Wild Horse Advocacy Group Sues BLM Over Removal Plan

The American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign) has filed a lawsuit against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) over its plan to remove nearly 10,000 wild horses from Nevada. This legal action highlights ongoing debates about the management of wild horse populations onpublic lands.

There is no shortage of contention and opinions surrounding the Bureau of Land Management’sWild Horse and Burro Program, which involves the management and protection of these animals on 26.9 million acres ofpublic landsin the West.

There are many consequences to doing nothing to manage herds, and cattle ranchers are often vying for the same grazing lands. Populations are always going to be central to the discussion.

Recently, the American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign) and equine photographer Kimerlee Curylfiled suit in U.S. District Court in Nevadachallenging a 10-year plan by theBLMto round up and remove nearly 10,000 wild horses from the Antelope and Triple B Herd Management Area in southeastern Nevada. The suit also says that theBLMintends to manage the wild horses that remain on the range by castrating stallions and using “an unproven birth control vaccine on mares.”

In the suit, the plaintiffs push for more scientific information from theBLM, such as an Environmental Impact Statement, including whether any of the management decisions made will affect the natural behaviors of the animals.

To support the suit, the group claims that 80 percent of Americans oppose plans to destroy or sell for slaughter tens of thousands of wild horses, but that’s based on polling from the alternative Public Policy Polling firm, whichhas been known for pollslooking at the approval rating of God, whether Republican voters believe former President Barack Obama would be eligible to enter heaven in the event of the Rapture, and whether hipsters should be subjected to a special tax for being annoying. The cited poll also used a sampling size of about 550 people, which is on the low end of acceptable sizes for national polls.

TheBLMis no stranger to getting sued over its land management decisions involving ranchers, environmentalists, and the wild horse population.A recent case out of Texas, which drew a fairly high profile, ended in settlement.

Originally posted by AGDaily