Arizona Governor Hull Sides
With Stockmen Over "Greens"

TEMPE, Ariz. —(AP)— Arizona Gov. Jane Hull, insisting she knows the importance of ranching to the state, said last Thursday she'll defend ranchers' interests against challenges by special interest groups.

Speaking at the annual meeting for the Arizona Cattlemen's Association here, Hull said she's opposed to attempts to change land use policies to limit access of ranchers to rangeland.

``Ranchers have been good stewards of public land — probably better stewards than we get from the other side,'' said Hull, referring to environmental activist groups. ``Ranching is part of the solution to open space preservation.''

Environmental activists claim sheep and cattle ranching are destructive to the environment and unsuitable in many parts of Arizona.

Hull said she supports multiple uses for land, an issue she said is especially important in Arizona given that only about 13 percent of all land is privately held.

Most land is owned by tribal governments, agencies of the federal government and the Arizona State Land Trust.

Hull called the Endangered Species Act ``way too broad,'' and said it has caused problems for Arizona and other Western states by not considering or accommodating human activities such as ranching.

She said she'll work with other governors to encourage Congress to amend the Species Act.

``It should not be gutted but tempered so that it is not the totally unreasonable thing it is now,'' Hull said.

Hull said the number of lawsuits filed by environmental groups over land use strategies makes the Species Act ``one of the most counterproductive biological preservations strategies imaginable.''

Rob Smith, a member of the Southwest branch of the Sierra Club, offered a unique spin on the ESA's documented failures.

``The (Species) Act probably doesn't go far enough, given that more species are being added than we are successfully recovering,'' Smith said.

Smith claimed the ranching industry is out of step with most Arizonans in opposing wilderness protection.

``I'm disappointed that rather than bringing them (the ranching industry) closer to the center, the governor's comments allow them to continue to think the environment doesn't need protecting,'' he said.

Smith said public lands should be shared between ranching, recreation, wildlife and commodity production in a sustainable balance.

But Cabot Sedgwick, who has owned a cattle ranch in Nogales for 50 years, said wildlife and recreation have been over-promoted.

The 87 year-old Sedgwick called Hull's words ``music to my ears'' and said he was happy to hear Hull will voice her support for the ranching industry in her scheduled meeting Monday with Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt, who's a former Arizona governor.

``He (Babbitt) and (Vice President Al) Gore are very opposed to using public land except for recreation and wildlife,'' Sedgwick said.