It didn’t take long for ranching groups to push back against a proposal to change grazing leases from cattle to bison on BLM land in Phillips County.
On July 28 the BLM issued a decision on seven grazing allotments, a total of 63,065 acres, administered by the Malta Field office. The decision approved a request by the American Prairie organization to change from grazing cattle to grazing bison on these allotments. The request dates to 2018, and included changing seasons of use, modifying some fences by adding electric wire, and removing some interior fences.