Augusta Mountains is one of three Herd Management Areas in the East Pershing Complex, now subject to the largest roundup of FY24.
The HMA covers 177,570 total acres, including 176,208 public acres, according to the 2023 HA/HMA Report. The figures for acreage at the HMA page are incorrect.
The 308 horses allowed by plan receive 3,696 AUMs per year.
The stocking rate allowed by plan is 1.7 wild horses per thousand acres, slightly higher than the target rate across all HMAs of one wild horse per thousand acres (27,000 animals on 27 million acres).
Table 8 in the Final EA for pest control and resource enforcement in the Complex shows four allotments that overlap the HMA.
The strategy for answering the question involves three more steps: (1) Determine the forage assigned to livestock inside the HMA, (2) Convert that number to wild horses and (3) Add the result to the current AML.
The Allotment Master Report at RAS provides acreage, management status and active AUMs.
Three allotments are managed by the Humboldt River Field Office and one is managed by the Mount Lewis Field Office so two reports were created (HRFO | MLFO).
The overlap percentage in Table 8 for Hole in the Wall is 100% but the National Data Viewer shows a small portion outside the HMA so 95% will be used in the calculations.
Table 8 indicates 100% of Cottonwood is inside the HMA but the NDV shows much of it outside, so 40% will be used.
The bureaucrats have assigned an estimated 4,981 AUMs per year to livestock inside the HMA, equivalent to 415 wild horses. This is the number of horses displaced from the HMA by permitted grazing.
The True AML, the number of horses the HMA could support if it was managed principally for them as specified in the original statute, is 723.
The stocking rate at the new AML would be 4.1 wild horses per thousand public acres.
Hey Western Horse Watchers, is that a lot? The Virginia Range was carrying ten before the advocates got involved.
The BLM will collect 4,981 × 1.35 = $6,724.35 per year from ranching activity inside the HMA while it spends 415 × 5 × 365 = $757,375 per year to care for the horses displaced thereby.
Would you say that’s a wise use of the public lands?
The True AML can be achieved by confining the ranchers to their (multi-million dollar) base properties in a year-round off season.
RELATED: How Many Wild Horses Can the Tobin Range HMA Support?
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