BLM releases decision to gather Wild Horses in the Bible Spring Complex
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CEDAR CITY, Utah —To protect rangeland health conditions and the health of wild horse herds, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Cedar City Field Office approved the gather and removal of up to 410 excess wild horses from public-managed lands. The decision supports a gather plan spanning approximately 10 years to remove 750 excess wild horses and will use population growth suppression methods in the Blawn Wash Herd Management Area and Bible Spring Complex Area located west of Cedar City in southwestern Utah.
“The gather decision supports the BLM’s continuing efforts to manage public lands for multiple use and sustained yield and to manage wild horse populations under the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971,” said BLM Cedar City Field Manager Paul Briggs. “The BLM is committed to healthy horses on healthy rangelands and to maintaining balance of the ecosystem.”
The current combined population of wild horses within the Blawn Wash Herd Management Area and Bible Spring Complex is estimated at 831 animals, including a forecast of foals to be born in 2022, with the appropriate management level set at 80 to 170 horses. The BLM estimates more than 750 wild horses need be removed from state, private and BLM-managed public lands to ensure a healthy landscape.
The Bible Spring Complex encompasses the Four Mile, Bible Spring and Tilly Creek herd management areas, and includes the Blawn Wash Herd Management Area adjacent to the Complex. The Cedar City Field Office proposes to remove excess wild horses to the low appropriate management level, which is the number of wild horses that the landscape can support.
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 Cedar City Field Office at blm_ut_biblesprings@blm.gov.
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.