The Coalition is built on the foundation of real experience, scientific research, and commitment to our common goals of rangeland conservation and ranching viability. The stories below are about the ranchers, the agency representatives, and others who have made a commitment to the mission of the Coalition into action. See also Grazing for Change I and II. More videos are hosted by California Cattlemen’s Association.
National Ag Day 2023
Ideas to showcase and promote rangeland diversity, values and rancher stewardship
Let’s all celebrate National Ag Day on the CA Rangeland on March 21
and showcase the values of California ranchers and working rangelands, especially your own ranchers and other rangeland colleagues and constituents. Resources online.
- See CRCC’s website for quick facts, Benefits of Rangeland and Photo Gallery.
- See CRT’s ecosystem services study.
- Follow CRCC Facebook page for posts to easily share. Use your Instagram and Twitter accounts to post something the week of March 19-25.
- Submit a Letter to the Editor, ranch recipe or an op-ed in your paper. Invite a news person to the ranch.
- Make and Share a video from a ranch. Here’s a sample, Settrini Ranch.
- Local Cattlewomen groups seek outreach projects and may partner on a project.
Share one of these videos of nationally-recognized ranch land stewards from your neighborhood. Update it with an interview & photo and share it in paper and social media. Let these be an inspiration to your own stories. National Environmental Stewardship Award Program – CA Awardees, Sparrowk Livestock, Conlan Ranches / True Grass Farms, Work Ranch, Canyon Creek Ranch, Leavitt Lake Ranches, Yolo Land & Cattle, Smith Valley Cattle Feeders / Centennial Livestock, Blanchard Ranch
Grazing to Reduce Wildfires
Rancher Activity in Wildfire Fighting
In Search of the Value of Grazing
Genoa Starrs1, Sheila Barry2, Lynn Huntsinger1, Van Butsic1
1University of California, Berkeley; 2UC Cooperative Extension Livestock/Natural Resources
Genoa Starrs (gstarrs@berkeley.edu

Rangeland Science Posters
These posters were shared at the 2023 Summit. CRCC appreciates the authors for their work and for sharing in this way.
Effects of Compost Amendments to Rangelands with Steep Slopes on Soil Carbon, Greenhouse Gas Fluxes, and Nutrient Runoff. Rebecca Ryals1*, Ian Howell2, Hillary Sardiñas2, Alexia Cooper1, Kelly Schoonmaker3, Miao Ling He4. 1University of California, Merced, 2Alameda County Resource Conservation District, 3StopWaste, 4USDA Natural Resources Conservation District
Grazing to Reduce Wildfires. Understanding Vegetation Types to Reduce Fire Severity. Theresa Becchetti, Shane Feirer, Denise Woods, Stephanie Larson, UCCE
Rancher Activity in Wildfire Fighting. Lessons from SCU Fire Complex. Theresa Becchetti and Sheila Barry, UCANR
Effects of Compost Amendments to Rangelands with Steep Slopes on Soil Carbon, Greenhouse Gas Fluxes, and Nutrient Runoff
Rebecca Ryals1*, Ian Howell2, Hillary Sardiñas2, Alexia Cooper1, Kelly Schoonmaker3, Miao Ling He4
1University of California, Merced, 2Alameda County Resource Conservation District, 3StopWaste, 4USDA Natural Resources Conservation District
Ian Howell ian.howell@acrcd.org

Photo Contest
2023 Summit Photo Contest

The contest is closed. Please begin now to enter next year. In the meantime, enjoy California’s working rangelands and keep your camera handy to capture the landscapes, people and wildlife.
The photographs will be posted on this website and will be used in CRCC outreach during the year.

Photo Contest – Model Consent Form
Please return via email with photograph submission.
I consent to ______________ using the photograph of me as an entry in
(Print Photographer Name)
the 2021 Rangeland Summit Photo Contest and to the photograph’s and the California Rangeland Conservation Coalition’s future use in print materials, publications, marketing materials, on the internet, or any other lawful use or reproduction.
Title:_____________________________
Name of individual in photograph:__________________________________________
Address:______________________________________________________________
Signature: ___________________________________________Date______________
Minor Model Consent Form
If subject is under 18, I _____________________, parent of guardian of the minor,
(Print Name of Parent or Guardian)
_____________, consent to the use of the photograph of this minor as an entry
(Print Name of Minor)
in the 2021 Rangeland Summit Photo Contest and to the photograph’s and the California Rangeland Conservation Coalition’s future use in print materials, publications, marketing materials, on the internet, or any other lawful use or reproduction.
Address:______________________________________________________________
Phone Number:________________________________________________________
Authorization: Date______________
Signature of parent or guardian_________________________________
Conference Agenda
Friday, February 24, 2023
Rangeland and Fire
NAVIGATING THE PROPOSAL PROCESS FOR WILDFIE FUELS TREATMENT USING PRESCRIBED GRAZING.
Range Management Advisory Committee – RMAC & Co-host, Cal Poly Swanton Pacific Ranch
These presentations are available due to a partnership between the California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection’s Range Management Advisory Committee and Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. Click to learn more about the trainers.
CAL FIRE and the State of California are ramping up resource investments for increasing fuel treatments to manage high fuel loads and reduce wildfire risk. Using livestock has significant potential for managing combustible vegetation. A variety of funding sources are available to support wildfire prevention projects and activities in and near fire threatened communities that focus on increasing the protection of people, structures, and communities. In this workshop, CALFIRE, UC Extension advisors, and grazing managers will offer guidelines for developing fuel reduction project applications utilizing grazing through Request for Proposal (RFP) processes, and for developing successful grazing agreements.
Kristina Wolf: Range Management Advisory Committee Overview. Dr. Kristina M. Wolf, Environmental Scientist for the Board of Forestry & Fire Protection (‘Board’), manages the activities and business of the Range Management Advisory Committee (RMAC), a statutory committee which advises the Board of Forestry on rangeland resources, along with being a Certified Range Manager (#122) in the State of California. She addresses range policy, resource needs, and issues surrounding rangeland resources on working rangeland landscapes throughout California.
Marc Horney: Making your Case: Important Elements to Consider in Developing Proposals for Funding Grazing Treatments for Fuels Removal. Marc Horney has been professor of Rangeland Ecology & Management in the Animal Science Department at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo since fall, 2009. Prior to that he was California Area 1 Range Management Specialist for the USDA-NRCS, and member of NRCS’ Klamath Basin Watershed Team.
Stephanie Larson: How to Implement Grazing into a Vegetation Management Plan. Stephanie Larson, PhD, CRM, County Director and Livestock Range Management Advisor, UCCE Sonoma and Marin Counties along with being the Livestock and Range Management Advisor. She addresses climate change, food production and ecological and economical management of working landscapes.
Marshall Turbeville: Grazing to reduce wildfire intensity, rate of spread, and resistance to control. Marshall Turbeville is a CAL FIRE Battalion Chief in the Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit. He grew up in rural Northern California on a ranch with vineyards and grazing. He began working for the CAL FIRE in 1995 as a seasonal fire fighter and accepted a full time position in 2000.
Rancher Panel: Grazier perspectives on developing and applying for grazing projects
Clayton Koopmann, a 5th generation California rancher and owner/manager of Walking C Livestock. Walking C Livestock strives to provide science-based conservation grazing on public and private lands within California’s Central Coast Region including the Bay Area. Clayton is a managing partner in Koopmann Family Beef.
Ryan Nielsen is part of a 5th generation ranching family in California that has operations from the Bay Area to Oregon. Ryan has a unique background that includes habitat restoration and mitigation for species of concern in addition to managing grazing on land use types.
RANGELAND SUMMIT.
California Rangeland Conservation Coalition (CRCC) & Co-host, University of California Agriculture & Natural Resources (UCANR)
WELCOME, Bre Owens, CRCC Chair and Paul Starrs, moderator
Paul Starrs: Professor Paul Starrs taught cultural and historical geography at the University of Nevada, in Reno. He publishes a variety of works associated with the geography of the so-called “New West.” He is currently a member of the Rangeland Management Advisory Committee.
HOW LABOR ISSUES IMPACT SMALL RUMINANT GRAZING – INCLUDING TARGETING GRAZING. Robert Irwin, Kaos Sheep.
Robert and Jaime Irwin along with their kids run Kaos Sheep Outfit, a targeted grazing company in Mendocino, Lake and Colusa Counties. They graze sheep in cropping systems as well as around Home Owner Associations and golf courses to reduce fire fuels, improve soil health and produce meat and wool. They graze with the intention of being sustainable and a mutualistic relationship between grazing and the communities they graze. Facebook: Kaos Sheep Outfit
GRAZING EFFECTS ON FUEL LOADS & FIRE BEHAVIOR. Felix Ratcliff, Rangeland Conservation Science.
“Felix Ratcliff is Principal and Senior Rangeland Scientist at LDFord, Consultants in Rangeland Conservation Science. In addition to his recent research with UC Agriculture and Natural Resources on livestock grazing and wildfire behavior, his professional work focuses on conservation-oriented planning, monitoring, and research in grazed rangelands. You can learn more about his company here: https://rangelandconservation.com.”
MAPS, GRAZING, & FIRES – HOW MAPS CAN BE USED AS A MANAGEMENT TOOL. Stephanie Larson and Theresa Becchetti, UCANR
Dr. Stephanie Larson is the Livestock and Range Advisor for Sonoma and Marin Counties, providing educational and research based information on animal science and range management to agricultural producers, agencies and general public. She promotes local agriculture and rangeland management, especially related to working landscapes for the production of food and ecosystem services. She has created Match. Graze as well as working on projects to map vegetation in regards to fire fuels.
Theresa Becchetti is the Livestock and Range Advisor for San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties, sharing resource information and conducting field research on the land. She has been co-coordinating the Summit for many years.
GRAZE TO REDUCE THE BLAZE PANEL. Ranchers & agencies share how they use grazing to reduce fire risks with livestock.
Allison Rofe, East Bay Regional Park District consists of 73 parks in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties spanning 125,000 acres. They manage these large landscapes with livestock to manage and preserve natural and cultural resources for the East Bay while also controlling fire fuel loads in the Wildland Urban Interface of their parks.
Liz Reikowski, Reikowski Ranch
Claudio Nunez, Santa Lucia Conservancy.
Gareth Fisher, Vaqueros Livestock
PHOTO CONTEST RESULTS. Point Blue Conservation Science, Sponsor
MUNCH THAT GRASS: BIOMASS REDUCTIONS REDUCE FIRE HAZARDS. Matthew Shapero, UCCE and Roxanne Foss, Vollmar Natural Lands Consulting.
Matthew Shapero is the Livestock & Range Advisor in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties and provides locally based extension, education, and applied research focused primarily on the interactions of livestock production systems with rangeland ecosystems, including wildlife habitat, invasive plants, wildland fire, prescribed fire, soil health, and watershed health.
Roxanne Foss is a Senior Ecologist for Vollmar Natural Lands Consulting. She is an ecologist with a robust understanding of science-based adaptive land management, field survey protocols, and ecological principles. Her project diversity includes grassland mapping and rapid assessments, riparian restoration, rare plant population modeling, and biological preserve monitoring.
PRESCRIBED BURNING OBSTACLES. Marc Horney, RMAC
The Range Management Advisory Committee was statutorily created by Section 741 of the Public Resources Code of the State of California to advise the Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, the Resources Agency, the California Environmental Protection Agency, and the California Department of Food and Agriculture on rangeland resource issues.
ADJOURN.
We hope to see you at another event later this year!
Most presentations will be published on the website after this event.
Summit Sponsors
CRCC, UCANR and RMAC thank these 2023 Summit Sponsors, Booth Exhibitors and Donors!
It’s easy to join this growing, special list – just a click away!
OR Print the form to send a check.
RANCH SPONSORS
CA Cattlemen’s Assoc, Cobblestone Ranch, Cotton Creek Ranch, Forrest Ranch, Kaos Sheep Co, MidValley CowBelles, Mission Livestock, Orvis Ranch Beef, Sagehorn-Russell Ranch, Inc, Sann Joaquin / Stanislaus Cattlemen’s Assoc, Spanish Ranch, Sparrowk Livestock, Star Creek Land Stewards, Inc, Sweet Livestock, TN Cattle Co, Vaqueros Livestock, Tom Kat Ranch / Bill Milliot, Vaqueros Livestock, Vogt Ranch, Walking C Livestock, Yolo Land & Cattle
OTHERS
Alameda County RCD, CA Board of Forestry – Range Management Advisory Committee, Cal Poly Swanton Pacific Ranch, CA Climate & Agriculture Network, CalFire, Cal-IPC, CA Native Grasslands Assoc. CA Rangeland Trust, CA Rangeland Education, Christopher’s Crafts, Paints & Photos, East Bay Regional Park District, Hedgerow Farms/Pacific Coast Seed, Interwest Insurance Services, Koopmann Rangeland Consulting, Mtn Lion Foundation, Point Blue Conservation Science, Rangeland Conservation Science, Santa Lucia Conservancy, Paul Starrs, Partners US Fish & Wildlife Service, Rancher Technical Assistance Program, Vollmar Natural Lands Consulting, Western Landowners Alliance, Western Poly Pipe

