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Commissioners authorize forced control of black‑tailed prairie dogs on private property after neighbor complaint
Summary
Lincoln County commissioners voted to issue a statutory force-control notice and authorize county predator-control staff to treat black‑tailed prairie dogs on property owned by Dennis Greenwood in Section 10, Township 10 North, Range 30 West after multiple unsuccessful attempts to contact the owner.
The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners voted Monday to begin statutory force control of black‑tailed prairie dogs on property owned by Dennis Greenwood in Section 10, Township 10 North, Range 30 West, after neighbors complained animals were crossing onto adjacent land and county roads.
Deputy County Attorney Tyler Volkmar told the board the county must send a statutory notice to the landowner and allow time for objection or cure before county personnel enter the property. He said the notice language follows the statute and includes the county’s option to recover costs, including by lien if necessary. “We have to give them a chance to fix it themselves,” Volkmar said; if the owner does not act, the county will schedule force-control work and bill the property owner.
Barry Johnson, who works for county predator control, told commissioners he had inspected the site, treated the complaining neighbor’s property and addressed burrows in the county road, but prairie dog activity persisted across the fence. “I’ve been down there several times,” Johnson said. He outlined prior treatments and said the county’s next step is to treat the neighboring property to stop animals from running across the road.
The board discussed prior use of the weed-control statute for similar enforcement and noted that the Black‑tailed Prairie Dog Control Act includes language allowing the county to place a lien to recoup costs. Tyler Volkmar said he could not guarantee lien provisions would withstand a legal challenge but judged the amounts unlikely to reach that level. The commissioners voted to direct counsel to serve the required individual notice and to proceed with force control if the owner does not comply.
What happens next: Counsel will send a certified notice to the property owner; if the mail is not claimed, county staff said they will personally deliver the notice. After statutory notice periods expire and any cure period is not met, county predator-control staff will arrange dates to perform force control and the county will bill the owner for costs incurred.
Ending: Commissioners recorded the roll call vote approving force control and asked staff about whether future neighbor complaints must come to the board; staff said that any planned forced control will need to be noticed to the board.
