Press Release for current bait & trap operation happening at the McCullough Peaks HMA
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For Immediate Release, January 25, 2024
Americans Are Tired Of Their Taxpayer Dollars Being Used To Kill Wild Horses
Cody, WY - The Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) bait and trap operation at the McCullough Peaks wild horse herd area this week resulted in a 13 month old filly dying due to a head injury while in the bureau’s custody. The McCullough Peaks herd area covers approximately 120,000 acres and the number of horses is only 173, minus the 4 already captured. The bureau wants to reduce the herd to below 140 horses while hundreds and hundreds of taxpayer-subsidized cattle graze in the same area. The cost to taxpayers for this bait & trap operation, holding and forthcoming adoption process for those horses captured, will number in the thousands of dollars. This roundup is just one of 30 on the bureau’s FY24 schedule and the cost to taxpayers will be millions of dollars.
• The McCullough Peaks herd area totals 120,344 acres. At the current population level, that is 712 acres per wild horse. At the reduced population level BLM is aiming for, that equals 812 acres per wild horse.
• The McCullough Peaks wild horses are an older herd with 56 of the horses over the age of 15. Removing 35 young horses, coupled with birth control on the remaining mares will result in a total collapse of this herd in the next decade.
• Per the BLM’s own Wild Horse & Burro Handbook, a herd of 150 breeding adults are needed for genetic diversity
• The Environmental Assessment states that the BLM must manage rangelands to prevent the range from deterioration. The BLM has provided no data indicating the rangeland is deteriorating and without these data, there is no rationale for the current roundup of just 35 wild horses. In addition, there is no analysis provided for the impact of livestock grazing on the rangeland.
• Grazing permits within the herd area allow for over 2,900 cattle at a cost of just $1.35/month for a cow/calf pair
• The Bureau of Land Management’s total expenditures for 2023 was $157,828,000, nearly $20,000,000 more than the previous year
• Millions of taxpayer dollars are paid to just 4-5 ranching contractors to perform wild horse & burro roundups each year
• Presented in the McCullough Peaks Environmental Assessment (EA), and all EA’s done by the BLM as of late, is a 10-year plan. This is a violation of NEPA, the National Environmental Policy Act.
For additional information, please contact Heather Hellyer at Save Our Wild Horses: heather@saveourwildhorses.net
Sources:
https://www.westernwatersheds.org/hma-domestic-grazing/
https://www.blm.gov/programs/wild-horse-and-burro/about-the-program/program-data
Americans Are Tired Of Their Taxpayer Dollars Being Used To Kill Wild Horses
Cody, WY - The Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) bait and trap operation at the McCullough Peaks wild horse herd area this week resulted in a 13 month old filly dying due to a head injury while in the bureau’s custody. The McCullough Peaks herd area covers approximately 120,000 acres and the number of horses is only 173, minus the 4 already captured. The bureau wants to reduce the herd to below 140 horses while hundreds and hundreds of taxpayer-subsidized cattle graze in the same area. The cost to taxpayers for this bait & trap operation, holding and forthcoming adoption process for those horses captured, will number in the thousands of dollars. This roundup is just one of 30 on the bureau’s FY24 schedule and the cost to taxpayers will be millions of dollars.
• The McCullough Peaks herd area totals 120,344 acres. At the current population level, that is 712 acres per wild horse. At the reduced population level BLM is aiming for, that equals 812 acres per wild horse.
• The McCullough Peaks wild horses are an older herd with 56 of the horses over the age of 15. Removing 35 young horses, coupled with birth control on the remaining mares will result in a total collapse of this herd in the next decade.
• Per the BLM’s own Wild Horse & Burro Handbook, a herd of 150 breeding adults are needed for genetic diversity
• The Environmental Assessment states that the BLM must manage rangelands to prevent the range from deterioration. The BLM has provided no data indicating the rangeland is deteriorating and without these data, there is no rationale for the current roundup of just 35 wild horses. In addition, there is no analysis provided for the impact of livestock grazing on the rangeland.
• Grazing permits within the herd area allow for over 2,900 cattle at a cost of just $1.35/month for a cow/calf pair
• The Bureau of Land Management’s total expenditures for 2023 was $157,828,000, nearly $20,000,000 more than the previous year
• Millions of taxpayer dollars are paid to just 4-5 ranching contractors to perform wild horse & burro roundups each year
• Presented in the McCullough Peaks Environmental Assessment (EA), and all EA’s done by the BLM as of late, is a 10-year plan. This is a violation of NEPA, the National Environmental Policy Act.
For additional information, please contact Heather Hellyer at Save Our Wild Horses: heather@saveourwildhorses.net
Sources:
https://www.westernwatersheds.org/hma-domestic-grazing/
https://www.blm.gov/programs/wild-horse-and-burro/about-the-program/program-data