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Brush-clearing goats seen as 'green' answer to fire preventionRoseville/Placer County News
By Ramon Coronado Wednesday, Mar. 4, 2009 - 12:00 am
From Rocklin to Oakland to San Diego, herds of goats are eating their way through weeds and brush on public and private land. And as another drought year looms this summer, more municipal governments, homeowner associations and private property owners may be calling on goats to protect them against wildfire. "There is a growing interest in using goats for fire prevention," said Roger Ingram, a farm adviser with University of California Cooperative Extension. More than 60 people showed up for a recent forum sponsored by the city of Rocklin at which Ingram discussed the pros and cons of using goats instead of machinery, chemicals and crews armed with weed whackers. The city of Rocklin paid a Nevada County goat contractor $11,500 two years ago to bring a herd of about 250 goats to clean up the city's open space. The farm animals munched away at 23 acres of venomous poison oak, prickly star thistle and the invasive Himalayan blackberry. "They did a great job, and we want to do it again," said Rocklin's Public Works Director Ken Foster. Rocklin officials have applied for a $100,000 grant from the Sierra Nevada Conservancy Grants Program to clear 146 acres of potential wildfire fuel to protect water quality in two watersheds in South Placer County. The plan could be a regional model for other cities and agencies in the Sierra foothills, Foster said. While goats can be two to four times cheaper than conventional weed abatement in wide open spaces, some critics claim that left unchecked, the farm animals can leave an area barren, leading to erosion and flash flooding. Critics also say that the very weeds targeted are the first to grow back and the first to dry up and die, which could create more wildfire fuel. "You have to look at the big picture," Ingram said. Terri Oyarzun, owner of Goats R Us in Orinda, who's been in business for 17 years, said her customers, which include the University of California, Berkeley, keep coming back because they don't like chemicals that contaminate or machines that scar the land. The family-run Bay Area company has 6,500 goats and sheep, two dozen border collies and a support staff of about 10. "It is a green alternative that is growing in popularity," Oyarzun said. Tony Fairchild, owner of Goat Brushers in Grass Valley, was out recently with about 80 goats from his herd of 130, clearing a little more than 6 acres near Auburn. "Fire danger is the big concern," Fairchild said, standing next to one of his oldest and biggest goats named Spike, a 5-year-old floppy-eared Boer. It's big goats like Spike, weighing nearly 150 pounds, that can climb on rocks, tree trunks and at times other goats to reach high into hanging tree growth. The tree growth acts like a ladder for ground flames to climb into trees. Eliminating ladder fuel could make the difference between a grass fire and a forest fire. Fairchild, who's been in business for four years, charges between $600 and $1,300 an acre. His fees vary, depending on conditions, time of year and the objective sought for clearing. A fire trail takes less work than restoring a pasture, for example. While business over the years has been on the upswing, Fairchild said he has seen a drop lately because of the economy. "Typically, though, when we get our first fire, the phone doesn't stop ringing," he said. |
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