Monument may gain 520 adjoining acres

Monument may gain 520 adjoining acres

December 4, 2001

Tracks from All-Terrain vehicles used to spread herbicide run through a patch of dead Russian knapweed on the former Burt Price Ranch Monday. The 520-acre ruin-rich ranch may be transferred by the Farm Service Agency to the BLM for inclusion in the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument.

By Janelle Holden
Journal Staff Writer

Transferring one of Montezuma County’s worst weed patches into the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument could help researchers find new and innovative ways to kill weeds and preserve cultural resources, say monument managers.

Formerly known as the Burt Price Ranch, a 520-acre parcel on the southeast corner of the monument is currently owned by the Farm Service Agency, which has offered to transfer the land into the BLM’s hands.

The FSA, a federal agency, foreclosed on the former farmland in 1990, and since then it has become a haven for the dreaded Russian knapweed, leaving it virtually useless for farming or development.

"It’s kind of the poster child for Russian knapweed invasion in the county, maybe in the world," said Ron Lanier, Montezuma County’s weed coordinator.

Russian knapweed is a difficult weed to eradicate. Introduced to North America from Eurasia, this non-native plant loves the high desert climate and puts down roots 15 to 20 foot deep. The weed emits a toxin into the soil that kills off competing plants, and is also toxic to horses. Once it ingests the plant, the horse sustains brain damage and cannot swallow.

Lanier said the property had become such a problem that the county took action to enforce the state weed law, and the FSA agreed to pay the county to begin cleaning up the patch with herbicides.

Also, the BLM insisted the FSA treat the property twice with herbicides before it would express a formal interest in the land. That alone cost the FSA nearly $20,000.

In 1999, FSA also contracted with a private archaeological firm that identified 64 cultural resource sites within the property. After the FSA agreed to do two herbicide applications and help with further weed control, the BLM decided the cultural resources and research potential of the property were worth the weeds. The BLM will incur no cost in acquiring the property.

"I felt that because there were so many cultural resource sites on the property that it would be a positive thing to preserve those sites. Some of them are damaged, but I think the property has tremendous research potential, both from a noxious weed control perspective on how to treat knapweed infestations at that level, and then to go forward with restoration," said LouAnn Jacobson, the monument’s manager.

Jacobson said that the BLM has put together a proposal for a project to study the effectiveness of the county’s herbicide application and experiment with different reseeding and restoration methods.

"We’re in a pretty challenging situation, not only with the intensity of the knapweed that is there, but also the desert plateau climate with minimal rainfall and trying to get grasses to come up under those conditions," said Jacobson.

The project is also difficult because of a lack of moisture and a high density of archaeological sites that may be damaged by tilling the soil — a common weed-killing practice.

BLM range management specialist Mark Tucker said it will be a long-term project, especially because of the cultural resources involved.

"It will be a constant vigil," said Tucker, who explained the general area is full of knapweed and other noxious weeds.

One adjacent landowner has spent thousands of dollars cleaning up the weeds on her property, said Lanier, and has only just begun native plant reseeding.

If all goes well, the land will be transferred to the BLM sometime in the early new year, according to Leon Sanders, Colorado Farm Loan Chief for the Farm Service Agency.

The FSA could have sold the property to a private buyer, but because of the cultural resources, the BLM was the first choice.

"The reason we’re going this route is because BLM has the resources to manage this type of property with the historical and archaeological sites," said Sanders.

The Burt Price Ranch is the third parcel of land transferred into the monument since its inception in June of 2000. Last September the BLM completed the Ansel Hall Ruin, and recently acquired 160 acres owned by Dirk Hood near Lowry Pueblo.

The monument’s proclamation states that if the BLM acquires any property within the monument boundaries it will automatically become part of the monument. Jacobson said that the BLM has no authority to condemn private property.

"We would not pursue anything unless a seller came to us," said Jacobson.

The FSA is accepting public comment on the transfer until Dec. 28. Comments or questions should be provided in writing to Leon Sanders, Farm Service Agency, Colorado State Office 655 Parfet St., E-305 Lakewood, CO 80215.