Target: Juniper

Seems to us that ranchers would brand as a near miracle anything that increases their water supply and helps out the ailing, but not yet federally protected, sage grouse.

Oh, and the federal government will pay part of the cost.

It turns out there is just such a program.

Its target is the western juniper. That’s the tree that has taken advantage of the relative scarcity of wildfires during the past century or so to proliferate in the sagebrush steppe of Central and Eastern Oregon.

The spread of juniper spells trouble for sage grouse and rancher alike.

That’s because the juniper, besides having a powerful thirst, is better equipped than most of its floral competitors to slake that thirst.

Junipers not only crowd out the sagebrush on which sage grouse depend, but the trees also suck up water that ranchers need to sustain cattle forage on their range pastures and irrigate hay fields.

A single juniper tree can consume 30 to 40 gallons of water per day during summer.

Some landowners, including the Foster family, who own a ranch in Bowen Valley just south of Baker City, have taken after junipers with a vengeance, sawing down hundreds.

But now the federal government is offering to dole out dollars to property owners to follow in the Fosters’ bootsteps.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has put up $16 million for juniper eradication in Oregon, the money to be distributed through two existing programs: the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and the Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program.

Property owners have until April 23 to apply.

The money is available to landowners in six counties: Baker, Crook, Deschutes, Harney, Lake and Malheur.

The application process is a competition of sorts, and Baker County ranchers will be at a disadvantage because the highest priorities are places with confirmed sage grouse populations. And Baker County has just 6 percent of Oregon’s sage grouse habitat.

Still, it’s an enticing offer, and one we hope local landowners have a go at. The local phone number is 541-523-7121.