This pasture rotation system balances upland and riparian grazing. We have also held water quality workshops to provide hands-on training about stream health and monitoring. After attending, we have portable water quality testing kits available to help ranchers gather baseline water quality information on their ranch. Please let me know if you are interested in hosting a workshop on your ranch. Because man heavily influences riparian areas, riparian grazing in these areas has come under scrutiny in recent years.
Riparian areas are the green areas which lie between channels of flowing water and uplands.
It is well known that improper grazing practices can adversely affect riparian areas. What is less obvious is which grazing management techniques are compatible with maintaining or improving these areas and under what conditions. To demonstrate recovery of riparian habitat, as a part of the water quality education program, last year SKC and this office solicited ranchers to offer their place to showcase grazing management. Maggie Goode stepped forward and described a reach of the Little Bitterroot that has become a loafing area for her cattle in the summer. She wanted the cattle to use the uplands but was unable to keep the cattle up on the hills for any length of time.