BLM NEWS RELEASE
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Ely District, Schell Field Office will begin to gather 72 wild horses from in and around the Moriah Herd Area near Ely, Nevada, starting Friday, Aug. 27, 2010. The gather is expected to take up to four days to complete.
The BLM Ely District is implementing the Ely Resource Management Plan that was signed in August 2008. Through the planning process, a decision was made to change Moriah’s management classification from Herd Management Area (HMA) to Herd Area (HA), due to insufficient habitat resources necessary to sustain healthy wild horse populations.
“Our goal is to manage for healthy public lands and healthy wild horses,” Schell Field Manager Mary D’Aversa said. “The Moriah Herd Area lacks the resources necessary to sustain healthy wild horse populations, year-round. As a result, the horses are moving outside the Herd Area boundary.”
The gathered animals will be transported to the Salt Lake Wild Horse and Burro Facility, in Salt Lake City, Utah, where they will be offered for adoption to qualified individuals. Un-adopted horses will be placed in long-term pastures where they will be humanely cared for and retain their “wild” status and protection under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. The BLM does not sell or send any horses to slaughter.
The BLM will regularly post gather information on its Website. Also, an observation day for the public and media is scheduled Saturday, Aug. 28. For more information or to sign up, call Chelsey Falge, BLM Ely District administrative clerk, at (775) 289-1800.
“The top priority for this gather is safety – that of the animals, our employees, and members of the public,” D’Aversa said.
