Hosted by Triangle and Chino Winds Districts
Western Yavapai Conservation Education Center
Western Yavapai Conservation Education Center- WYCEC - informs and communicates with its pioneers of today and tomorrow about the wise use of our natural resources to maintain a sustainable, productive and healthy resource base for all our communities and caring for them.
NEWSLETTER
Triangle/Chino Winds NRCD
Our mission at the Triangle/Chino Winds NRCD is to advocate for all local agricultural producers. We are dedicated to coordinating with governing agencies and local landowners to achieve conservation goals.
Natural Asset Companies
By: Reuben Vernon
The New York Stock Exchange and the Securities and Exchange Commission have proposed the creation of a new investment vehicle, the “Natural Asset Company.” The objective is to monetize many of the ecosystem processes which naturally occur, and thus make them saleable on the open market. Quantifying and monetizing natural ecosystem processes, such as carbon sequestration, is a novel concept. At first glance, this is not a terrible idea. I have always believed that if farmers and ranchers were actually paid for all the products that we create, the economics of the business would
look a lot different. Open space, healthy soils and wildlife habitat are
intrinsically valuable things that have historically been byproducts to responsible agricultural production, for which there is no direct market value. Assigning a value to them, and the prioritization of their production that would naturally ensue, would be a good
thing. Market incentives are a far more effective way to influence human behavior than regulation. Where the NAC model falls short is in who is being incentivized to do what. Assigning fixed financial values to
natural environmental assets and processes, most of which would have occurred and existed without the existence of
the NAC, is fixing a value to a service- in this case environmental protection- rather than a tangible good. There is no actual need to produce the clean air, for example; simply protecting the forest that produces it from logging is enough.
A glaring question remains; Who gets paid?
The SEC plan gives fixed rights to natural assets (land, water, conservation easements) to the NAC, who then sells
the products produced by preserving the natural asset (carbon sequestration and clean air) to investors. The investor,
by buying shares in the NAC, benefits in two ways; they improve their ESG score, and they add assets to their balance sheet that are already technically owned by American taxpayers. Thus, a legal issue arises; the rule authorizes all federal lands to potentially be enrolled into the NAC, who as a private entity would then have management authority
over them. Congress has exclusive constitutional authority to manage federal lands, and has already delegated this authority to various federal agencies. There is no mechanism in the proposal to financially incentivize actual increased production of these intangible assets.
The incentive is to reward preservation, and ultimately sell clean air.
I have a counter proposal; assuming natural elements (like air) cannot be held to the exclusion of others, let us find a more direct way to financially incentivize good environmental stewardship. New technologies are coming online that can quantify the effect of a given management practice (logging, grazing, preservation) on soil carbon sequestration. There would be far greater societal benefit to enact government policies that promote that, rather than buying
air from the green industrial complex.
There is teamwork among Prescott National Forest and Permit Holders
On June 4, 2021, my dad and I acquired the grazing permit for three forest service allotments on the Prescott National Forest (PNF). On two of the allotments, Burnt Ranch and Cold Springs, along the Doce Road, which is the
old railroad grade, there are many recreational shooting spots. The trash left behind, and safety issues caused by these spots are so disgusting and concerning to me, so I starting talking to my range management specialist (range con) John Kava regarding these issues. On the Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) we signed at the onset of the lease with PNF required us to maintain to standard the corrals, water to the storage tanks, and trough from a spring to the north, that were partially damaged by the Doce fire in 2013. We were up for completing these repairs, but one thing was stopping that from happening. Recreational target shooters and the sound of bullets flying over our heads. Many times, myself, our foreman and ranch hands have had to hit the ground to avoid being hit with flying bullets. The forest service closed the Doce Pit Road the first part of June 2023 for almost two weeks so archeologists could survey the area for planned vegetation treatments, which benefited the 7 Spear Ranch staff. It allowed us to come in and do our work getting the replacement water line installed to the storage tanks and trough.
There is teamwork among Prescott National Forest and Permit Holders
My short story by :
Claudette Haverfield,
7 Spear Ranch
3 Teamwork—cont.
Nov 2023
On our first visit together, to look at the spots that cause the safety issue Jake Russell And John, now Deputy District Ranger (DDR), concurred that
those spots were not supposed to be recreational shooting spots. John needed to get with the appropriate resource area to verify his findings. I, Claudette, told John and Jake that 7 Spear Ranch would volunteer our time and our backhoe if they want to clean up the spots and move boulders to help close them down. On Sunday, September 11, 2023, with the partnerships
of the forest service recreation department, trails, PNF Law Enforcement agents, John Kava, volunteers from Ruger and Sportsman’s Warehouse,
Jeremy Cluff, foreman of the 7 Spear Ranch, and myself met and went to work cleaning three spots, closing the first two spots, and Jeremy moving boulders to close off the first two spots on Doce Road from recreational shooting. John and I had conservations about the environmental issues
that are being caused by the chemicals, toxins and lead running off all the target shooting spots when it rains. Everyone, that came out that day, 17 of us,
worked hard and joyfully to be doing something worthwhile for the land.
John and Jeremy put up posts and signage that states this area is closed behind these signs to target shooting to protect public safety. Pictures shown are of the garbage, cans of toxic chemical cans shot up like spray foam and flex seal, refrigerator shot up that was actually leaking freon, computer board parts. Other pictures are of our clean up, volunteers working, boulders in place with signs.
On Monday September 12, 2023, the PNF Fuels Crew came in and cut brush to cover the open ground to look like it was never a target shooting spot. This was a result of Officer Mullinex making the suggestion. Hopefully it will
even help with the erosion and runoff from rain and snow melt. See picture.
It has been over two months and some shooters have shot in those locations, but I would say that it is their way of showing they were not happy with those spots being closed. PNF law enforcement and other PNF staff make regular visits on Doce Road. The Recreation organization is planning another clean up in the spring, and hope to make it a regular event, engaging more organizations in the Prescott area. Conclusion; I am happy to have had a good working relationship with PNF, DDR John Kava, West Zone Recreation
Program Manager Susan Johnson, Law Enforcement officers, and meeting new people from Ruger and Sportsman’s Warehouse. The 7 Spear Ranch looks forward to working with them again on future clean ups. Before
After