PRINEVILLE — Federal land managers are inviting public comment on plans to round up wild horses in areas damaged by the Rail Ridge Fire, but there’s not much time to weigh in: The comment period closes on Monday, Nov. 4.

The Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service are proposing an emergency wild horse gather in the Murderers Creek Joint Management Area, the agencies announced on Tuesday, Oct. 29.

The BLM is seeking public comment on the proposed gather, which will address critical forage shortages for the wild horse population and protect recovering habitat in this shared management area.

The Rail Ridge Fire, which began on Sept. 2, burned more than 58,000 acres in the JMA and reduced essential forage areas relied upon by wild horses and other wildlife. With limited forage remaining, particularly in lower elevations critical for winter grazing, the agencies propose to temporarily gather and hold about 400 wild horses to aid recovery efforts.

Need for the emergency gather

Malheur National Forest and BLM officials have determined that, without intervention, both the horses and fragile habitats will face significant risk over the winter. An aerial survey estimated the current population of horses at around 650.

The gather operations would use bait and water trapping methods. Agencies will monitor range and horse conditions during the winter and determine if additional horses need to be gathered. Gathered horses will be held in BLM and Forest Service facilities until the range recovers sufficiently.

Additionally, the agencies will continue the administrative process for setting an Appropriate Management Level and approving a Herd Management Area Plan and population management actions for the JMA. No decision is being made at this time regarding the long-term disposition of horses gathered as part of this emergency gather.

Public comment period

The BLM is accepting public comments on this proposed emergency gather. The input gathered will inform BLM’s decision on whether to proceed with the gather. Given the urgent nature of the proposal, the BLM is offering a one-week public comment period, closing on Nov. 4.

How to submit comments

The BLM encourages focused comments on the emergency gather using one of the following options:

Email: BLM_OR_PR_Wild_Horse@blm.gov (Subject: “Emergency Gather”)

Mail/Hand Delivery: BLM Prineville District Office, 3050 NE Third St., Prineville, OR 97754

Online: Submit directly via https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2034934/510

The Determination of NEPA Adequacy and Finding of No Significant Impact documents are available online at BLM ePlanning.