Iron County's Ultimatum to Federal Authorities: Remove Wild Horses or We Will

Iron County commissioners have issued a stern ultimatum to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM): devise an immediate plan to remove hundreds of wild horses from the area, or residents will take matters into their own hands.

As drought conditions worsen in southwestern Utah, the overpopulation of wild horses poses a significant threat to livestock and wildlife, according to Commissioner David Miller. The BLM's response has been to propose reducing cattle grazing allotments, which has sparked local outrage.

In a letter dated March 30, signed by Commissioner Miller and Iron County Sheriff Mark Gower, they state, "Inaction and no-management practices pose an imminent threat to ranchers who are being pushed to reduce their allotments by 50 percent, thereby damaging the value of their private rights."

Volunteers are on standby, corrals are ready, and feed has been secured should the BLM fail to act promptly, Miller noted. The letter, addressed to BLM Principal Deputy Director Neil Kornze, demands a plan by noon Friday to mitigate the threats and adverse conditions in Iron County.

The BLM's management plan suggests there should be 300 wild horses in the area, yet estimates indicate there are 1,200. "We will take whatever action we have to take to reduce those numbers immediately," Miller declared. "We expect the BLM to take that action. If they refuse, we cannot wait until the range is destroyed."

Calls to the BLM were not immediately returned.

The Associated Press reported in February that Joan Guilfoyle, chief of the BLM’s Wild Horse and Burro Division, warned that the $70 million program was on the brink of financial collapse unless drastic changes were made to the agency’s roundup policy.

She suggested suspending roundups until thousands of mustangs in federal corrals are sold or adopted and recommended euthanizing wild horses on the range as a last resort if they near death due to declining resources.

Commissioner Miller stated that while euthanizing captured wild horses is not the plan, it hasn't been ruled out. "There is a high probability that some animals may need to be put down for humane reasons due to poor forage conditions," he said. "We intend to be compassionate and take a conservationist approach. We are all concerned about the potential destruction of the western range habitat and the inhumane aspects of starving wild horses and wildlife."

Iron County plans to temporarily house the horses, hoping they will be adopted.

Utah Governor Gary Herbert is aware of the conflict and has expressed his concerns to Kornze, according to spokesman Michael Mower. Herbert "understands the frustration felt by West Desert ranchers who have been asked to dramatically curtail their cattle herds while wild horse herds continue to grow," Mower said.

Horses were not native to the West when European explorers arrived, and not all those on the range today were born wild. In recent years, some people have released horses they couldn’t afford to keep.

Utah had an estimated population of 3,245 wild horses and 250 burros as of fiscal year 2013, while the "appropriate management level" for the state was 1,956, according to the BLM’s Utah Wild Horse and Burro web page.

The BLM manages the horses and burros under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act and is allowed to remove excess animals. There are four Utah sites that hold captured horses, and two have enough space to take 531 more animals, according to a March BLM report.

However, the act prohibits roundups by others. Those who remove or attempt to remove wild horses or burros from public land without authority could face a fine of up to $2,000 or imprisonment for up to a year, or both. Maliciously causing the death of the animals, harassing them, or capturing one for private use also violates the act.

Miller argues the BLM is breaking federal law by not appropriately managing the herds. As the chair of the Iron County Commission, he claims authority under Utah State Code to arrange a roundup. "We are charged to mitigate the risk to the health, safety, and welfare of the people of Iron County," Miller said. "We are legal."

Across the West, BLM officials collected 4,064 horses and 112 burros in fiscal year 2013 and either put them up for adoption or sent them to long-term holding pastures. More than 8,200 were removed in 2012. BLM biologists have also made efforts to control populations by fertility control treatments.

The agency has come under Congressional scrutiny for the cost of managing the wild horses and burros and faced public outcry about the possibility of animals being sold to meat plants.

Miller said the BLM has responded to the county’s concerns by explaining that there isn’t enough money in its budget to get the herds to the appropriate level. The commission counters that argument by pointing to the BLM’s spending in its fight with a rancher just across the border in Nevada. According to the March 30 letter, the agency is preparing to round up cattle it wants removed from BLM land.

"The decision of the BLM to allocate funding approaching or surpassing $2 million dollars to gather private cattle owned in Clark County, Nevada while the agency refuses to respond to the requests by Iron County to abide by its own laws and policies is unacceptable," the letter said.

Herbert made that point as well, Mower said. Herbert tried to convey "the frustration of many local officials and ranchers that so much money is being spent on a cattle roundup in Clark County. The BLM seems to have the resources to do that but will not adequately address the issues concerning wild horses," Mower said.

Originally Posted By The Salt Lake Tribune