54 in Congress cite horse deaths, ask Interior secretary to stop wild horse roundups in Nevada
By APMonday, August 2, 2010
Lawmakers seek to end horse roundups in Nevada
WASHINGTON — A bipartisan group of 54 lawmakers is calling for Interior Secretary Ken Salazar to halt a series of wild horse roundups on the Nevada range.
A letter sent Monday by Rep. Nick Rahall, the Democratic chairman of the Natural Resources Committee, cites wild horse deaths in recent horse and burro roundups to explain the request.
The letter brands the roundups “a deeply flawed policy” and points to reports that 21 of 636 horses died in a herd collection effort near Tuscarora in northeast Nevada.
The letter recommends that the National Academy of Sciences be assigned to review the Bureau of Land Management’s plan to cull about 12,000 of 38,000 mustangs and burros from herds roaming 10 Western states.
