The Buffalo Commons is a conceptual proposal to create a vast

nature preserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geolog ...

by returning of the drier portion of the

Great Plains The Great Plains is a broad expanse of plain, flatland in North America. The region stretches east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, and grassland. They are the western part of the Interior Plains, which include th ...

to native

prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

, and by reintroducing the

American bison The American bison (''Bison bison''; : ''bison''), commonly known as the American buffalo, or simply buffalo (not to be confused with Bubalina, true buffalo), is a species of bison that is endemic species, endemic (or native) to North America. ...

("buffalo"), that once grazed the

shortgrass prairie The shortgrass prairie is an ecosystem located in the Great Plains of North America. The two most dominant grasses in the shortgrass prairie are blue grama (''Bouteloua gracilis'') and buffalograss (''Bouteloua dactyloides''), the two less domin ...

. The proposal would affect ten states:

Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

, and

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

History

The proposal originated with Frank J. Popper and Deborah Popper, who argued in a 1987 essay that the current use of the drier parts of the plains is not

sustainable Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...

. The authors viewed the historic European-American settlement of the Plains States as hampered by lack of understanding of the

ecology Ecology () is the natural science of the relationships among living organisms and their Natural environment, environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community (ecology), community, ecosystem, and biosphere lev ...

and an example of the "

Tragedy of the Commons The tragedy of the commons is the concept that, if many people enjoy unfettered access to a finite, valuable resource, such as a pasture, they will tend to overuse it and may end up destroying its value altogether. Even if some users exercised vo ...

". Many people in potentially affected states resisted the concept during the 1990s.

Cause

The Poppers note that periodic disasters such as the

Dust Bowl The Dust Bowl was a period of severe dust storms that greatly damaged the ecology and agriculture of the American and Canadian prairies during the 1930s. The phenomenon was caused by a combination of natural factors (severe drought) and hum ...

and continuing significant population loss over the last 80 years show the area is not sustainable for large-scale farming. They note that the rural Plains has lost a third of its population since 1920. Several hundred thousand square miles of the

have fewer than 6 persons per square mile. This was the

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

standard of settlement which

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

Frederick Jackson Turner Frederick Jackson Turner (November 14, 1861 – March 14, 1932) was an American historian during the early 20th century, based at the University of Wisconsin-Madison until 1910, and then Harvard University. He was known primarily for his front ...

used in his " Frontier Thesis" to declare the

American Frontier The American frontier, also known as the Old West, and popularly known as the Wild West, encompasses the Geography of the United States, geography, History of the United States, history, Folklore of the United States, folklore, and Cultur ...

"closed" in 1893. Large areas have fewer than 2 persons per square mile. The Poppers demonstrated that the number of "frontier counties" increased by 14 between 1980 and 2000, mostly on the Plains, and noted that there are more than 6,000 ghost towns in the state of Kansas alone (according to

historian Daniel Fitzgerald). They claim that the decline in population on the plains is accelerating.

Details

The Poppers propose that a significant portion of the region be gradually shifted from farming and ranching use. They envision an area of native grassland, of perhaps 10 or 20 million acres (40,000 or 80,000 km²) in size. One way to achieve this would be through voluntary contracts between the Forest Service and Plains farmers and ranchers, in which owners would be paid the value of what they would have cultivated over the next 15 years. In the meantime, they would be required to plant and reestablish native

Shortgrass prairie The shortgrass prairie is an ecosystem located in the Great Plains of North America. The two most dominant grasses in the shortgrass prairie are blue grama (''Bouteloua gracilis'') and buffalograss (''Bouteloua dactyloides''), the two less domin ...

grasses and forbs, according to a Forest Service-approved program. At the end of the period, the Forest Service would purchase their holdings, while granting owners a homestead. Since their initial article in 1987, the Poppers have acknowledged that many other parties have very important roles to play. They do not see the federal government as central as they first did.

Outcomes

The proposal attracted some public attention, particularly since several Plains states and Native Americans on their reservations had already started reintroduction of bison. Many Plains residents intensely criticized the concept, especially in the first years. They point out that much of

rural flight Rural flight (also known as rural-to-urban migration, rural depopulation, or rural exodus) is the Human migration, migratory pattern of people from rural areas into urban areas. It is urbanization seen from the rural perspective. In Industriali ...

is due to mechanization of agriculture, wherefore fewer people are needed to produce the same amount (or more) of agriculture output, not because farms are failing. Proponents answer that the criticism is based on a misunderstood assumption that the plan would be coercive rather than voluntary. Given the pace of rural depopulation, many scholars believe that aspects of the proposal are likely to happen with or without national government involvement. States, non-profit community development groups, and Native American nations have found the concept supports some of their own ideas about the future. Some are working independently or partnering on related

ecological Ecology () is the natural science of the relationships among living organisms and their environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere levels. Ecology overlaps with the closely re ...

and

sustainability Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...

issues. In the last decade, as the Poppers talk about the concept, they acknowledge there are many players. They have seen many partnerships come about, including private and non-governmental initiatives. The Poppers draw parallels between the Plains and Northern

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

, which had agricultural depopulation following the opening of transportation to the West in the 1830s. In New England, the dominant forests have returned, taking over former areas of agricultural cultivation which were abandoned. North Dakota's 2000 economic roadmap noted the Buffalo Commons idea was "vilified", but had elements that could be of use to the state. The report suggested the concept could increase revenues from

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

. This was just one among many economic development avenues suggested in the report. The only population that has increased on the plains is that of various Native American nations. Some of these have started to raise bison, in part for

and ecological value, as well as its primary place in their traditional cultures. In 1992 Native American tribes started the InterTribal Buffalo Council. The consortium now includes 82 Native American tribes in 20 states. It trains Indian buffalo producers and tribal land managers, and takes other steps to reinvigorate buffalo's historically central place in their cultures. The buffalo count on Indian land has at least tripled since 1992. As of 2009, the tribes collectively managed 15,000 bison. Non-profits and private owners have also been raising bison; by 2001, the number of bison on the Plains had increased to a total of 300,000. As of 2009, the high plains population continued to decline, local economies continued to shrink, and the region's major water resource, the

Ogallala Aquifer The Ogallala Aquifer () is a shallow water table aquifer surrounded by sand, silt, clay, and gravel located beneath the Great Plains in the United States. As one of the world's largest aquifers, it underlies an area of approximately in po ...

, had shrunk more quickly than had been expected. Public perceptions of the concept of the Buffalo Commons have begun to change. In November 2009 ''

The Kansas City Star ''The Kansas City Star'' is a newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Star'' is most notable for its influence on the career of President Harry S. Truman and a ...

'' published an editorial that claimed the aquifer was almost depleted and noted the biggest asset of the high plains was its prairie. It supported the creation of a million-acre (4,000 km²) Buffalo Commons

National Park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

in western Kansas.

: ''A new park to save the plains'', November 15, 2009, Section B, page 7 The editorial suggested such a park could satisfy several goals: * attract tourists who would stimulate the economies of nearby towns; * provide

carbon sequestration Carbon sequestration is the process of storing carbon in a carbon pool. It plays a crucial role in Climate change mitigation, limiting climate change by reducing the amount of Carbon dioxide in Earth's atmosphere, carbon dioxide in the atmosphe ...

by the prairies; and * protect America's natural and cultural heritage.

History

Cause

Details

Outcomes

See also

References

External links

Further reading

Popular articles