ELKO, Nev. — On Jan. 31, 2012, Administrative Law Judge James H. Heffernan issued a decision in favor of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) which allows the BLM Elko District to proceed with the Hubbard Vineyard Allotment grazing permit renewal and spring improvement projects designed to improve riparian condition. The judgment affirmed that the BLM appropriately addressed a range of alternatives as well as potential impacts to sage-grouse, and that BLM’s analysis supported the grazing decision and measures to protect sage-grouse habitat. ]]>
Sixteen wild horses from the ranges of Nevada from BLM-administered public lands will be offered for adoption at the NNCC corrals starting at 9:00 a.m. for public viewing. The public viewing will be followed by a competitive bid adoption conducted by an auctioneer that begins at 10:00 a.m.
The horses range in age from four to six years, are saddle-trained with at least 120 days of training, and vary in weight and color. The beginning bid on all horses is $150. The horses are trained at the NNCC by inmates in the Nevada Department of Corrections program.
A catalog of BLM wild horses offered for the Feb. 11 adoption is posted on-line at www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/fo/carson_city_field.html. Frequently asked questions about the program are answered at the same site. Copies of the catalog are also available at BLM offices in Reno and Carson City.
To pre-qualify for the weekend adoption call, 775-885-6146.
Potential adopters are asked to enter the Northern Nevada Correctional Center off Snyder Avenue on the south side of Carson City. From U.S. 395, take Snyder Avenue east for 1.5 miles to the entrance to the Northern Nevada Correctional Center. Turn right (south) and watch for signs and event personnel at the extreme south end of the facility directing event participants to the horse corrals and parking.
NNCC rules prohibit the public from wearing any blue clothing, blue jeans, tank tops or shorts at the auction. Also, please no cell phones, cameras or recording devices. ]]>
- Tuesday, Feb. 21: Clark County Regional Government Center, 101 Civic Way, Laughlin
- Wednesday, Feb. 22: 200 Michael Wendell Way, Searchlight
- Thursday, Feb. 23: Boulder City Library, 701 Adams Blvd., Boulder City
The BLM published the Notice of Availability in the Jan. 20 Federal Register. This notice initiates a 90-day public scoping period to review and solicit comment on the DEIS. ]]>
ELKO, Nev.—The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Elko District Office welcomes aboard acting District Manager, Michael Herder. Herder is currently attending the BLM’s leadership academy in Phoenix and will assume the DM duties on February 6.
Herder will be filling in behind Elko District’s current DM, Kenneth E. Miller. Miller has accepted a detail as Associate Director of the BLM’s National Operations Center (NOC) in Denver. The NOC’s current Associate Director is acting Director and the detail is expected to last until the vacant Director’s position is filled.
Herder has been with the BLM since 1988, and currently serves as the Ely District’s Associate DM. Along with his ADM duties, Herder also serves as the consultant to the BLM’s National Office on bats and related issues and is the BLM’s representative to the Bats and Wind Energy Cooperative.
Herder began his BLM career at the Arizona Strip District in St. George, Utah as a wildlife biologist. Prior to his BLM career, he served as a U.S. Marine Mammal Observer aboard Japanese high-seas salmon fishery vessels in the North Pacific and Bering Sea, as a Marine biologist with the California Department of Fish and Game and as a teaching assistant at Humboldt State University.
"I am really looking forward to this opportunity," said Herder. "Elko is a very diverse and unique community. I am anxious to work side by side with folks to meet our resource management goals on the Elko District."
Herder is a graduate of Humboldt State University with a Master’s degree in Marine Biology. He enjoys hiking, woodworking and playing music. ]]>
Lois Whitney and Leah Brady will pass on the techniques of this art to the Shoshone youth
from 2 until 6 p.m. A variety of baskets will be on display and at 4 p.m. there will be a formal presentation on Shoshone basket making.
Leah Brady and Lois Whitney are local Western Shoshone sisters who have worked for decades to keep Shoshone traditions alive by educating tribal youth. This free event is a rare opportunity to learn more about Shoshone culture.
The Willow Weaving workshop is the second Newe Night event at the California Trail Interpretive Center. Newe Night events will continue on the afternoon of March 17 with a Drumming, Singing and Hand Game afternoon. Contact Shania Cook (775) 738-1849 for more information.
The California Trail Interpretive Center, operated by the Bureau of Land Management, is eight miles west of Elko at Hunter exit 292. The center is closed for exhibit installation but will be open for special events, school groups and prearranged tours and meetings. Visit our websites at on.doi.gov/CTCElko, www.californiatrailcenter.org or visit the Trail Center’s Facebook page. ]]>
The Garfield Flat Wild Horse Gather concluded on Thur., Feb. 2. The preliminary numbers of excess wild horses gathered from the Garfield Flat HMA are 84. Of those gathered 23 animals were released back to the range after the mares received a 22-month fertility control vaccine. One domestic mule was gathered and returned to its owner after almost two years. The HMA is located about 10 miles southeast of Hawthorne, Nev.
The purpose of the two gathers was to reduce the herd populations to within the appropriate management levels (AML) and to implement population growth controls to achieve or maintain a thriving natural ecological balance on the public lands.
Excess wild horses were transported to the Palomino Valley Wild Horse Adoption Center, located about 20 miles north of Sparks, Nev. Gathered wild horses are being prepared for adoption under the BLM’s adoption program. Wild horses for which there is no adoption demand will be placed in long-term pastures where they will be humanely cared for and retain their “wild” status and protection under the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971 (Act). The BLM does not sell or send any horses to slaughter.
For information about adopting a wild horse, go to www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/whbprogram/adoption_program.html.
For more information, contact Lisa Ross, BLM Carson City public affairs specialist, at 775-304-8850. ]]>
Carson City, Nev.--During Bureau of Land Management (BLM) wild horse gathers, every once in a while horses are brought in that are not so wild, sometimes branded, and sometimes not even a horse. This was the case last Monday when a skinny black mule was brought in during the BLM’s Carson City District wild horse gather in the Garfield Flats Herd Management Area near Hawthorne. ]]>