Billings Field Office
| Contacts: | Kristen Lenhardt 406-896-5228 |
BLM Offers Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Gather Update
Billings, MT – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Billings Field Office is currently waiting for the administrative remedies process to be completed within the Interior Board of Land Appeals (IBLA). Should the gather be deemed appropriate to proceed after this process is completed, operations would begin no sooner than June 20.
The decision was issued after conducting an Environmental Assessment for a non-helicopter gather. The BLM will move forward with the Proposed Action that analyzed using a combination of bait trapping, water trapping, and some herding. The release of the decision began a 30-day appeal period that ended on May 3, 2012. Three separate parties filed petitions for stay; two of the three to date have been denied by the IBLA, and the BLM is awaiting a decision on the third. Since bait trapping can occur year-round, the gather is anticipated to take place at any point during the 2012 calendar year, after the start date.
The gather is designed to manage the appropriate number of wild horses so that rangelands and horses can be healthy and productive for years to come. The current wild horse population is approximately 170 horses, exceeding the established Appropriate Management Level (AML) of 90-120 horses. Management decisions in the PMWHR are guided by the PMWHR/Territory Environmental Assessment and Herd Management Area Plan, which was developed in a public planning process and issued in 2009.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs. The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends. In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
Billings Field Office 5001 Southgate Drive Billings, MT 59101