Public Lands Council backs BLM gathers, votes to send letter urging wild-horse levels kept at AML

The Emery County Public Lands Council voted unanimously to draft and send a letter urging the Bureau of Land Management to keep wild-horse populations within appropriate Appropriate Management Level (AML) ranges and to treat excess animals as grounds for emergency gathers.

The council took the vote after a detailed report from a BLM field representative, who described two July gathers in the Muddy Creek Herd Management Area. The BLM representative said crews removed about 189 horses in July (an initial emergency removal of 40 in June followed by additional actions in July that removed 39 and 110 animals in different locations). He said the agencyestimates a total herd population of about 246 head including foals, equivalent to roughly 218 adult-equivalent animals, and that the herd remains above AML.

Why it matters: Council members representing local grazing permittees stressed that remaining over-AML populations directly affect permit holdersforage availability and livelihoods during a severe drought year. Several permittees told the council they are experiencing little or no forage and warned that population rebounds are common without sustained follow-up.

BLM reporting and field conditions: The BLM representative said body-condition scores improved temporarily after a local storm filled a pond, but drought conditions continue and body conditions fell again as pond levels dropped. The BLM described plans to complete a herd management plan with fertility-control components this winter and said additional gathers will be scheduled once that planning is final.

Disposition of seized animals: The BLM representative said captured animals were transported to a private holding facility (Axtell) for quarantine, vaccinations and sorting; animals acceptable for adoption go to Delta, while older or unsatisfactory animals may remain in holding, be put down under euthanasia authority, or be shipped elsewhere. He said two horses were euthanized during the gather and a third animal likely required euthanasia soon after capture because it was blind.

Council motion and next steps: Members moved and seconded a motion instructing staff (Kim) to draft a letter to the BLM expressing thanks for the gathers, requesting that the agency maintain herds at AML, request immediate removal when AML is exceeded, urge the BLM to accelerate follow-up actions and fertility-control implementation, and note the economic impact to permittees when forage is consumed by excess wild horses. The council voted unanimously in favor; the letter will be drafted and reviewed by council members before mailing.

Questions and context: Council members asked BLM staff about the definition of an "emergency gather." The BLM representative said emergency status depends on animal body condition and forage/water availability rather than strictly on AML exceedance. Council members repeatedly urged that emergency gathers be used more promptly when conditions deteriorate.

Ending note: The BLM representative said the division will place the council on the mailing list for upcoming NEPA documents (the anticipated Environmental Assessment) so the council can review proposed gather plans and fertility-control measures when they are released for public comment.