RENO, Nev. (AP) — The federal Bureau of Land Management is rejecting a proposal from the wife of Texas billionaire T. Boone Pickens to create a sanctuary in Nevada for wild horses removed from public rangeland around the West.
Agency Director Bob Abbey released a statement Friday to The Associated Press saying Madeleine Pickens’ plan wouldn’t save American taxpayers money and doesn’t include enough water and grazing area for mustangs.
Abbey also criticizes Pickens’ media campaign supporting the sanctuary.
The BML chief says some of her information requires clarification and context, and other information is “just plain false.”
Madeleine Pickens bought two ranches in northeastern Nevada last year to serve as a sanctuary to keep mustangs on the range instead of in government-funded holding facilities.
She says her plan would save the government money.
