VICTORIA – The holders of two range agreements for grazing cattle in the Thompson Rivers Natural Resource District generally met the requirements of the Forest and Range Practices Act, according to a report released today.

“The Board is pleased to see these ranchers are meeting the majority of legislative requirements,” said board chair, Tim Ryan. “However, our auditors found that one rancher had not turned any cattle out on its tenure in 2016, and the other rancher did not have the approved number of cattle grazing its tenure throughout 2016. Neither rancher had documented the adjustment to their grazing schedule to account for these changes, which is a requirement.”

“The auditors also found that one of the rancher’s cattle had impacted stream beds and stream banks in one small area, and some other stream-side areas on that same tenure were at risk of damage from cattle,” said Ryan.

“We determined these issues did not have any significant impacts, but the practices should be improved in the future,” Ryan added.

One of the range-agreement areas is located northeast of Barriere, and the other is located north of Kamloops, in the Jamieson Creek drainage.

The Forest Practices Board is B.C.’s independent watchdog for sound forest and range practices, reporting its findings and recommendations directly to the public and government. The board audits forest and range practices on public lands and appropriateness of government enforcement. It can also make recommendations for improvement to practices and legislation.

Contact:

Kairry Nguyen
Communications
Forest Practices Board
Phone: 250 213-4707 / 1 800 994-5899