The New Ranch Handbook: A Guide to Restoring Western Rangelands

By Nathan Sayre

What began as a grassroots collaboration among a small number of ranchers and conservationists working to resolve rangeland problems has grown into an active faction of innovative (or visionary) ranchers called “New Ranchers.” The New Ranch Handbook demonstrates how livestock ranching and conservation values can be compatible and ranchers and environmentalists can work together to benefit rangelands. On New Ranches in New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and elsewhere, livestock has been managed in progressive ways and the land has responded: vegetation is more diverse and productive, soils are more stable, streams and springs have come back to life. Wildlife, watersheds, livestock, and ranchers have all benefited. The Handbook situates the practices of these ranches in relation to recent models and knowledge in range science and ecology.

Download the pdf New Ranch Handbook.