Back to StoriesSteve Primm Wades Into The Sagebrush Sea
August 14, 2017
Steve Primm Wades Into The Sagebrush SeaMadison Valley-based conservationist promotes better means of co-existing between ranchers, recreationists, wild carnivores and livestock.
Steve Primm is not the kind of youthful professional conservationist you’re
likely to find in Bozeman or Jackson Hole.
Identifying with rural people and their lack of pretension, he lives in
the country by choice to be closer to his line of work: collaborating with
ranchers, mostly, to reduce conflicts that arise when domestic livestock shares
landscapes with grizzly bears and wolves.
In “Sagebrush & Cranesong,” his regular column, Primm will be sharing
observations from Greater Yellowstone’s western tier that also happens to be an
important biological corridor bridging the ecosystem with wildlands further to
the north.
MOUNTAIN JOURNAL: You live in the
southern Madison Valley, nearly within stone-tossing distance of the namesake
river that runs through it. Share with us a few thoughts about why you
like calling this corner of the Greater Yellowstone home?
STEVE PRIMM: The upper Madison is a place
where superlatives blow away on the prevailing south wind. I moved here
in the mid-90s, just as recovering grizzlies and reintroduced wolves were
starting to spill in here from Yellowstone over the mountains and up the river.
The ecological importance of this place for reconnecting Greater Yellowstone
with other wildlands is tremendous. It's also a very dynamic human
community, and I've come to know a lot of really top-notch people.
MOJO: People and Carnivores, the
non-profit conservation organization you help run, is all about promoting
co-existence between humans and predators. It's largely unheralded work
but it pays huge dividends. What kinds of changing in thinking have you
observed, for better or worse, over the decades that you've lived in the
region?
PRIMM: Twenty-five years ago, wolf
reintroduction and recolonization of historic range by grizzlies seemed highly
unlikely. I was among many who thought large carnivores wouldn't thrive
outside designated protected areas. But they have, and many people are
willing to take steps to prevent conflicts with them in what we call the
working pastoral landscape.
On the downside, explosive growth of
recreational use in large carnivore habitat, as well as certain kinds of
recreation, has the potential to lead to far more conflicts. It's
terrific that people want to connect with wild places, but we have to recognize
that these places are more than just pretty settings for making Go Pro videos.
MOJO: You've gotten involved in
the rural community by being a volunteer firefighter and part of the teams
responding to accidents and search and rescue operations. There are fewer people
living in your dell than in the Gallatin Valley but the bonds of connection
between people are strong. Thoughts?
PRIMM: We're a small community populationwise,
so we rely on each other to take on a lot of different responsibilities. But
Madison County geographically is bigger than Rhode Island. Our fire and
ambulance services are all volunteer. It's an honor to work alongside
these people, and to serve others.
MOJO: You are deeply concerned
about the future for grizzly bears and yet you see lots of positive things
happening out on the landscape. When it comes to grizzlies in Greater
Yellowstone, who do Americans need to know?
PRIMM: Collectively, Westerners are getting a
lot of things figured out about how to have grizzlies as neighbors again.
What we need now is sustained, long-term funding to keep conflict prevention
programs strong. Truly wild, self-sustaining populations of large
carnivores are national treasures, so I'm not shy about saying that the whole
country ought to be chipping in to maintain and expand proven practices for
preventing conflicts.
MOJO: As a native Missourian,
you've found a true calling in the mountains. What does a good day—or
night—look like for you in the northern Rockies?
PRIMM: Any day that takes me to a high ridge,
up in the whitebark pines, is a good day for me. Especially if I get
there with good horses and a good dog to share it all with.
A drone camera captures Steve Primm and a colleague raising a new bear pole used by outfitters and hunters to keep their food out of reach in grizzly country. Photo courtesy Steve Primm of People and Carnivores
MOJO: In terms of charting
Greater Yellowstone's future, who are the people or entities that play the most
pivotal roles?
PRIMM: A lot of the carnivore conflict
prevention work we do -- and preventing conflicts is how we achieve reconnected
grizzly populations -- depends on the choices people make, the practices they
adopt that either prevent or cause conflicts. If we want to keep large
carnivores in this ecosystem, it's imperative that we find constructive ways to
engage with people who are going to be directly encountering predators on the
trail, on the ranch, or around their communities. At the same time, there
are some mega-trends that require bold leadership at the county, state,
federal, and global level. How do we grapple with climate change?
How do we handle the huge influx of new residents and visitors to the
GYE?
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