INDUSTRY/EMERGING ISSUES–BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
Fig. 1. Map showing locations of wild horse and burro herd management areas (HMAs). Purple HMAs are those with horses; yellow are those with burros; green are those with both horses and burros. Grayed out areas are those where horses are no longer managed.
lic lands on 177 herd management areas (HMA) in the west (Fig. 1). The goal of the Wild Horse and Burro Program is to ensure the health of wild horses and burros on healthy public rangelands. The WFRHBA, as amended, contains a variety of tools for managing herd numbers. However, current congressional appropriation riders prohibit theBLM from using all the authorities available in the WFRHBA. Specifically, Congress blocks the sale of wild horses and burros without limitation and has limited the use of euthanasia. The BLM retains the ability to gather animals
from the range but then, if not adopted, sold, or transferred, must care for them the rest of their
58 2018 Vol. 64 AAEP PROCEEDINGS
lives. The cost of holding wild horses and burros in off-range corrals and pastures has increased substantially in recent years and remains the largest component of the program’s budget. In fiscal year 2017, the BLM spent nearly 60% of its budget on the care of animals removed from the range. It costs nearly $48,000 for the care of one unadopted horse that remains in BLM facilities over its lifetime. The cost of caring for 46,000 unadopted and unsold animals currently in hold- ing will cost $1.0 billion over their lifetimes. In establishing the “Appropriate Management
Level” (AML) for wild horse and burros on the public lands, the BLM uses principles of range-
