Ranching

Re “Home on the Eco-Range,” Aug. 2: Ranching on the way out? It’s about time. While traditional ranchers bemoan the loss of their way of life, the environment of the West sits ravaged by a century of abuses: overgrazing, pollution and the mass extermination of every species that preyed on, competed with or lived peaceably by the all- important cow. Having grown up alongside the “brutish ranching culture,” I know the environmental toll this industry has exacted through unsound practices and its inability to change with the times.

The eco-ranching trend is a hopeful means of preserving what’s left of the “Wild West.” Traditional ranching should be preserved, but where it belongs--in the Gene Autry museum.

BRYAN COOPER

Los Angeles