By Linda P
In order to protect those from recent activities reported by the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office of over $100,000 of damage to PD mitigation equipment on Boulder County Open Space Lands names and locations have been omitted.

Many of us are deeply concerned about the health and future of our OSMP irrigated agricultural lands. Now more than ever it is time to preserve our soils, local food resources, and agricultural history for future generations. We must protect and encourage the purpose for which these lands were purchased.

One City-owned Open Space Irrigated Agricultural Property

About 30 years ago, our tax dollars funded the acquisition of this property for OSMP agricultural land use and practices. Since 1994, I have kept horses at this property. The pastures were once safe, healthy, and ecologically diverse (see Photo A). The impact of the current unprecedented growth of prairie dogs on these irrigated agricultural parcels is evident in this recent photo (see Photo B).

This type of damage to our OSMP’s agricultural lands is unprecedented and unacceptable.

This parcel was in poor shape when it came under management of the lease holder. The family worked hard, for several years, to bring it back to a sustainable and profitable operation (see Photo A). Fields were tilled, replanted and irrigated.

With great care and respect for the land, the leased parcels became verdant and were able to support cattle, horses, and hay operations. This agricultural operation worked for both parties—it provided income to the family and the City of Boulder. But not only that! It also assisted in mitigating wildfires through grazing activities (Olde Stage Fire January 7, 2009). With proper stewardship of agricultural land topsoil is retained, weeds are controlled, and the land can support a healthy and diverse habitat for many species.

In addition to barn horse boarding, these pastures offered a natural and healthy environment for over 23 horses, with four rotational pastures (current conditions can only support 13 horses without rotation). The mixed herd is now one, if not the only remaining on City of Boulder Open Space agricultural land. This ranch enables horse owners (like myself) on limited incomes, an affordable place to board horses. It is also the ONLY city-owned property adjacent to a trail system.

It took the rancher and his family a lot of time, money, and love for the land to farm these parcels. One does not get rich from this. The richness comes at the end of a long day, when you look out on the grasses dancing in the wind, hear the meadowlarks singing, and catch the first newborn calf as it drops from its mother’s womb.

When City Council put the PD protection act in place and encouraged their occupation on our lands they did not take into consideration:

• land fragmentation
• global warming
• ratio of natural predators to exploding populations of PDs

This protection act has adversely affected local agriculture, grassland habitat, soil health and carbon sequestering, and adjoining private landowners.

An Ecosystem Collapsing

This one irrigated agricultural parcel in the system shows an ecosystem collapsing. Prairie dogs are having a adverse effect on our soils.

Healthy agricultural land supports a biologically-diverse habitat. For example, ground nesting birds, butterflies, rabbits, mice, snakes and voles provide food for larger predators like raptors and coyotes. In fact, over the last 20 years I have never seen a hawk, eagle nor owl with a prairie dog. I have many times observed them with rabbits, snakes, and mice—their preferred meal.

Stated at a meeting by a female City of Boulder wildlife office, “it is considered lucky if a raptor catches one PD per week.”

With their hands tied by City Council, the families that lease City of Boulder Open Space irrigated agricultural land, have been unable to mitigate PDs.

Grazing acreage is so damaged by the numbers of PDs that it can no longer sustain a healthy grass ecosystem. Today we see barren pastures (photo D), devoid of all of its grassy protective covering. The soils are severely compromised. It is pretty devastating! Further:

• Four horse grazing pastures that were able to sustain 23 horses, can barely sustain 13.
• -The family has had to sell off cattle due to loss of grazing land
• The City of Boulder designated public arena has dangerous prairie dog holes—unsafe.
• Hay pasture can no longer safely operate machinery and produce two cuttings.
• Thousands of cubic feet of irrigation water is lost down PD holes.
• Horse pasture can not be rotated for grazing—it must remain open all year.
• Winter snows have made the pastures extremely dangerous for livestock—they can not see holes.

Providing off-parcel pasture to compensate for the losses does not justify for this damage. It does not address the loss of the ranch’s once verdant pasture and habitat to PD occupation.

What PD Advocates Are Saying & Doing

Since writing this article the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office has reported  vandalism to the tune of $100,000 on Boulder County Open Space agricultural land under PD mitigation. This type of activity is unacceptable and is indicative of the instability and dangerous behavior of those individuals associated with these groups.

• Prairie dog advocates love to keep reminding us that PDs are a keystone species, and that they improve soil health.
  This is not true on agricultural and fragmented lands. It is not true when populations are not kept ‘in check’ by natural predators.
• Prairie dog advocates want us to continue to protect and relocate this species at the expense of all others—no matter where they establish colonies.
  This is not true stewardship of our lands. This is not viable on irrigated agricultural designated parcels. This does not consider the health of other species.

What PD advocates don’t seem to understand is that this species requires vast stretches of prairie, in balance with predators. Our densely fragmented, semi-urban landscape can not support current populations. In addition, OSMP has reserved 6,000+ acres of Habitat Conservation Areas for this and other species protection.

It is alarming to read claims by the Prairie Dog Working Group (PDWG) claiming that we are rushing into lethal control. This is not true, and I believe that we should consider an investigation into the selection of the PDWG members and their alliances.

It is alarming to read the following statements from Keep Boulder Wild (KBW), in their Recommendations for a Reduced Project Area and Decreased Lethal Control in OSMP’s Expedited Plan. They are naive, biased, and infeasible. KBW states:

• Staff has no reliable evidence that removing prairie dogs will improve soil health. …
• Killing prairie dogs for the purpose of maintaining water rights, particularly on lands marginal for agriculture, makes no sense. Preferred activities should dictate whether water rights are kept and maintained. Selling water rights to some properties in the project area to financially support Council’s open space capital projects would help both prairie dogs and the City.
• We question the use of these public lands for grazing cattle and recreational horses or growing feed for livestock, especially when these uses damage soil and vegetation, override the ecological importance of the prairie dog and result in prairie dog extermination.

The reliable evidence is clear in the images in this document. Soil is not healthy with prairie dogs on irrigated agricultural land. The City purchased this land for the purpose of agriculture and it should be protected as thus. Any “marginal” agricultural lands should not be re-designated as PD habitat, it should be restored to sustainable and productive agricultural practice with all PDs removed. Our City of Boulder Open Space agricultural lands were purchase as thus.

City water and mineral rights are two of the most precious and valuable assets. To suggest selling these rights shows lack of knowledge. The City of Boulder should never consider selling these assets. This statement reveals a deep and disturbing bias by this group.

I quote from OSMP’s website, “The Open Space program acquires water rights to help support agricultural operations and preserve historical water rights. Approximately 6,000 acres of open space land are irrigated with these water rights. Whenever possible, mineral rights are also acquired during the land acquisition process.”

What KBW is questioning about livestock grazing and damage can be argued. Please see Critical Role of Grazing Animals in an Ecosystem. We see again another biased statement. It also indicates the intent to idolize and revere one species at a great loss to others.

Let’s Get Started—we can not continue to sacrifice our agricultural lands!

The current management plan is not working. Our lands are dying. Many of us have spent quite of bit of time and study to bring a “Preferred Management Plan” to the table. It has not been rushed. Our agricultural parcels can not sustain the current populations and growth rates of PDs. I believe we should:

• begin prairie dog mitigation immediately with PERC.
• should not relocate—we have plenty of PDs elsewhere on protected HCA lands.
• should not apply the pesticides Delta Dust to prevent plague. Delta Dust effects bees, amphibians and humans. This pesticide can become airborne. Wildlife officers and PD advocates say, “Oh don’t worry, we place it in the holes”, but  PDs dig—it comes to the surface. Do we really need to kill more bees, or be exposed to more pesticides?
• not limit burrow destruction.

Today, more than ever, we need to support local agriculture.

We need to:

• PROTECT and encourage good stewardship of our remaining agricultural lands
• REMOVE protection of this species, over all others, to provide balance to the ecosystem.
• RESTORE our agricultural properties damaged by prairie dogs and not re-designate these properties
• RESPECT our farmers, ranches and private landowners adjacent to open space parcels.

Think about supporting:

1. OSMP’s, and the Open Space Board of Trustees’ unanimous recommendation to allow lethal control of prairie dogs (PDs) on OSMP irrigated agricultural lands in the project area.
2. Open Space Board of Trustees recommendation to change the burrow disturbance ordinance to allow all normal agricultural activities on OSMP’s irrigated agricultural lands.
3. DO NOT support OSMP staffs more restrictive recommendation of only a 3”, 6” or 12” disturbance depth depending on location, OSMP zoning, special permitting, advance notification or season.

Send a letter or call council members today. They will meet on September 1, 2020 to vote!

1. Rachael Friend: 720-601-0163 friendr@bouldercolorado.gov
2. Adam Swetlik: 720-610-8580 swetlika@bouldercolorado.gov
3. Junie Joseph: 720-789-3234 josephj@bouldercolorado.gov
4. Sam Weaver/Mayor: 303-416-6130 WeaverS@bouldercolorado.gov
5. Aaron Brockett: 720-984-1863 brocketta@bouldercolorado.gov