Case 1:14-cv-00485-ABJ Document 15-5 Filed 09/19/14 Page 1 of 6

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

AMERICAN WILD HORSE

PRESERVATION CAMPAIGN, et al.,

Case No. 1:14-cv-485-ABJ

Plaintiffs,
v.
THOMAS VILSACK, Secretary,
U.S. Department of Agriculture, et al.,
Defendants,
and,
CALIFORNIA CATTLEMENS
ASSOCIATION, CALIFORNIA FARM
BUREAU FEDERATION, PUBLIC LANDS
COUNCIL, NATIONAL CATTLEMENS
BEEF ASSOCIATION, MODOC COUNTY,
WILLIAM FLOURNOY, CAROLYN AND
JAMES PETER CAREY, and MIKE BYRNE,
Proposed Defendant-Intervenors

DECLARATION OF SEAN CURTIS

IN SUPPORT OF MOTION TO INTERVENE
BY PROPOSED DEFENDANT-INTERVENORS,
CALIFORNIA CATTLEMENS ASSOCIATION, ET AL.
I, Sean Curtis, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1746, do hereby declare as follows:
1.

I am the Resource Analyst for the County of Modoc (County), which has its

offices in Alturas, CA. I can be reached at P.O. Box 1692, Alturas, CA 96101.
2.

I am over eighteen years of age; am competent to testify from my first-hand

knowledge as to the matters set forth in this Declaration; and am authorized by the County to
submit this Declaration on its behalf.

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3.

I currently live in Modoc County and have worked for a total of 24 years as the

Resource Analyst for the Countyinitially as a volunteer and contractor, and then as a full-time
employee for the last 10 years.
4.

I and many Modoc County residents rely on the natural resources of the Modoc

National Forest (MDF) for employment, aesthetic enjoyment, and recreation. The current wild
horse overpopulation is having a negative impact on each of these interests. The County also has
direct economic and social interests at stake in this case.
5.

It is a standard practice for Modoc County to coordinate with the responsible

federal agencies with respect to federal lands projects that have the potential to adversely impact
the county or its citizens. The authority for the coordination the County routinely undertakes is
provided in federal statutes, including the National Forest Management Act, the National
Environmental Policy Act, and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act.
6.

Through coordination with the MDF, the County learned that the Forest Service

would not be able to remove excess horses from the Devils Garden until a Wild Horse Territory
Management Plan (TMP) was completed. The MDF also indicated it did not have the staff
expertise, time, or funding necessary to devote to the preparation of such a plan. Because of its
economic and social interests, the Countyalong with partners such as the Modoc County Farm
Bureauinvested considerable time and money to help the MDF develop a TMP to facilitate the
appropriate management of the Devils Garden wild horses.
7.

It is my understanding that the Plaintiffs in this case oppose the decision of the

MDF to establish a monitoring-based Appropriate Management Level (AML), take actions to

achieve the AML, and revise the WHT boundary to exclude federal and private lands that were
mistakenly included in the WHT boundary. To reach these decisions, the Forest Service utilized

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the professional and technical expertise possessed by local, retired federal workers in the area
who had the specific knowledge needed to assist the MDF to establish a monitoring-based AML
and to prepare the necessary NEPA document (environmental assessment) and TMP.
8.

I worked with the MDF to develop Challenge Cost Share Agreements that utilized

a combination of Modoc County Resource Advisory Committee and Forest Service money to
fund the work to be performed by the retired workers. This included collecting site-specific
resource monitoring data in conformance with the 2008 Modoc National Forest Implementation
Monitoring Plan, facilitating the completion of an aerial survey to determine current wild horse
population size, and preparation of an environmental assessment to evaluate the potential effects
associated with a range of alternatives for future wild horse management, including a No Action
and Proposed Action alternative. My specific role in this project was to coordinate these various
components and to monitor overall progress to ensure the work performed by the retired workers
was completed to the standards specified by the Forest Service and on time and within budget.
Retired workers completed their work independently and met the planning benchmarks set by the
Forest Service under the direction of their assigned supervisor (also a retired worker).
9.

In addition I worked closely with Modoc County Farm Advisor Missy Merrill-

Davies as part of the interdisciplinary team that analyzed the site-specific socio-economic
impacts for each of the alternatives considered in the EA. I also prepared the Countys
comments in response to scoping and the preliminary environmental assessment, as directed by
the Modoc County Board of Supervisors.
10.

The actions called for in the TMP are needed to improve rangeland health;

protect the forage to maintain economic livestock operations; maintain wildlife, recreation, and
other uses Modoc County residents enjoy in the area; and to ensure a healthy, thriving population

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of wild horses over the long term. Cumulatively, these actions are designed to attain the thriving
natural ecological balance the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act requires. The County
has a duty to its citizens to pursue actions that will benefit the community as a wholeincluding
avoiding continued impacts to the Countys residents from wild horse overpopulation that is
damaging public and adjacent private lands. If Plaintiffs succeed in halting the actions proposed
by the TMP, rangeland health, wild horse health, and forage and habitat for wildlife and
domestic livestock will continue to deteriorate. As a result, the social and economic well being
of the County will suffer both directly and indirectly.
11.

Currently, wild horse overpopulation is directly impacting the County due to the

reduced carrying capacity of the range and fewer AUMs available for domestic livestock use.
These impacts have been felt for some time. Horse population in the WHT has continuously
exceeded the upper limit of the 285335 range established by the 1991 Modoc Forest Land and
Resource Management Plan (LRMP). The AML was briefly reached following the winter of
1992-1993 when a large number of horses died due to extreme winter weather conditions and a
lack of food and water. Since that time, the population has been above the AML.
12.

Achieving wild horse population size within the AML range will improve the

Countys ability to provide infrastructure and essential services to its citizens. Two sources of
the Countys income come directly from livestock grazing: (1) Californias possessory interest
property tax; and (2) federal grazing fees. The possessory interest tax (PIT) is calculated for
grazing permittees based on the number of AUMs allocated to them (i.e., the value of the
interest) and is paid directly into the Countys general fund. The PIT is used to pay for
infrastructure and essential servicessuch as fire and police protection and local government
that the property holder enjoys. The County also receives 25% of

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Forest Service grazing fees

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($1.35 per AUM), for maintenance and improvement of roads and schools. As a rural county
with a limited tax base, these foregone taxes are significant sources of income that have reduced
our ability to provide needed infrastructure and services.
13.

The County also has a duty to advocate on behalf of the individual interests of its

citizens, and to support actions that will improve social and economic stability for those citizens.
In Modoc County, agricultural jobs rank second only to those in government in terms of number
of employees and in earnings. As described above, rangeland health in the MDF has declined,
the forage and water available for wildlife and domestic livestock has been reduced, and the
health of the wild horse herd is in jeopardy. Domestic livestock use has been substantially below
permitted and authorized use over the last several years. The social and economic impacts of
these reductions will continue to be felt by many Modoc citizens until the actions proposed by
the TMP are implemented.
14.

Even after implementation, the proposed actions outlined in the EA are unlikely

to immediately or fully return livestock use to permitted levels. In fact, the proposed action in
the EA is estimated to result in the conversion of about 3,336 AUMs of livestock forage to use
by wild horses, which amounts to over $200,000 in lost receipts for the local economy. DEVILS
GARDEN PLATEAU WILD HORSE TERRITORY MANAGEMENT PLAN ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT
4344 (2012). However, over the long-term, the proposed alternative has the fewest negative
social and economic impacts to the County and its citizens. The other alternatives, considered in
detail in the EA (including the No Action alternative), would result in huge losses for Modoc
County ranchersas much as 10,61827,825 AUMs or more could be converted to wild horse
use (equating to an estimated $1,008,672$2,643,430 in lost receipts). Id. These losses would
be catastrophic for the Countys livestock industry and its citizens. The County itself would also

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forego significant income under these alternatives, based on both the possessory interest tax and
the federal grazing fees. Furthermore, the plaintiffs insistence on use of fertility control Porcine
zona pellucida (PZP) as the primary method of population control is not based on science and
will not address these short term impacts, and is unlikely to be effective over the long term in
controlling population.
15.

In order to protect its direct and indirect social and economic interests, the County

must be allowed to participate in this case. Without implementation of the TMP and EA, the
unchecked wild horse population will continue to deteriorate range and watershed conditions,
and threaten the ecological sustainability of federal and private lands within and adjacent to the
WHT. For decades, the County has coordinated with the federal agencies to ensure that healthy
rangeland and forests are achieved and maintained. The County has had an important
administrative role in monitoring progress toward key project benchmarks set by the Forest
Service concerning development of the TMP in the Devils Garden. Moving forward, the
County will continue to closely coordinate with the MDF to implement their decision. The
County wishes to participate in this case to ensure that progress already made is not wasted, and
that the Countys interests and the interests of its citizens continue to be represented.
I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct.
Executed on September 4, 2014.

/s/ Sean Curtis

Sean Curtis

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