Environmental Assessment of Alternatives for Managing the Feral Horses of Assateague Island National Seashore

The Environmental Assessment evaluates four possible alternatives for managing the horse population, and analyzes the potential environmental and social consequences of each. Alternative A is the No Action Alternative, which would continue the current management program and practices, and maintain the horse population at around 150. Alternatives B, C and D (the action alternatives) all propose a reduction in population size to the range of 80-100 horses. The three action alternatives differ from one another in the means by which the population goal is achieved (one-time removal versus intensive contraception), the time frame (2 years versus 5 - 8 years), and how the population is subsequently managed (closed population versus periodic additions/removals to optimize herd health).

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Environmental Assessment of Alternatives for Managing the Feral Horses of Assateague Island NS   (1.5 MB, PDF file) Disclaimer: Links within the above document(s) were valid as of the date published. Note: Some of the files may be in PDF format and can be viewed using the Adobe Acrobat Reader software. You may download a free copy of Acrobat Reader from Adobe Systems.