Report From Renownd Wildlife Ecologist Craig Downer

Tuscarora Wild Horse Ranges- Flyover Report 6/21/10

27 June 2010

Report on Flight from Truckee Airport (CA) passing over various mountain ranges and valleys to the Owyhee Wild Horse Herd Management Area (whhma), Rock Creek whhma, and Little Humboldt whhma.  (Ill. w/ digital photos taken on flight.)

Elko District, Bureau of Land Management, North Central Nevada, ca. 80 miles NW of Elko. Note: wh is abbreviation for wild horse(s)

Flight realized on Monday, June 21, 2010, Summer solstice.

Dates of report preparation 6/24-25/2010.

Background: Three whhma’s encompass > 482,000 acres of which 336,262 acres are in the Owyhee whhma, 102,638 acres in the Rock Creek whhma and 15,734 acres in the Little Humboldt whhma.  Northern portions of the Owyhee whhma occur in the Columbia Plateau physiographic region, but most are in the Great Basin physiographic region.  Drought and lack of forage due to fires are being cited by BLM officials as reasons for the drastic reduction of these wild horse herds. BLM plans to gather 1,548 wild horses (the currently estimated total population) and to put back only 399, or which 195 would be PZPed mares with 2-year sterilization effects.  This works out to leaving one wild horse per 1,200+ acres – an extreme marginalizing of this species by any standard and very contrary to the “principal” presence mandate of the Wild Horse Act.

Objective: To observe wild horses, their numbers and conditions, note their locations and the ecological condition of their habitat and to observe and note the livestock present in the whhma’s, their numbers and relative proportions vis-à-vis the wild horses, their areas of concentration and ecological effects.

Flight arranged by Lighthawk organization to assist with the gathering of factual information and data concerning the conservation of wild horses on public lands.

Observer and reporter: Craig C. Downer, Wildlife Ecologist, P.O. Box 456, Minden, NV 89423. ccdowner@yahoo.com. Equipped with D-80 Nikon digital camera with 28-300 zoom lens loaned by wild horse supporter.

Weather: Clear with high, wispy cirrus clouds, conducive to greater flight stability due to less atmospheric convection.

Airport of Origin and Return: Truckee Airport, California, west of Reno.

Time of departure: 8:30 AM.  Pass over Reno airport flying over Pah Rah Range, a legal wild horse herd area that has been “zeroed out” by BLM.  No wild horses observed here, contrary to statement by Mr. Larry Johnson of the national wh/b advisory board on 6/15/10, Denver meeting, though considerable spring green-up, or grassy vegetation is observed.  Our plan is to refuel at the Winnemucca Airport to the east.

10:00 AM. Note vast extension of purple hued Bromus tectorum, a.k.a. Cheat Grass, as plane nears Winnemucca.  Velocity: 109 knots. Headwind 10 mph from east.

10:30 AM: Land at Winnemucca Airport.  Unfortunately the airport has run out of fuel.  We will fly to Battle Mountain Airport to the east to fuel up. We depart at 10:55 AM.

11:12 AM: Flying over portions of Sonoma Range to SE of Winnemucca, I note many cattle (est. 400) mainly grouped around water sources.  No wild horses observed.  The Sonoma Range Herd Area (NV0223) should have a fair number of protected wild horses, but BLM officials have decided to not manage for them, i.e. to “zero out” in this 150,999-acre herd area (Fiscal Year 2008 USDI Public Lands Statistics).  Prevalence of green grass noted, including much purplish cheat grass.  Some short aspen groves noted around springs at higher elevations.  Enormous open pit mines observed and photographed en route.  These have major detrimental effects on water, soil, air, wildlife and human health in the region, including underground water flow disruption and water pollution with mercury, nitrous and sulphuric acid leachates, etc.

11:36 AM:  We land at the Battle Mountain Airport for refueling.  Fortunately fuel is available here.

12:10 PM: After refueling and eating lunch, we take off from Battle Mountain Airport.  We plan to fly to the town of Midas then over portions of the Little Humboldt whhma, Rock Creek whhma then on to Owyhee whhma, reaching the South Fork Owyhee River.

12:43 PM: North of Midas, in the Little Humboldt whhma, seven groups of ca. 12 cattle are seen, for a total of 84.  No wild horses observed. Abundant grass here, also large open pit mine. Photos.

12:49 PM: Finally a band is observed consisting of one gray and one sorrel, a male-female pair. Geographical Positioning System (GPS) reading: N 41 deg 21.37 min; W 116 deg 43.6 min.  Photos.

12:54 PM:  Group of 17 wild horses observed. GPS: N 41 deg 23.19 min; W 116 deg 41.0 min.  Appears to be two wh bands in association. Abundant grass & water present. Photos.

12:56 PM:  Another band with 9 wh’s including 2 foals encountered and photographed.  GPS: N 41 deg 23.3 min; W 116 deg 35.56 min.

12:59 PM: Band of 6 wh’s including one foal spotted & photographed. GPS: N 41 deg 21.36 min; W 116 deg 33.12 min.

1:02 PM.  Congregation of several wh bands spotted & photographed. GPS: N 41 deg 22.85 min; W 116 deg 32.3 min.  8 bands with following numbers of wild horses observed: 8, 11, 9, 4, 9, 8, 7, 12.  Plane circled around to extensively photograph these.  Sum of wh’s in this congregation: 68.  Note: This is an upland habitat with plenty of green grass and water sources.  This is north of Willow Creek Reservoir near 7,020-foot-high Soldier Cap mountain in the Rock Creek whhma.

1:07 PM: Another band of 7 wh’s seen to SW.  Light colored wh’s. Photos.  GPS: N 41 deg 25.75 min; W 116 deg 29.2 min.  Ca. 400  cattle observed along a stream and meadow near here. GPS. N 41 deg 28.85 min; W 116 deg 28.44 min.  Ca. 300 more cattle congregated along a tributary of the above stream. GPS: N 41 deg 32.06 min; W 116 deg 28.1 min.

1:11 PM: Estimated 1,000 cattle observed up to 1:18 PM at GPS: N 41 deg 44.16 min; W 116 deg 25.14 min. Area devoid of wh’s.

1:21 PM: Owyhee Desert – high altiplano (Spanish for high plateau) noted to north.

1:24 PM: Ca. 40 cattle noted by South Fork of Owyhee River. No wh’s.  We fly along Owyhee River.  GPS: N 41 deg 5.6 min; W 116 deg 34.8 min.

We aim to fly to Capital Peak.  Flying along the S. Fork of the Owyhee River, we have not seen any more wild horses, but much evidence of dedication of the land to livestock, e.g. frequent reservoirs, water tanks, fences, grass pasture and hay fields, etc.  See photos.

1:26 PM: We continue to note considerable spring green-up of vegetation, though today is the first official day of summer.

1:30 PM: GPS: N 41 deg 55.83 min; W 116 deg 45.7 min. No livestock or wild horses.  Several water catchments have been excavated by caterpillar.  Incidentally, when they wallow wild horses created such natural catchments for wildlife much less intrusively.

1:34 PM: Another congregation of wild horses spotted in open high plain with trailings.  41 wh’s group together, estimated from 5 bands.  Another band of 7 wild horses containing dark grayish blacks amid lighter grays and sorrels. Photos.  These bands centered around the following GPS: N 41 deg 56.2 min; W 116 deg 48.2 min.

Another group of 15 wh’s spotted, including grays, roans, sorrels and blacks.  This is possibly 2 bands running together.  Same general GPS location.

1:38 PM: Observed another nearby congregation including 1 band of 6 wh’s, 1 group of 23 wh’s (possibly 3 separate bands), 1 band of 5 wh’s.  I note sparser, drier habitat here and many trails.  It appears that these wild horses are being relegated to this area by a system of fences that favor livestock.  My earlier entry into the northeastern portion of the Owyhee whhma a couple of months ago revealed extensive fencing and control of water to favor the intensive management of livestock, especially cattle.

1:41 PM: We spot another congregation of 12 wild horse bands.  GPS: N 41 deg 57.7 min; W 116 deg 51.3 min.  Groupings with the following numbers were encountered: 13 (2 bands) 22 (3 bands), 15 (2 bands), 7, 9, 10, 7, & 9 wild horses.  Extensive photos except for last band of 9.  Judging from the converging trails from the distinctive individual band home ranges, his summer solstice congregation appear to be trailing to and from a water source.  The total number here is 92 wh’s.

1:43 PM: We decide to return to south, to Battle Mountain to refuel, as our small plane requires frequent refueling.  A band of 7 wild horses is photographed at GPS: N 41 deg 53.8 min; W 116 deg 52.1 min near an artificial reservoir.  Many white ant hills dot the terrain.

Ranch over-flown at GPS: N 41 deg 51.18 min; W 116 deg 52.27 min.  No wh’s seen.  Remnant snow banks from large winter drifts at ca. 5500 feet elevation. GPS: N 41 deg 47.3 min; W 116 deg 53.18 min.  No more wild horses seen.

1:50 PM.  Rusty orange water tank spotted.  GPS: N 41 deg 43.24 min; W 116 deg 53.38 min.  Vegetation is dry and parched, very possibly due to rancher’s monopolizing water from highland drainages.  Sparse stunted vegetation.  Old pioneer wagon trail seen running E-W, since the old ruts from Conestoga wagons remain in delicate desert ecosystem.

1:55 PM: GPS: N 41 deg 34.7 min; W 116 deg 53.3 min.  Neither wild horses nor livestock observed in this dry region.  Many ant nests, several water catchments. Low topographical relief in this high altiplano.

2:00 PM: Flying over another ranch. GPS: N 41 deg 29.65 min; W 117 deg 0.3 min.  Big meadows and streams.  Ranch is monopolizing a large portion of the water for many miles around here for raising livestock.  Big reservoir to west along major ranch road is Chimney Reservoir.  I observe ca 500 cattle in this area.

2:06 PM: One band of 7 wild horses is observed to the east.  GPS: N 41 deg 23.3 min; W 117 deg 01.07 min.  Green up of vegetation is noted in high altiplano.  Many cattle whose number is estimated at ca. 1,000 profusely dot the landscape, especially around water sources such as streams and springs.

2:10 PM: GPS: N 41 deg 12.87 min; W 117 deg 01.10 min.  Ca. 300 cattle present, especially in and around water drainages and also in higher areas in groups of ca 70.  No wild horses observed.

2:20 PM: Nearing Battle Mountain Airport.  No more wild horses observed.

2:47 PM: Refuel at Battle Mountain Airport.  High overcast.  Much more grass this year compared with recent years according to the lady attending airport.  But are the wild horses getting their fair share of this in their legal herd areas?!

3:06 PM: Take off from Battle Mountain to return via Reno to Truckee Airport in Sierra Nevada mountains, over-flying dry and desolate Humboldt Sink.  Very strong jolt to plane cuts pilot’s hand flying over Reno at 4:45 PM.  Gravity measured at ca. –1.

5:00 PM.  Land at Truckee Airport.  6 ½ hours total flight time.

Tabulations of Totals Observed during Flight over 3 whhma’s: Owyhee, Rock Creek & Little Humboldt.

Wild Horses Observed during Flight

Number of Bands    Number of Horses    GPS Location

1 2 N 41 deg 21.37 min; W 116 deg 43.6 min

2 17 N 41 deg 23.19 min; W 116 deg 41.0 min

1 9 (w/ 2 foals) N 41 deg 23.3 min; W 116 deg 35.56 min

1 6 (w 1 foal) N 41 deg 21.36 min; W 116 deg 33.12 min

1 8 N 41 deg 22.85 min; W 116 deg 32.3 min

1 11 ditto   (Rock Creek whhma congregation of

1 9 ditto    68 wild horses)

1 4 ditto

1 9 ditto

1 8 ditto

1 7 ditto

1 12 ditto

1 7 N 41 deg 25.75 min; W 116 deg 29.2 min

5 41 N 41 deg 56.2 min; W 116 deg 48.2 min

1 7 ditto  (First Owyhee whhma congregation of

2 15 ditto    97 wild horses)

1 6 ditto

3 23 ditto

1 5 ditto

2 13 N 41 deg 57.7 min; W 116 deg 51.3 min

3 22 ditto  (Second Owyhee whhma congregation

2 15 ditto    of 92 wild horses)

1 7 ditto

1 9 ditto

1 10 ditto

1 7 ditto

1 9 ditto

1 7 N 41 deg 53.8 min; W 116 deg 52.1 min

1 7 N 41 deg 23.3 min; W 117 deg 01.07 min

Total Bands    Total Wild Horses

1. 41 312

Cattle Observed during Flight

Number of Cattle        GPS Location

1. 84 Little Humboldt whhma. Ca N 41 deg 20 min; W 116 deg 45 m

1. 400 N 41 deg 32.06 min; W 116 deg 28.44 min

1. 300 N 41 deg 32.06 min; W 116 deg 28.1 min

1. 1000 N 41 deg 44.16 min; W 116 deg 25.14 min

1. 40 N 41 deg 5.6 min; W 116 deg 34.8 min

1. 500 N 41 deg 29.65 min; W 117 deg 00.3 min

1. 300 N 41 deg 12.87 min; W 117 deg 01.10 min

1. 1000 N 41 deg 23.3 min; W 117 deg 01.07 min

Total Cattle Observed

3,624

Conclusion:

Wild horses were observed to be present in only the very small portion of the three wild horse herd management areas that was over-flown and are certainly not being treated as the principal presences within their legal herd areas as required by the Wild Free Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971.  The horses I observed were in good condition, although Their numbers are dwarfed by livestock, even within these their legal areas.  This is the fault of our public servants, namely BLM officials in charge of protecting and managing this national heritage species at thriving, long-term-viable levels.  Reform is urgently needed. This could be accomplished through a revised version of the Restore Our American Mustangs bill (ROAM Senate Bill # 1579).   This important bill has already been substantially passed by the House of Representatives but currently is being stopped by powerful vested interests in the Senate.  It now languishes in the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Pressure is urgently needed to get this moving again before it dies with the ending of the present Congress later this year.  The planned roundup of the Owyhee, Rock Creek and Little Humboldt whhma’s needs to be called off; and a more objective assessment of relative numbers and resource allocations needs to be undertaken with the aim of restoring fairer mustang population numbers in this vast and spectacular region.  BLM should exercise its authority under Code of Federal Regulations 4710.5 & .6 to cut back on livestock in order to accomplish this.

Cattle at the river (below)

You can read the Cloud Foundation's comments regarding the planned roundup of these wild horse herds here

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Does This Mean They Were Lying Before?

BLM Admits Helicopter Stampede Caused Wild Horse Deaths, Refuses Outside Observers in Nevada Census | Horse Back Magazine

BLM Admits Helicopter Stampede Caused Wild Horse Deaths, Refuses Outside Observers in Nevada Census

June 30, 2010

By Steven Long

HOUSTON, (Horseback) – The federal Bureau of Land Management, under siege by press and public for it’s handling of offshore drilling, again has proven it is an agency with a tin ear when it comes to public relations.

With 150 horses and foals now dead in the wake of the most deadly “gather” in BLM history, the agency continues with an apparent government cover-up of the number of horses remaining in Nevada’s remote Calico Mountains.

The BLM refused to allow outside observers on an equine census of the area in late June, according to national spokesman Tom Gorey. It even covered up the fact that a census was being taken at all until after the fact, despite pleas from wild horse activists to be allowed to go along on census flights as independent observers.

Last week, in a detailed report of an independent fly-over of the Calico “gather” area acclaimed naturalist Craig Downer saw only sparse evidence of any remaining horses on hundreds of thousands of acres of BLM land. He also recorded thousands of cattle.



“The Calico Complex aerial census was completed Sunday and we expect to issue a news release on the results shortly (within the next day or so),” Gorey said. “No third parties/independent observers were allowed to ride in the aircraft conducting the survey.”

Gorey cited existing BLM policy for the agency refusal to allow outside observers on the observation flights.

“This is in accordance with existing BLM policy and is done for reasons of safety and liability. Additionally, observers must be trained. Accuracy of the counts strongly depends on the skill of the observer and is affected by the ruggedness of the terrain and the presence of vegetation cover.”

Downer has spent decades observing wild horse in their natural habitat, both from the air, and from the ground.

BLM personnel have a long history of mathematical errors in their reports as cited in several Horseback stories last year.

Ironically, other government agencies routinely allow the press and other observers on flights, including in war zones where the media is often imbedded with soldiers, sailors, marines, and airborne troops in combat. The independent observers are acknowledged to deliver accurate reports, even in the stressful environment of war with little or no training before an engagement.

Gorey acknowledged a large number of deaths came from horses trying to escape a roaring helicopter chase by a Utah contractor hired by the BLM.

“Yes, the BLM acknowledges that at gathers some fatalities directly result from the horses being driven by the helicopter,” Gorey said. “The direct mortality rate resulting from helicopter-driven gathers is usually less than one percent.”

The BLM declines to acknowledge what is a statistically acceptable death rate on its roundups of wild horses. The Calico roundup took place in the dead of winter in rocky mountainous terrain where horses were run over miles and miles of rugged wilderness.

Gorey detailed the carnage.

“Seven died or were euthanized at the gather site; 101 have died or were euthanized at the Fallon facility. The BLM does not keep a count of miscarriages, but we did note in the daily reports those miscarriages that we observed.”

Two foals died after their hooves were run off as they tried to escape the roaring helicopter.

“Two foals died as you described,” Gorey said, “No other horses died of hoof abscesses.”

In the Calico “gather,” something went dreadfully wrong.

“In 2009, the number of direct fatalities (out of more than 7,500 horses gathered) was 0.53 percent,” Gorey said. “Some indirect mortality also occurs, usually associated with older horses in poor to very poor condition when gathered. These already weakened horses, many of which would likely die on the range if not gathered, are examined by staff professionals and veterinarians and are euthanized if they are unlikely to improve or do not respond to treatment.”

The government spokesman painted a benign word portrait of humane euthanasia of geriatric horses. Yet the BLM reports published on the Internet records what amounts to wholesale slaughter of wild horses from Calico in which some were routinely put down by government vets, one of whom was unlicensed to practice in Nevada.

               

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Spin Drs Hired to Wipe Out Wild Horses

Is this the way you want your tax money spent? If not, follow these links and TAKE ACTION! 

Spin Drs Hired to Wipe Out Wild Horses- Denver mtgs 6-14,15

June 2010

Media Contacts:

Makendra Silverman

Makendra@TheCloudFoundation.org

Anne Novak

Anne@TheCloudFoundation.org

For Immediate Release:

Spin Doctors Hired for the Destruction of America’s Wild Horse and Burro Herds

BLM uses MMS’s PR and Public Affairs agency to facilitate Salazar’s agenda at June 14th public workshop in Denver—protest on June 15^th

Denver, CO (June 14, 2010)—The Cloud Foundation has learned that the San Francisco based public relations and public affairs firm, Kearns and West, with ties to big energy and offices across the country, has been hired to push the Salazar Plan for Wild Horses and Burros through Congress in Fall 2010—despite public outrage. Kearns and West has expertise in crisis management as well as accomplishing policy and regulatory goals. Their clients range from Mineral Management Services (MMS) and PG&E to Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The Department of Interior (DOI) has enlisted the firm using the Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution (ECR) as the go between. Senior mediator of Kearns and West, J. Michael Harty will facilitate an unprecedented public workshop in Denver, Colorado at the Magnolia Hotel, 818 17th Street, on June 14^th followed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Public Advisory Board Meeting on June 15^th. Both days will be live-streamed and viewing available on www.thecloudfoundation.org. The public and members of Congress are encouraged to watch. The public will protest on June 15^th from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. with a press conference at noon.

BLM’s recently announced and highly polished but unsubstantial, “Strategy Plan” as well as their association with PR firm Kearns and West, appears designed to manipulate the public and marginalize the opposition to the Salazar Plan for wild horses and burros. The plan calls for the purchase of Eastern and Midwestern “preserves” populated by sterilized wild horses, captured from their Western ranges.

"This is ALL about manipulating public opinion. And ramming ONE thing – Salazar’s Plan – through” states author R.T. Fitch.

The Kearns and West Salazar Plan Executive Summary states, ‘The U.S. Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution (‘Institute’) is assisting BLM in assessing stakeholder interests and developing an effective stakeholder engagement plan for the Strategy.’ Disturbingly, BLM often does not include the public as a stakeholder in their planning documents regarding the management of wild horses and burros.

“Who is the biggest stakeholder in the discussion of the public’s land and its wild horses if not the public?” asks Terri Farley, author of the Phantom Stallion series, adding “A public agency must represent the public and utilize taxpayer dollars responsibly—not spend excessively on another private contractor.”

According to their website, Kearns and West offers their clients (in this case the BLM) ‘A compelling credible, resonant case. True, high-impact support for your position.’ Advocates support a new direction that abandons the endless, expensive cycle of roundup, removal, and warehousing. BLM must adopt a far less expensive path that is kinder to the land and the wild horses legally living there, one that contains truly transparent solutions, not a slick, taxpayer-funded PR campaign.

“By hiring a high powered PR and Public Affairs firm, it seems that BLM is aiming to extinguish the opposition rather than solve the controversy over their management of our wild herds,” explains Ginger Kathrens, Volunteer Executive Director of the Cloud Foundation. “The public by the thousands has shared their opposition to the Salazar Plan. I hope we can sit down at this public forum and seriously talk about a moratorium on roundups while we work to reinstate protections that are consistent with the intent of the 1971 Wild Horse and Burro Act.”

According to The Holmes Report, “Kearns & West recognizes the important value of collaborating both with our clients and their stakeholders. For more than 20 years, the firm has employed its unique brand of stakeholder-centric strategic communications and collaboration processes to design innovative, but pragmatic programs, achieving superior results for clients in the federal, state and local government, private and nonprofit sectors. Kearns & West works with tough issues and big ideas.”

Besides specializing in ‘accomplishing policy and regulatory goals’ Kearns and West also represents PG&E—a primary customer in the Ruby Pipeline natural gas project threatening public lands and five public herds with environmental devastation from Wyoming to Oregon. Kearns and West also represents Duke Energy, the Association of Western Governors and the US Fish and Wildlife Service, among others.

While Secretary Salazar vowed to restore the Interior Department's ‘respect for scientific integrity’ he has failed to consider science, reason, or even the law when it comes to managing our wild herds. Kearns and West has been known to gather scientific experts and build a movement of common interest “stakeholders” to crush public outcry and true environmentalism. Wild horse advocates feel the Kearns and West prepared Salazar report for Congress will be biased in favor of big energy ties with DOI at the expense of federally protected wild horses who somehow are in the way of ‘The New Energy Frontier’.

“We hope Monday’s workshop will be a productive one rather than a demonstration of BLM’s inability to change,” concludes Kathrens.

# # #

Lnks of interest:

Interior Department Wild Horse Public Workshop, Livestream June 14, 8 a.m. -4 p.m. and Advisory Board Meeting June 15, 8 a.m. -5:00 p.m. http://www.thecloudfoundation.org/

Fact Sheet on Wild Herds & The Salazar Plan http://bit.ly/bfdX1y

Kearns and West http://bit.ly/deT894

CNN Report, Issues with Jane Valez-Mitchell, March 25^th http://bit.ly/dvl7NE

Disappointment Valley... A Modern Day Western Trailer- excellent sample of interviews regarding the issues http://bit.ly/awFbwm

Rolling Stone: The Spill, The Scandal and the President. June 2010 http://bit.ly/d3Bjcm

Vanity Fair: A Solution to America’s Wild Horse Crisis? June 2010 http://bit.ly/a7Esyd

Wild Horses: Management or Stampede to Extinction? Reno Gazette Special http://bit.ly/stampede2ext

Ken Salazar's "candy shop": Denver Post Guest Commentary, June 2010 http://bit.ly/aNbLz9

‘Herd-Watch: Public Eyes for Public Horses’ http://bit.ly/9Wvh58

Roundup Schedule- updated May 2010 http://bit.ly/a0xcq7

Informative Blog: American Herds http://americanherds.blogspot.com/

Photos, video and interviews available from:

The Cloud Foundation  ~ makendra@thecloudfoundation.org

The Cloud Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit dedicated to the preservation and protection of wild horses and burros on our Western public lands with a focus on protecting Cloud's herd in the Pryor Mountains of Montana.

107 S. 7th St. - Colorado Springs, CO 80905 - 719-633-3842 www.thecloudfoundation.org

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Calico: Past, Present & Future V - from American Herds

If you are as appalled as I am over this article from American Herds, please re-blog, re-tweet, re-post and whatever else you can think of to spread the word! Thank you.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Calico: Past, Present & Future V

This is the fifth in a series of articles that attempts to disclose some of the known issues playing behind the scenes in the Calico Complex and beyond….

A Greenpeace activists trudges through oil on a beach near
Venice, Louisiana,on May 20, 2010. Huffington Post

NO RETURN TO FREEDOM

Yesterday, the Honorable Judge Friedman issued his verdict for the Calico Complex wild horses and all those now warehoused in BLMs many long-term holding facilities by dismissing all counts of the complaints filed by plaintiffs In Defense of Animals, Craig Downer, and Terri Farley, through the pro-bono legal services of William Spriggs of Buchanan, Ingersoll & Rooney.

First, Judge Friedman issued the opinion that though he refused to stop the round up back in December, because he didn’t, any prayer for relief was now moot because the round up had already taken place.

He also chastised the plaintiffs for not appealing his initial refusal to stop the round up when he failed to grant the injunction back in December. In my opinion, when Friedman issued yesterday's legal opinion about his ruling to not grant a halt to the round up, he presented a legal argument that shared some twisted semblance of logic used by other kinds of rapists; that “No” didn’t really mean no and the plaintiffs should have asked again.

Judge Friedman also cited several other legal technicalities the plaintiffs failed to overcome such as standing – better known as the right to sue due to a legally cognizable interest, actual injury and harm, and failure to establish more than a causal connection between, well, everything that has gone on. Click Here to learn more.

While it is generally accepted that the almost 100 now dead horses, 40 or more aborted and/or miscarried foals and dozens of injuries sustained by the Calico herds who DID suffer irreparable harm and injury had no legal voice in the matter, turns out, neither does any of the American citizens whom are shoved aise with the only rights still guaranteed is merely to act as witnesses to the decimation of our American herds - well, that and of course, to fund it.

The ruling also reminded us that Judge Friedman found the Safari Club and Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) to have sufficient standing to sign on as defendants in the Calico case due to their “vested interests”.

As we saw in the last post, BLM and NDOWs cozy relationship spurred the Surprise Field Office to approve a land use plan that “no longer manages for a reasonable number of wildlife” – that concept is only reserved for wild horses and burros.

NDOW is one of the most active and aggressive supporters of “protecting habitat” for the ever-burgeoning big game populations and their influence can be found behind the scenes of every major and most minor management decision being pushed through on public lands in Nevada; NDOW also often targets the easy pickens of wild horse and burro resources to further their goals. After all, who is there to defend the wild horses and burros? Only BLM….

However, NDOWs involvement in wild horses and burro management isn’t limited to just BLM as we will soon see.

Though Nevada Bighorns Unlimited claimed financial sponsorship of the Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge fence repair and census of wild horses, according to Sheldon manager Paul Steblien, it was NDOWs planes that “discovered” 700 wild horses were missing from the Refuge back in June 2007.

It would appear that NDOW also maintains an equally cozy relationship with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), as not only were they consulting with lawyers and Judge Friedman about their unconditional support for the removal of the Calico wild horses, they have also been very busy behind the scenes working with USFWS managers at Sheldon, BLM, the U.S. Energy Regulatory Committee and yes, the Ruby Pipeline….

“The FWS has expressed concern that certain measures proposed by Ruby (i.e., facilitation of horse and burro movement around construction areas, fence line manipulation, and opening of gates for construction activities) could result in additional wild horses or burros entering the Sheldon NWR. The FWS could then be required to increase its expenditures to manage the wild horse and burro populations, which could detract from the funds necessary to manage other NWR resources. Ruby has committed to coordinating with the Sheldon NWR to implement and maintain access restriction controls to prohibit the migration of wild horses and burros onto the Sheldon NWR. Ruby would coordinate with the FWS to repair or replace any cattle guards on the Sheldon NWR damaged by construction, and install new fencing, gates, or cattle guards at key areas. Finally, Ruby would erect fences to restrict animal movement out of the HMAs.”

Ruby Pipeline Final EISChapter 4, page 4-114
January 8, 2010 ,

Dead Calico Wild Horse due to round up entrapment by non-compliant cattle guard.
Photo courtesy of Craig Downer,copyright 3/29/10 available at
Elyse Gardner-The Humane Observer, Craig Downer's Report On
The Calico Complex In The Helicopter's Wake: The Aftermath And
Another Roundup Casualty? BLM Abdicates Responsibiity
For Pre-Roundup Safety Precautions.

THE COST OF DOING BUSINESS
While the DOI’s Minerals Management Services has been bilking the American people out of billions in royalties owed to the nation by the oil and gas industry for decades with a slew of scandals recently heightened by DOI employees in bed – literally – with industry executives, no amount of investigative reporting, scathing exposes, Congressional involvement or promises of reform from current Secretary of the Interior seems to be making a dent in the lucrative sales of our resources through backroom deals. Click Here to learn more.

While questions continue about what legally constitutes a bribe with respect to making deals with government employees and public resources, what The Ruby Pipeline’s parent company El Paso Gas is now doing to pave the way for their $3 billion dollar pipeline is not only considered totally legal – it is required.

Hailed as “mitigation measures” versus good old fashioned bribery, in order for Ruby to lay down its massive pipe, they have to provide compensation to the agencies overseeing state and public resources to ease the impact of the project in order to protect the public trust. At least, that’s how the story goes…

Though the general public gets to review two documents released by the U.S. Energy Regulatory Committee on what erecting the Ruby Pipeline will entail, behind the scenes agencies of all sorts have been involved with intimate “consultation” processes about what they want, what they need and how to negotiate the best deal they can out of El Paso’s war chest before they seal the deal.

As BLM was releasing the first environmental assessment to remove the wild horses in Calico in late October, at the exact same time another document was being submitted to Ruby in what can only be described as a gold plated Draft Wish List, which included hefty requests by none other than NDOW itself.

This document is titled, “Draft Ruby Pipeline Migratory Bird Conservation Plan” and was recently obtained via extensive FOIA requests submitted by Western Watersheds Project (WWP) on the Ruby Pipeline. According to the FOIA records obtained by WWP, this Migratory Bird Conservation Plan was submitted to Ruby on October 26, 2009.

Though it is plain to see it was originally written to include open and transparent coordination with BLM, U.S. Forest Service and state fish and game departments, this Wish List is now being slid through exclusively under USFWS’s jurisdiction – though all agencies will continue to be consulted and will include “joint ventures, project interests from private landowners, corporations, non-profit groups, and non-governmental organizations in making any decisions about what migratory bird habitat projects should be completed under this agreement.”

According to this document, in response to various agency demands for compensatory conservation measures, “Ruby acknowledges its responsibilities and conservation measures that have been identified to provide additional conservation benefits that go beyond typical avoidance, minimization and compensatory measures” (emphasis added)

The Plan goes on to state that, “In order to accomplish this, Ruby will deposit funds in an account (or accounts, if necessary) to be used for the protection of migratory bird habitat through the acquisition of lands, implementation of habitat restoration, and long-term management of the lands for the benefit of migratory birds. Habitat enhancement and improvement projects will also be considered as legitimate uses of these funds.”


THE WISH LIST
So what does the Wish List cover? Just about everything any and all agencies involved could wish for with a starting price tag of almost $17.1 million dollars when the sum of all the disclosed projects are added together.

There are also a mountain of other projects the agencies are asking Ruby to “mitigate”, many whose total costs were undisclosed, which include:

> $2,000 per acre for fencing in the Little Humboldt Allotment, Castle Ridge, Spanish Ranch Allotment, North Fork Group Allotment, Eagle Rock Allotment, Taylor Canyon, Tuscarora, Diry Peaks, Delano Mountains, Bluff Creek, Mill Creek and 25 additional unnamed allotments in order to protect aspen stands - as well as “other” identified aspen stands throughout the life of the project.

> Purchase property or water rights associated with the Brunea Wildlife Management Areas, which includes Stowell property match for NDOW funding and a seed storage facility that would be secured by NDOW and other agency partners with $1.5 million requested for initial construction of the facility and $375k for staffing it for the next 5 years – including benefits.

> Undisclosed cost of restoring native grasses on 10,400 acres.

> Removal of 92 miles of roads insides WSA’s at undisclosed costs.

> Purchasing the Soldier Meadows Ranch – home of the Soldier Meadows Allotment that overlaps three wild horse HMAs where the Calico Complex round up began. The Wish List reasons why buying the ranch outright is such a great idea by stating, “With the proposed pipeline route traversing most of this allotment along the head of the hydrologic watershed for Warm Springs Canyon and the northern reaches of the High Rock drainage; a substantial list of projects have been proposed to mitigate or attempt to offset the construction and pipeline footprint. The sum of those related projects in conjunction with a 3 year payout to take non-use could approach the assessed value of the ranch. In so much as this ranch is the pivotal base property for much of the grazing issues within the Black Rock Wilderness area, the High Rock Wilderness and associated NCA (National Conservation Area), this purchase would have the support and possible buy in from a number of partner conservancies with Ruby. The inclusion of all private parcels scattered throughout the allotment such as the springs south of the ranch, Wall Canyon, Cottonwood Canyon, Stanley Camp, Summer Camp, Slumgullion, etc. would all be windfalls for the public and remove a number of current conflicts”. (Editors Note: It would only be considered a windfall for those interested in seeing the circumvention of federal law regarding the protection of wild horses and burros and livestock grazing in what would then be private and/or state protected lands held partnership with Ruby, a.k.a., El Paso Natural Gas Corporation.)

> At least 20 miles of fencing was also included for lands adjacent to Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge in the Wall Canyon Allotment to separate allotments and “would control trespass livestock and feral horse use on critical wildlife habitat between the Sheldon NWR and the Warm Springs and High Rock drainages.”

> And at least 42 springs, seeps and various water sources are identified in the document as being targeted for fencing with several references to “feral horses” being excluded from these areas including:

- The only two remaining springs left for wild horse use in the Massacre Lakes HMA (located in the Juniper Pasture on the Massacre Lakes Allotment), Post Springs and Indian Springs.

- Fencing of the 40 acres Miller and Lux Springs in the Nut Mountain Allotment that overlaps the Nut Mountain HMA.

- Fencing Idaho Canyon Springs that overlaps the Calico HMA.

- Rock Springs in the Wall Canyon HMA, where BLM Winnemucca photo files from 2008 obtained via FOIA cites Rock Springs as exclusively used by wild horses and is specifically marked as “No Livestock Use” by BLM. Meanwhile, the Draft Migratory Bird Conservation Plan states “the replacement and/or repair of fencing around Rock Springs would control trespass livestock” and in another section titled “Rock Springs Spring Enhancement”, the plan is to fence "approximately 40 additional acres of the spring and meadows and pipe water to a trough outside for livestock, feral horses, and big game species”. So much for exclusive use by wild horses….

> Other springs found in the BLM Winnemucca photo files being used by wild horses and targeted for exclosures on the Wish List that can initially be identified include Clear Springs, Tin Trough Springs, Summit Spring and Santa Clause Spring in the Black Rock West HMA, and the Antelope Springs, Cherry Springs and Mustang Springs in the Warm Springs Canyon HMA,

However, in the spirit of fairness, some of the proposed exclosures are allowing for pipelines to carry water to troughs that would be located outside the fenced springs for continued wild horse and/or burro use.

Summit Springs, Empty Trough, BLM Winnemucca photo files. 7-29-08
Rock Springs, titled "Faucet found open, water loss, troughs dry".
BLM Winnemucca photo files. 7-10-08

Rock Springs titled, "Faucet open, water loss, troughs dry".
BLM Winnemucca photo files. 7-10-08

Rock Springs, titled, "Troughs after turning off faucet found open".
BLM Winnemucca photo files. 7-29-08

Rock Springs, titled, "Troughs full". BLM Winnemucca photo files. 10-23-08

And one year later? Rock Springs, merely titled,"Troughs Empty".
BLM Winnemucca photo files. 7-18-09

RUBY, EL PASO AND HALLIBURTON
As Colorado based El Paso Gas Corporation was backpedaling earlier this year about their involvement with wild horses and burros affected by the Ruby Pipeline by pointing out that everything they would do would be according to “BLM policy”, one of the issues the astute reader of Ruby’s Final EIS will note is that all Ruby’s proposed mitigation measures for access to water by wild horses and burros involves hauling water, not the establishment of long-term water sources – those are being considered for fencing during the four year mitigation and reclamation process.

However, while El Paso’s public affairs specialists were recently citing their complete objectivity regarding the issue of wild horse management to calm any further public speculation about their potential prejudices, less than a year earlier, a letter sent by Ruby Pipeline LLC to Nevada Associate BLM State Director Amy Lueders on March 31, 2009, belies Ruby’s true feelings about feral horses as they proceed to make a claim so bold and ludicrous, not even the strongest anti-wild horse opponent has had the audacity to try and fabricate as fact what Ruby does when they blame wild horses for habitat fragmentation in the letter, which states, “Further, the introduction of non-native species, in this case wild horses, can have a fragmenting effect upon the landscape” (pg. 4)

BLM also fired back at the suggestion of Ruby’s behind the scenes involvement in the Calico Complex round ups by posting a Press Release on January 22, 2010, which essentially poo-pooed the idea that Ruby and BLM were doing anything less than honorable with respect to the management of wild horses and burros affected by the pipeline.

However, a press release doesn’t hold water in the legal arena – just ask Judge Friedman – and the legally established BLM “policy” that Ruby will follow has lots and lots of loopholes managers from a variety of agencies can evoke at their discretion.

“HMAs would be managed individually in four of the eight herd management areas; however, the Nut Mountain, Bitner, Massacre Lakes, and Wall Canyon HMAs would be managed as a complex. This would facilitate recovery of degraded or threatened ecosystem components by providing sufficient management flexibility to (temporarily) remove horses from an entire HMA (or portion thereof) in order to permit recovery following wildfire, resource improvement projects, or overgrazing by horses….”

BLM Surprise Resource Management Plan
Section 2.21 Wild Horses, pg. 2-82
Record of Decision, December 2008

As the Ruby Final EIS proposes to formalize a blanket agreement to “erect fences to restrict animal movement out of the HMAs” for undisclosed miles at equally undisclosed locations and BLM’s Tuscarora and Winnemucca Field Offices are working hand in hand with Nevada Department of Wildlife and USFWS to feed Ruby a Wish List that will fence miles more of critical water sources, meadows and habitat away from wild horses and burros – as well as possibly just unloading public lands to be managed by corporate partnerships with anyone but BLM - we, the public can rest assured that BLM will be as open, honest and humane about what they are really doing behind the scenes as they have been with the handling of the Calico Complex wild horses over the last several months.

For a more detailed accounting of the daily death tolls, restriction on public access and BLMs transparent operations of the Wild Horse and Burro Program, visit the Humane Observer by Elyse Gardner, who has chronicled the on-the-ground realities faced by the Calico Complex wild horses since their removals began.

As for El Paso Gas Corporation, they have lots of on-board experience with those who know how to pass the buck of responsibility to anyone but themselves as in early December, Timothy J. Probert was named to their Board of Directors. Mr. Probert also is currently serving as the President of Halliburton, Global Business Lines, which includes both Drilling and Evaluation and Completion and Production divisions and their respective service lines.

Wonder if Mr. Probert’s division of Halliburton had anything to do with all the scandals involved in the Minerals Management Services or the currently unfolding tragedy now being played out in the Gulf Coast, thanks to all those “cozy relationships” between corporations, government employees and multi-billion dollar projects that allow the by-pass of environmental protection laws such as NEPA in favor of doing business at the national expense.

While President Obama recently slammed British Petroleum, Transocean and Halliburton for “falling over each other to point the finger of blame at somebody else” at recent Congressional hearings over the gulf oil horror, what the public hasn’t seen is any real reform or change under Obama’s pick for Secretary of the DOI as the Colorado based Salazar has a long, long history of support for the energy industry, including the approval last year of the British Petroleum’s exemption from doing the required detailed environmental analysis at the Deep Water Horizon site now hailed as fast becoming an unprecedented ecological disaster.

As Judge Friedman ruled that any prayer for relief to the public and the Calico horses is now moot and Gulf Coast residents are learning the dirty truth about the greasy realities of the DOI, Secretary Salazar pushes onward in his determination to ram through his Wild Horse & Burro Initiative in this BLM sponsored Denver Public Workshop on June 14, 2010, which will focus exclusively on Salazar's brainchild of leaving merely a few treasured herds of wild horses and burros on public lands while the rest are sterilized to achieve reproduction cycles that match fluctuating adoption demands or carted off to mostly private Sanctuaries in the Mid-West or Eastern states far removed from their native, "protected" ranges.

Wonder what the $42 million dollars Salazar has requested from Congress to purchase land back East for warehousing our wild horses would do if it was dangled in front of state Fish & Game Departments and Sheldon NWR instead to ensure “mitigation measures” for the long-term management of wild horses and burros too.

But then, Secretary Salazar has publicly stated there is no longer any “room” for wild horses and burros out West anymore and apparently, President Obama and his administration continue to support Secretary Salazar 110% - no matter what the cost.

So, we the public are left to live with the mess, stand witness to the dying and deceased while simultaneously being herded down the Obama/Salazar canyon of “work shopping” on how we believe the DOI can best implement the final destruction of our American herds under Salazar’s Initiative.

Secretary Salazar, do you really want to try something new in the Wild Horse & Burro Program? Why don’t you demand the DOI start following the spirit and intent of the Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act instead of devoting all its resources to circumventing it.

Now that would be a change for sure!

Posted by Preserve The Herds at 3:37 AM
 

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