Elaina Erola has published “Wild and Untamed: The Problem of Wild Horses on Federal and Indian Lands” in the Journal of Environmental Law and Litigation.

Here is the abstract:

The management of wild horses in the American West has long been framed as a question of animal welfare, environmental stewardship, and federal land management. Missing from this discourse, however, is the disproportionate burden that unmanaged wild horse populations impose on Tribal Nations. This Article argues that the United States has failed to fulfill its trust responsibilities to federally recognized Tribes by inadequately addressing wild horse overpopulation on Indian lands, resulting in significant ecological degradation, resource depletion, and economic harm.

Drawing on historical accounts, federal statutes, agency practices, and case studies from the Navajo Nation, Blackfeet Nation, Wind River Reservation, Yakama Nation, Ute Indian Tribe, and others, this Article examines how federal wild horse policies have produced consequences that extend beyond Bureau of Land Management jurisdiction. While federal agencies devote substantial resources to managing wild horses on public lands, Tribal governments are often left to confront similar or greater population pressures with limited funding, uncertain jurisdictional authority, and inadequate federal support.

The Article situates these challenges within the broader framework of the federal trust responsibility, arguing that Indian lands, water resources, forage, wildlife habitat, and culturally significant plant species constitute trust assets deserving protection. Relying on trust doctrine jurisprudence, including United States v. Mitchell (“Mitchell II”), the Article contends that the federal government’s failure to address unmanaged horse populations on Tribal lands may constitute a breach of its fiduciary obligations. Finally, it explores potential legal and policy solutions, including expanded funding through self-determination contracts, enhanced consultation and co-management mechanisms, and greater recognition of Tribal authority to determine the legal status and management of wild horses within their territories.

By reframing wild horse overpopulation as both a tribal sovereignty issue and a trust responsibility issue, this Article highlights an overlooked dimension of federal Indian law and environmental governance and calls for a more equitable allocation of resources and decision-making authority to Tribal Nations.