Multiple samples failed to meet standards for rangeland health so the Designated Area was immediately placed into the Improve category. No major problems are expected, however, as there are many such areas in the western U.S., even where horses have been zeroed out.
A spokesman for the Bureau of Livestock on Mars said an RMP and EIS are in the works but they will not be put out for public review because grazing is “too important” for the red planet’s fledgling economy.
He went on to say that retraining cattle ranchers for other roles, such as solar techs, would be “darn near impossible.”
The spacecraft carried the historic first doses of PZP to the surface, so the ranchers can get out in front of the horse problem before it even gets started. Clipboards and darting rifles will be delivered in a subsequent mission.
RELATED: ‘Perseverance’ on Mars, Stakes Claim for Public-Lands Ranchers.
Western Horse Watchers Association 