BLM seeks comment on proposed Cedar Mountain wild horse gather
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SALT LAKE CITY— The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Salt Lake City Field Office seeks input during a 30-day public comment period on an environmental assessment to help protect rangeland conditions and the health of the wild horse herd. The assessment will analyze a proposed gather plan spanning approximately 10 years to remove excess wild horses and use population growth suppression in the Cedar Mountain Herd Management Area located west of Salt Lake City in Tooele County, Utah.
“Gathers and fertility control measures are needed in the Cedar Mountain Herd Management Area to return the population to within its appropriate management level,” said BLM Salt Lake City Field Manager Jessica Wade. “Our gather efforts, handling standards and fertility control work are guided by our compassion for these animals and our desire to protect their well-being, as well as the health of our public lands.”
The Cedar Mountain Herd Management Area encompasses approximately 211,593 acres of Federal and State lands located 50 miles west of Tooele, Utah. It extends to more than 25 miles in length on both sides of the Cedar Mountain Range in Skull Valley, Utah. Access is provided to the herd management area via Interstate 80 and then by state, county and BLM-managed roads. The BLM estimates that more than 600 of the estimated 900, which includes foals born in 2022, must be removed from the Cedar Mountain area to ensure a healthy landscape. The appropriate management level of the herd management area is established at 190-390 horses.
The environmental assessment analyzes a proposal to gather and remove excess wild horses and to implement fertility control. Information about the project is available on the BLM’s ePlanning website: https://bit.ly/3A66mql. Feedback that includes useful comments containing new technical or scientific information relevant to the proposed action are most helpful. Input may be mailed or submitted through ePlanning link provided or by mail at: Bureau of Land Management, attention: Cedar Mountain Gather, 491 North John Glenn Road, Salt Lake City, UT 84116.
Interested members of the public, local governments, Tribal members, organizations and other stakeholders are encouraged to provide written comments during this draft review comment period to help identify alternatives, refine the gather plan and to clarify issues. All comments must be submitted by 4:30 p.m. on July 28, 2022, to be considered.
Before including an address, phone number, email address, or other personally identifiable information in any comments, be aware that the entire comment—including personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. Requests to withhold personal identifying information from public review can be submitted, but the BLM cannot guarantee that it will be able to do so.
BLM Utah manages 19 wild horse and burro herd management areas on nearly 2.5 million acres. To learn more, visit https://go.usa.gov/xuABb. For additional information, please contact the Salt Lake City Field Office at 801-320-8300.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.