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David Gilman Impacts of Cattle on Soil of the American West His experiences growing up on a Vermont farm fostered a desire in David Gilman to pursue a college degree that would allow him to help farmers. Consequently, at Utah State University he pursued coursework in soils and meteorology. After receiving his bachelor of science degree in 1968, he mapped soils for the USDA Soil Conservation Service (currently the Natural Resources Conservation Service) in Woodstock, Vermont. Gilman relocated to the Targhee National Forest (Idaho) (currently the Caribou-Targhee National Forest) as a soil scientist in 1974. The following year he became the zone soil scientist for the Challis (currently the Salmon-Challis National Forest) and the Sawtooth National Forest, a position that gave him the responsibility for insuring protection of the soil against any activity that might disturb it. When every national forest was subsequently assigned its own soil scientist, Gilman remained in that position on the Sawtooth until his retirement in 1994. David Gilman talks about the various environmental impacts on soil that result from cattle grazing in the American West. Recorded in August 2003. This video is an excerpt from David Gilman’s interview in Western Turf Wars: The Politics of Public Lands Ranching. |
