Wild Horses: BLM Acknowledges 36,000 Comments on Proposed Gather
After initially reporting 26,574 comments opposing the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) proposed wild horse gather in southern Utah, officials have now corrected the count to approximately 36,000. This revision comes after the American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign) requested a review of the agency's records.
The comments were part of an environmental assessment for a series of roundups aimed at reducing the wild horse population by about 700 in the Bible Springs Complex, located in Iron and Beaver Counties.
BLM spokeswoman Megan Crandall explained that the discrepancy might be due to issues with their email system, which can clump emails together, especially when forwarded between stakeholders. This could have caused the initial undercount.
Deniz Bobol, representing the wild horse campaign, provided evidence showing their organization submitted 35,677 comments. The BLM has since acknowledged this number, crediting the organization for its submissions.
All comments from the American Wild Horse Conservation originated from a form letter with identical wording but different signatures. Additionally, the BLM received 149 unique comments opposing the proposed gather.
Iron County Commissioner Dave Miller argues that the number of comments is irrelevant, as he believes the BLM is legally obligated to reduce the wild horse population to appropriate management levels. According to Miller, achieving the legal limit would require removing approximately 600-700 horses from the Bible Springs Complex alone.
The BLM will hold a public hearing at 6 p.m. on Wednesday at the Cedar City Heritage Center to discuss the use of helicopters and ATVs for rounding up the 200 horses proposed for removal next month. This hearing is part of the process under the National Environmental Policy Act.
Iron and Beaver County Commissioners have threatened to take action themselves if the BLM does not proceed with the gather by July 1. However, they have not disclosed specific plans or measures they intend to implement.
Originally published by The Spectrum Daily News.