The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is seeking proposals from private-sector individuals and organizations interested in developing sanctuaries for wild mustangs and burros currently residing in agency managed long-term holding facilities. The proposal solicitation is part of a new management strategy plan unveiled by agency director Bob Abbey last month, said BLM Spokesman Tom Gorey.

The reform plan also calls for a reduction in the number of wild horses removed from their ranges and an increase in the number of mares treated with the contraceptive porcine zona pellucida (PZP).

Gorey said the eco-sanctuary development program is intended to provide an alternative to the long-term holding of animals removed from their ranges. Under the program, individual land owners, Indian tribes, and state and local governments can submit proposals for eco-sanctuary development. The sanctuaries would sustain at least 200 animals and must be designed to provide a variety of public access opportunities.

"It’s not a cookie-cutter kind of thing," Gorey said. "There are all sorts of possibilities including training horses and adoption programs, tourism, and education