03-01-13 BLM Will Webcast National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board Meeting Set for March 4-5 in Oklahoma City...

The Bureau of Land Management will webcast the National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board’s day-and-a-half meeting set for March 4-5 in Oklahoma City.  The live webcast, accessible at http://www.blm.gov/live/, will stream online the proceedings of the Advisory Board, which meets Monday, March 4, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Tuesday, March 5, from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., local time.

The meeting will be held at the Sheraton Oklahoma City Hotel, 1 North Broadway Avenue, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73102.  The hotel phone number for reservations is 405-235-2780.  The agenda of the meeting can be found in the February 5, 2013,Federal Register (at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2013-02-05/pdf/2013-02381.pdf).

The Advisory Board provides input and advice to the BLM as it carries out its responsibilities under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act.  The law mandates the protection, management, and control of these free-roaming animals in a manner that ensures healthy herds at levels consistent with the land’s capacity to support them.  According to the BLM’s latest official estimate, approximately 37,300 wild horses and burros roam on BLM-managed rangelands in 10 Western states.

The Advisory Board meets at least once 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 manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency.  This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska.  The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation.  In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs.  The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends.  In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget.  The BLM’s multiple-use mission is to sustain the health, diversity, 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, cultural, and other resources on public lands.