Wyoming and Ranching Group Enter Lawsuit Over Wild Horse Gather Near Rock Springs

The state of Wyoming and a ranching group have entered into a contentious lawsuit over the presence of wild horses in southwest Wyoming. This legal battle pits wild horse advocates against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), raising significant environmental and legal questions.

Background of the Lawsuit

On Tuesday, Wyoming and the Rock Springs Grazing Association were granted permission to join the ongoing dispute over a horse gather in three regions of southwest Wyoming near Rock Springs. The BLM recently rounded up wild horses in accordance with a 2013 settlement between the ranching group and the federal government.

Arguments from Wild Horse Advocates

Wild horse advocates have repeatedly argued that the BLM illegally implemented the settlement, which aimed to maintain wild horse populations within federal targets. They claim that livestock operators argue wild horses damage the range.

Court Rulings and Legal Proceedings

The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the horse advocates last year, determining that the BLM’s attempt to remove all wild horses from the checkerboard of public and private land adjacent to Interstate 80 was illegal. The court found that the BLM treated public portions of the land as private parcels, not subject to federal law governing wild horses.

However, U.S. District Court Judge Nancy Freudenthal declined to halt the most recent gather, which took place over several weeks in October. Despite claims by horse advocates that the BLM failed to conduct a proper environmental review and was not counting horses under one year old against its total removal goal, the gather proceeded.

“Delaying the gather would allow the wild horse population to expand, wasting the BLM’s scarce resources invested in organizing the proposed gather and forcing the BLM to lose out on the costs it has already incurred,” Freudenthal wrote.

Ongoing Legal Challenges

Despite the wild horse gather concluding on Oct. 17, the lawsuit continues. It will likely address whether the BLM took the necessary steps before starting the gather and whether the agency may exclude young horses from total removal counts in the future. The State of Wyoming and the grazing association sought to enter the lawsuit shortly after it was filed, but their request was only granted on Tuesday.

State's Interest in the Case

Senior Assistant Attorney General Erik Petersen wrote in his motion to join the case that Wyoming had a legitimate interest because it owned a significant portion of the land where the wild horses were being collected.

“Domestic livestock use the State’s land for only a few months of the year, and the State and livestock producers manage the livestock when they are present,” Petersen wrote. “In contrast, wild horses use the State’s land year-round, but the State cannot manage the wild horse population.”

Originally posted by Casper Star Tribune