Eastern Sierra News
Written by Tom Woods Wednesday, 03 February 2010 16:41
After years of signing one year leases with DWP, local ranchers in the Eastern Sierra now have a little more breathing room after the LADWP Commissioners approved 60 ranch leases in the Eastern Sierra at five years in length.
Chris Plakos with DWP explained that on Tuesday, the board approved five year ranch leases for the first time since the 1970’s when Department ranch leases were reduced to one year leases while the Inyo LA Water Agreement was worked out. The Water Agreement and the Memorandum of Understanding ended up taking about two decades to complete. Plakos says that a provision in the MOU called for the development of land management plans which are now being put into practice. This in turn allowed the Department to offer the longer leases, he explained.
In a press statement Interim DWP Manager David Freeman says, “Approving these longer leases will strengthen the ability of the ranchers to make plans and improve their operations.” He added that the ranchers in turn help the department by protecting the land and watershed.
Tom Noland, the President of the Inyo Mono Cattleman’s Association was also pleased by the board decision, saying that, “This will give us more stability and help plan better for the future.”
Subscribe to this comment's feed
Regarding comments on this web site
- Comments are moderated, and will not appear until they've been approved.
- Comments on this site do not in any way reflect the views or opinions of the Sierra Wave.
- Please fill in the name field with your real name or initials. We have found that people who use their names carry on more engaging, respectful conversations.
