A new authorization by the Trump administration lends a helping hand to ranchers whose land has been devastated by wildfires.
The Department of Agriculture announced Tuesday that for a limited time, ranchers affected by the wildfires that began March 6 will be allowed to graze livestock on protected lands in Texas, Kansas, and Oklahoma.
“Ranchers are facing devastating conditions and economic calamity because of these wildfires and they need some relief, or else they face the total loss of their herds in many cases,” Michael Young, deputy acting secretary of the USDA, said in a statement.
“These measures will allow them to salvage what remains of their cattle and return to the important business of feeding Americans and the rest of the world. I commend and thank President Trump for acting decisively in response to this dire situation,” he added.
The USDA estimated that the fire has burned roughly 1.6 million acres of grassland.