Coalition Sues Over Decimating Wild Horse Protections

A coalition of groups has filed a lawsuit to stop the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) from eliminating thousands of acres of protected territory for wild horses, the largest area of its kind in California. This legal action, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, aims to prevent theUSFSfrom rounding up nearly 80 percent of the wild horses in northeast California near the Oregon border, many of which could face slaughter.

In August 2013, theUSFSauthorized a decision to eliminate more than 25,000 acres of wild horse territory that has been protected since 1971 under the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. This area, known as Devil’s Garden Wild Horse Territory in northeast California’s Modoc National Forest, has been home to wild horses for over 150 years.

According to the coalition, theUSFSfailed to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for their 2013 decision. The current horse population is about 1,100, and theUSFS's plan would remove about 900, the lawsuit alleges. They also claim that if the protections are stripped, horses will be rounded up, separated from their families, and likely sold for slaughter in Mexico and Canada.

Horse advocates argue that the plan is supported bylivestockranchers who wish to use the land for cattle grazing. The American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Preservation) states:

“Wildlife depend upon federal agencies for protection; instead, the Forest Service is protecting the private interests of ranchers,” Stephen Wells, executive director of the Animal Legal Defense Fund, said in a press release. “Wild horses have a historical right to territories designated and protected by acts ofCongress.”

The coalition includes the Animal Legal Defense Fund, the American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Preservation), the Return to Freedom horse sanctuary, and advocate Carla Bowers.

Originally posted by The Dodo

More Media Coverage:

• Group sues US Forest Service over wild horses, Associated Press
• Animal Rights Groups Sue Forest Service to Protect Wild Horses, SF Gate
• Animal Advocates Sue U.S. Forest Service over California Horses, Animal Legal Defense Fund
• Lawsuit Seeks to Save Forest Land for Wild Horses, The Horse