There is no merit or basis in paying it to the government,” said Livingston.
The crown is not disadvantaged by oil activity on a pasture while the leaseholder is. The crown is well compensated by oil companies through the sale of mineral rights and royalties, said Livingston.
