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Chapter VII Cooperation
*Please do not assume this content reflects current Forest Service attitudes and/or practices. Neither should it be regarded to represent current scientific knowledge, policies, or practices.
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Cooperative range betterment has always been an outstanding factor in the Modoc Forest administration. For 30 years the Alturas livestock Association and the Modoc Wool Growers Associations both tied into national organizations, have worked cooperatively with forest officers. The Surprise Valley Stock Association, organized in 1914 and the Big Valley Stock Association, started in 1915, have been equa11y active. There have been several other livestock associations, representing the communities in which their members live. The Advisory Board of each association has currently met with forest officers and some of them have even been asked by the latter at times to review official action on grazing applications from their respective communities.
In 1917 the local stock associations assessed their members two cents per head for cattle grazed to buy material for salt storage structures and range salt boxes, manufactured and distributed by the rangers. Out of this grew the cooperative salt purchasing plan under which through the medium of the Alturas Stock Association almost all the stockmen in the Modoc country eventually bought their salt. This central purchasing plan resulted in very much lower. prices and a better quality product. Cooperative range riding followed cooperative salting, groups of permittees using community ranges sharing the services of a range rider, paid from funds raised by a per-head basis levy.
A great deal of the range development work and maintenance of range improvements has been accomplished with funds raised under the method provided by law of depositing a percentage of the grazing fees in a special cooperative fund. The different astray horse campaigns have all been financed through stockmen's cooperatives.
There has been a considerable expansion of other Federal and various State agencies dealing with land use in the past decade and local forest officers work in close cooperation with such. The closest possible cooperation has always existed between officers of the Forest Service and county officials. Even though land exchange transactions mean the removal of thousands of acres of land from the assessment rolls, the Modoc county board of supervisors has invariably given their unqualified approval to Forest Service recommendations in such matters.
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