The Bureau of Land Management is requesting public nominations to fill three positions – which are set to expire on January 8, 2012 – on the national Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board.
Nominations are for a term of three years and are needed to represent the following categories of interest: wild horse and burro advocacy; veterinary medicine (equine science); and general public interest (with special knowledge of wild horses and burros, wildlife, animal husbandry, or natural resource management).
The Board advises the BLM, an agency of the Interior Department, and the Forest Service, an agency of the Department of Agriculture, on the management and protection of wild free-roaming horses and burros on public lands administered by those agencies. The BLM announced its request for nominations in Monday’s Federal Register.
The nine members on the Advisory Board represent a balance of interests. Each member has knowledge or special expertise that qualifies him or her to provide advice in one of the following categories: wild horse and burro advocacy, wild horse and burro research, veterinary medicine, natural resources management, humane advocacy, wildlife management, livestock management, general public interest, and public interest (with special knowledge of wild horses and burros).
Members must also have a demonstrated ability to analyze information, evaluate programs, identify problems, work collaboratively, and develop corrective actions.
Any individual or organization may nominate one or more persons to serve on the Advisory Board; individuals may also nominate themselves. In accordance with Section 7 of the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act, Federal and state government employees are not eligible to serve on the Board, whose members serve three-year terms, on a staggered-term basis, with one-third of the Board subject to appointment each year.
The Board meets at least two times a year and the BLM Director may call additional meetings when necessary. Members serve without salary, but are reimbursed for travel and per diem expenses according to government travel regulations.
The BLM is accepting nomination letters plus resumes that include the nominee’s name, address, profession, relevant biographical information, references, endorsements, and specific category of interest.
Nominations should be sent by September 22, 2011, to the National Wild Horse and Burro Program, Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, 20 M Street, S.E., Room 2134LM, Attn: Sharon Kipping, Washington, D.C. 20003. Or you may send a fax to Ms. Kipping at (202) 912-7182 or e-mail her at skipping@blm.gov. If you have questions, please call Ms. Kipping at (202) 912-7263.
The 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act mandates the protection, management, and control of wild horses and burros to ensure healthy free-roaming herd populations at levels consistent with the land’s capacity to support them. The BLM manages about 38,500 wild horses and burros that roam public rangelands in 10 Western states. (For more details, see the BLM’s Wild Horse and Burro Quick Facts at https://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/wild_horse_and_burro/Fact_Sheet.html)
The BLM manages more land – over 245 million surface acres – than any other Federal agency. Most of this public land is located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The Bureau, with a budget of more than 1 billion, also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation.
The BLM’s multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, and cultural resources on the public lands.