Cattle producers who graze their animals in the province’s Castle forestry reserve worry that the spread of camping in the area will force them out
Brent Barbero came across an increasingly common sight this summer while checking cattle in the Castle forestry reserve.
The southern Alberta rancher found a calf taking a nap on the welcome mat of a holiday trailer parked in the reserve. To his surprise, a neighbouring camper was upset by the calf’s presence.
“Those guys, they roll in there on the long weekend of May,” said Barbero, who is president of the Pincher Creek Stockman’s Association.
“They leave their camper there all summer. They leave their mats out. They leave their hummingbird feeders out and that type of thing. If it gets quiet enough, those cows, they’ll get around those campers.
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“We rolled up there and there’s this calf of mine lying right on this guy’s mat, because they hadn’t been around for days and days.”
The interaction between cattle and campers is common but ranchers who have permits to graze cattle in the Castle region are worried about what it might mean for the future of their access.
In September, Alberta environment and parks minister Shannon Phillips announced plans to designate part of the Castle region as a provincial park and another portion as a wild land park.
The Castle region, a part of the Oldman River watershed, is popular with campers, ATV riders, snowmobilers, skiers and hikers.
But before those pursuits became common, ranchers grazed cattle there. They’ve been doing so since the late 1800s.
If the Castle forest reserve changes its designation and grazing is curtailed, ranchers wonder about the future of grazing.
Phillips said in her announcement that current grazing permits would be respected, as would existing oil and gas operations. However, commercial forestry operations were halted.
“We want some solid answers,” Barbero said. “These (grazing) permits are worth some value and right now with this park just being proposed, we’re not sure what value our permits hold anymore.”
Phillips did not return calls for comments by press time.
Members of the Pincher Creek Stockman’s Association, comprising 10 families, are allotted 3,109 animal unit months (AUMs) in the north end of the Castle forestry region. Those will accommodate about 1,000 cow-calf pairs during the grazing season, from June to October.
The Twin Butte Stock Association, at the south end, has permits for 1,758 AUMs. Independent holders have permits for another 1,058 AUMs.
All could be affected by the proposed provincial and wild land parks.
Leonard McGlynn, who ranches near Pincher Creek and uses the Castle reserve for grazing, brought his concerns to a zone meeting of the Alberta Beef Producers earlier this month.
Beef producer members passed a motion directing the ABP to lobby the province to permanently maintain grazing allotments along the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains.
The motion will go to the ABP annual meeting in December for consideration.
McGlynn said in a later interview that he has seen government proposals to establish five areas in the Castle region for recreational vehicles.
“My concern is if they put those parks in, that it will hinder the cattle movement to water.”
He said the parks will “just squeeze livestock out because they’re going to take up quite a bit of the prime grazing area and in turn, that will cut down the AUMs in certain areas. It’s just a back door approach to squeeze us out.”
Open, flat land suitable for campers is also the best land for grazing.
Barbero said he wonders if the government wants the Castle to become another Kananaskis country, which has become a mountain playground for visitors.
“If you start filling those valleys up with campgrounds and that type of thing, we’re not sure if there’ll be any room left for cattle.”
McGlynn makes the additional point that logging companies paid stumpage fees in the area, until operations were halted. Oil and gas companies also pay fees, as do ranchers.
Recreational users, on the other hand, use the area at no charge.
“My theory is that they should put a wheel tax on every camper that goes into the forestry,” he said. “That way they would generate enough money to put boots on the ground to police it.”
Both McGlynn and Barbero worry about the demands put on the Castle region.
Those who graze cattle there are required to monitor the animals and the grass, which requires periodic movement of the herds.
However, campers and those in the region for recreational purposes are not well monitored. That has affected the environment and occasionally the cattle.
“We’ve had cattle shot with paint balls, pellets. We’ve had them shot with actual bullets too, and found the carcass,” said Barbero.
ATV riders sometimes chase the animals for sport, he added.
Barbero said the Castle area is “a bit of a mess” in terms of conflicting uses and potential for environmental damage.
“It’s a free-for-all. There’s been no management there and I guess that’s sort of the previous government’s fault. And that’s all our primary ranges, where all those guys camp.”
The Alberta Wilderness Association welcomed the announcement of the two parks but has urged the government to further protect the region from additional degradation.
In a letter to premier Rachel Notley and minister Phillips, it recommends that grazing be curtailed in the entire Castle area, with reduced stocking rates in some areas and no grazing in the provincial park.
The AWA said grazing has reduced plant biodiversity and encouraged invasive plants in areas that have been overgrazed.
The AWA has also expressed concern about diminishing native trout stocks in the Castle river system and Oldman watershed.
Its concerns get no sympathy from Stavely, Alta., rancher Larry Sears, who supports continued grazing along the Rockies’ eastern slopes.
“We’re hoping that the government will stand by their commitment to honour those grazing commitments in the forestry area,” said Sears.
“If they don’t honour them, and they are forced into cancelling them over the bull trout, there’s going to be a lot of people very, very upset. There’ll be a lot of push back.
Alberta agriculture minister Oneil Carlier said Nov. 9 that he couldn’t speak on the future of grazing in the Castle, which falls under the environment and parks department.
barb.glen@producer.com
