Center for Biological Diversity Loses Second Lawsuit Against Salt River Wild Horses
United States Forest Service’s Motion to Dismiss was Granted by Federal Court with Prejudice
(PHOENIX, A.Z., August 27th, 2024) – Salt River Wild Horse Management (SRWHMG) and American Wild Horse Conservation (AWHC) welcome the dismissal of a second lawsuit, filed by the Center for Biological Diversity and trophy hunting groups against the US Forest Service (USFS) as a major win for the Salt River wild horses.
The lawsuit, filed in January of this year, targeted the Salt River wild horses in the Tonto National Forest. It alleged the Forest Service’s signing of a Cost Share Agreement with the Arizona Department of Agriculture to fund a Salt River Horse Liaison position violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Endangered Species Act (ESA). On August 26th, 2024, Judge James Teilborg for the Federal District Court of Arizona, dismissed all three claims in the case.
SRWHMG and AWHC filed a motion to intervene in the case, in order to support the Forest Service and added details about the horse population size and humane management programs. The groups also filed a motion to voluntarily reassign the case to Judge Teilborg, who had previously dismissed a similar lawsuit by the Center for Biological Diversity last year.
On May 2nd, 2024, the USFS filed a motion to dismiss the case, highlighting among other things, the ESA analysis on the recently updated Tonto National Forest Land Management Plan (LMP), which includes the Salt River horse management area.
In granting the dismissal of all three claims, Judge Teilborg referenced the ESA analysis stating that the LMP “is likely to result in net beneficial effects to federally-listed species.”
He also mentioned the fact that overturning the Cost Share Agreement would not redress plaintiffs’ concerns about the current long-term wild horse management plan, as the Salt River horse liaison is not likely to change that plan.
"We welcome this decision as a major step forward in the battle to protect wild horses on our public lands. The Salt River wild horses are beneficial to the environment. They spread the seeds that create the mesquite forests, which are vital to all birds and wildlife. They also reduce the risk of wildfires by eating the dry weeds under those trees. If CBD and its sport hunting allies wish to improve the environment, we invite them to help us clean up the Tonto National Forest, because the human impact is the primary threat to the lower Salt River ecosystem,” said Simone Netherlands, president of the Salt River Wild Horse Management Group.
“It's unfortunate that the Center for Biological Diversity keeps wasting the Court’s time with lawsuits challenging the successful Salt River wild horse management program, which is humanely reducing population numbers while protecting these Arizona national treasures,” said Suzanne Roy, Executive Director of AWHC. “We are grateful to the Court for again dismissing the Center’s misguided legal action aimed at upending this popular and successful partnership between the state, federal government, and the nonprofit Salt River Wild Horse Management Group.”
The Salt River wild horses in the Tonto National Forest are protected under the Salt River Horse Act passed by the Arizona State Legislature and signed into law in 2016. The law was passed overwhelmingly in response to public opposition to a plan to eliminate the Salt River wild horses from the forest. The horses are managed by SRWHMG under contract with the Arizona Department of Agriculture (AZDA), through a humane fertility control program.
“We are grateful for the successful partnership with the Tonto National Forest and the AZDA. This is a model for collaboration across Western states. By humanely reducing the population, we’re demonstrating that we can protect wild horses while also conserving the environment,” said Netherlands.
The horse advocate groups were represented by attorneys Weiner & Cording out of Boulder, Colorado.
The case was dismissed with prejudice, eliminating any possibility of refiling.
The Salt River Wild Horse Management Group (SRWHMG) is an Arizona non-profit organization dedicated to protecting and humanely managing the Salt River wild horses. SRWHMG has secured protections for the horses and partners with the State of Arizona for the day-to-day management of the herd, including a highly successful fertility control program that has reduced the population humanely, without ever removing one horse.
American Wild Horse Conservation (AWHC) is the nation’s leading nonprofit wild horse conservation organization, with more than 700,000 supporters and followers nationwide. AWHC is dedicated to preserving the American wild horse and burros in viable, free-roaming herds for generations to come, as part of our national heritage. In addition to advocating for the protection and preservation of America’s wild herds, AWHC implements the largest wild horse fertility control program in the world through a partnership with the State of Nevada for wild horses that live in the Virginia Range near Reno.