Click here to watch WY Agriculture Director Miyamoto’s Testimony.
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) welcomed Wyoming Department of Agriculture Director Doug Miyamoto before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Senator Barrasso invited Miyamoto to testify on invasive species management and his legislation, S. 2240, the Federal Lands Invasive Species Control, Prevention and Management Act.
Miyamoto testified alongside U.S. Forest Service Associate Deputy Chief Glenn Casamassa, Bureau of Land Management Acting Deputy Director Mike Pool, and two others.
Barrasso praised Miyamoto’s extensive background in agriculture, including his experience with invasive species. Before being named the Director of the Wyoming Department of Agriculture in March 2015, Miyamoto served as the former Chief Executive Officer of the Wyoming Livestock Board.
“Doug is a Wyoming native, University of Wyoming alumni, and former NRCS employee. He provides an important, multi-faceted perspective on the issues we face today,” said Barrasso.
Barrasso talked about how invasive species increase the risk of catastrophic wildfires and compromise water resources and landscape health.
“As a result of fragmented land ownership and poor forage management, invasive species,
like cheatgrass, now infest hundreds of millions of acres. These infestations threaten soil retention, increase the likelihood of fast-moving, catastrophic wildfires, and they are low-quality forage for wildlife and livestock, and they are an unnecessary burden on already-taxed water supplies,” said Barrasso.
Barrasso also talked about his bill, S. 2240, which will help to improve the way in which invasive species are prevented and reduced.
“This bill sets clear targets for reduction of invasive species that, while ambitious, I believe will motivate success with the tools it provides,” said Barrasso. “S. 2240 encourages use of collaborative partnerships to ensure that management efforts are unrestricted by jurisdictional boundaries. Cheatgrass doesn’t stop at the fenceline. Control efforts shouldn’t stop there either.”
Miyamoto testified in support of S. 2240, and highlighted how it will provide much needed coordination between local, state, tribal and federal agencies.
“Invasive species management simply demands an ongoing presence by all the partners and S. 2240 provides a realistic level of certainty that our federal partners can maintain a presence and finish the job that they’ve started,” said Miyamoto. “There is also a strategic planning requirement in this proposal that is an essential part of the bill. It identifies specific actions and timing for optimal coordination with other federal agencies, state agencies and local jurisdiction which I know will increase our return on investment.”
Miyamoto also cited an example of how local and state agencies are being forced to fund the treatment of invasive species even when a large majority of it occurs on federally owned land.
“Invasive species simply demand a high degree of collaboration across jurisdictional boundaries. In the case of the Squirrel Creek fire, Forest Service committed 7 percent of the funding, despite having jurisdiction for 90 percent of the land,” said Miyamoto. “In Wyoming, we eagerly await the opportunity to collaborate with our federal partners in an effort where the common goal is invasive species control, prevention and management. I know that these will be universally supported and I know it will also provide us yet another opportunity to prove that locally led and collaborative conservation works best.”
You can listen to Miyamoto’s entire committee statement here, and Senator Barrasso’s opening statement here and questions here.
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