After a year defined by fire, innovation offers a spark of hope.

During Oregon’s 2024 fire season, nearly two million acres burned across the state, with rangelands taking the brunt of the loss. In Gilliam County alone, more than 300 miles of fencing went up in smoke—leaving ranchers scrambling to contain livestock, manage grazing, and recover livelihoods.

At a recent field day hosted by Gilliam Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) and Sustainable Northwest, local leaders, researchers, and ranchers came together to share how a new technology—virtual fencing—is transforming the way people manage rangeland and respond to fire.

A Season of Loss — and Opportunity

The day began with Herb Winters of Gilliam County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), who reflected on the devastation of the 2024 Lonerock Fire. With fences destroyed and pastures scorched, the SWCD quickly mobilized to help local producers. Their innovative solution: pilot a virtual fencing program to give ranchers the flexibility to graze cattle on unfenced land while burned areas recover.

“It saved our bacon,” said rancher Jason Campbell, whose family’s ranch near Lonerock was among the first to test the technology. Towers alone cost $10,000 a piece, and several were necessary to cover their operations. Additionally, the collars themselves cost $40 per head annually, and an additional $10 for every battery. The ranchers only had to cover the cost of the battery.

Innovation in Action

The Campbells—Tom, Jane, Jason, and cousin Anthony—teamed up with Gilliam SWCD to launch the pilot. Researchers from the Eastern Oregon Agricultural Research Center (EOARC) in Burns, including Rory O’Connor, Dustin Johnson, and Chad Boyd, are researching the technology and joined the tour.

Virtual fencing uses GPS-enabled collars and signal towers to create “invisible” boundaries for cattle. The technology gives ranchers the power to move herds remotely and monitor their locations in real time—all without the cost and labor of installing miles of barbed wire.

The Campbells quickly discovered that virtual fencing offered far more than a temporary fix.

Jason used the system to guide cattle to graze underused areas of pasture, giving other sections time to rest and recover. Anthony found he could drastically cut the time and effort needed to gather cattle from his forest allotments. With virtual fencing he could see where his cows were before he rode out into thick lodgepole pine country.

A New Tool for Resilient Rangelands

While virtual fencing will never replace the skill and knowledge of a good cowboy, it’s proving to be a powerful new tool for rangeland management, and the Campbells are at the frontlines of discovering the benefits. Ranchers can now:

Recover faster after a wildfire by grazing on unfenced land.
Protect migrating wildlife by replacing barbed wire with GPS boundaries.
Safeguard sensitive riparian areas by keeping cattle out of streams and wetlands.

After the ranch tour, local producers gathered in Condon for a virtual fencing workshop, featuring vendors Vence, Nofence, and Halter. Ranchers heard directly from the Campbells about their experiences and from Audrey Knight of Sustainable Northwest, who shared resources to help producers develop grazing plans that integrate virtual fencing.

Why It Matters

The event underscored what’s possible when innovation meets community action. Through partnerships between Gilliam SWCD, Sustainable Northwest, and local ranchers, virtual fencing is helping build more resilient landscapes—and more resilient rural communities. "Virtual fencing presents the perfect opportunity for ranchers to improve their grazing strategies and reach management goals for the land they care about," said Audrey Knight, Sustainable Northwest’s grazing lands program manager.

For the Campbells and their neighbors, it’s proof that innovation and community can go hand in hand.

What’s Next

Sustainable Northwest is continuing to work with Gilliam SWCD, EOARC, and producers across the Northwest to explore how virtual fencing can support both ranching livelihoods and landscape health. Together, we’re building a future where technology and stewardship work side by side to protect the places we all depend on.

If you want to support this work, contact us at giving@sustainablenorthwest.org

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