United States Department of the Interior OFFICE OF HEARINGS AND APPEALS

Interior Board of Land Appeals 801 N . Quincy Street, Suite 300

Arlington, Virginia 22203

703-235-3750 703-235-8349 (fax)

IBLA 2010-180

August 26, 2010

) )

WESTERN WATERSHEDS PROJECT )

IBLA 2010-183 )

IN DEFENSE OF ANIMALS AND ) CRAIG C. DOWNER )

DOI-BLM-NV-N020-2010-0014-EA

Wild Horse Gather

Appeals Dismissed as Moot

ORDER

In an order dated July 22, 2010, the Board denied petitions filed in the above-styled appeals seeking a stay of the effect of a June 7, 2010, Decision Record (DR) of the Elko (Nevada) District Manager, Elko District Office, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), approving the Owyhee, Rock Creek, and Little Humboldt Herd Management Areas Wild Horse Gather Plan (Plan).

On August 4, 2010, BLM reported that its gather activities under the approved

Plan had been completed on August 2, 2010.

In general, an appeal w i l l be dismissed as moot if, as a result of events occurring after the appeal is filed, the Board cannot provide any effective relief. Wildlife Damage Review, 131 IBLA 353, 355 (1994); Oregon Cedar Products Co., 119 IBLA 89, 93 (1991). Nevertheless, we have recognized an exception to this rule, stating that we w i l l not dismiss an appeal when i t raises issues which are capable of repetition, and yet evading review. E.g., Hylton, 135 IBLA 369, 372 (1996). But, appeal w i l l not be saved from dismissal merely because an issue may arise in a future action, i f that future action wi l l be subject to review. Id.

In this case, while future gathers are clearly possible, any such gather wi l l be the subject of a new gather plan. There is no evidence that any further removals are

http://www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/info/newsroom/2010/august/blm_completes_

tuscarora.html

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IBLA 2010-180 & 183

contemplated under the Plan in question. Moreover, any new decision to proceed with a gather in the future wi l l be subject to administrative and/or judicial review, and, therefore, w i l l not evade review.

Accordingly, pursuant to the authority delegated to the Board of Land Appeals by the Secretary of the Interior, 43 C.F.R. § 4 .1, the appeals are dismissed as moot.

I concur:

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