The Bureau of Land Management is moving to revoke grazing permits for bison held by a Montana-based conservation group.
In 2022, during the Biden administration, tensions mounted when BLM authorized the nonprofit American Prairie’s bison to graze on four federal land allotments in Phillips County, Montana, where only cattle were previously allowed. Two other plots in the area already hosted the group’s bison, which are kept almost exclusively for ecological restoration purposes.
BLM on Friday said it now plans to reverse that decision, following years of objections from Republican opponents like Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte and Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen. They expressed concern American Prairie’s bison and conservation goals would impinge on the state’s agricultural economy.
American Prairie, previously known as American Prairie Reserve, could lose permits for more than 63,000 acres of its grazing land. For over two decades, the group has reared bison — currently at more than 900 animals — for conservation grazing, which is meant to restore the land.
