North Fork Preservation Association

They did it. In the promised follow-up to last week’s announcement that British Columbia was halting all resource extraction activities in the Canadian Flathead, British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell and Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer met today in Vancouver, B. C. to sign an agreement banning mining and energy development throughout the transboundary Flathead Valley.
The Missoulian [...]

Tags: Brian Schweitzer, British Columbia, energy development, Flathead Basin, Gordon Campbell, mining

From today’s Missoulian comes a must-read discussion of what’s not being said about the recent announcement of a mining ban in the Canadian Flathead watershed . . .
To sense the delicacy of an international mining ban along the North Fork of the Flathead River, it helps to hear what isn’t being said.
Read the full article [...]

Tags: British Columbia, Canadian Flathead, mining

The government of British Columbia has signed an order that apparently bans mining and other resource extraction activity in the Canadian Flathead watershed. The Missoulian has a good write-up, including a map . . .
British Columbia’s government has formalized its promise to protect wildlands north of Glacier National Park, signing a legislative order that effectively [...]

Tags: British Columbia, Canadian Flathead, Max Resource Corporation, mining

We’re starting to see more — and more detailed — coverage of British Columbia’s decision to forgo resource extraction activities in the Canadian Flathead River Valley. Two good articles appeared today.
The Daily Inter Lake did a nice, balanced job . . .
The lieutenant governor of British Columbia announced Tuesday that all types of mining and [...]

Tags: British Columbia, Canadian Flathead, coal mining, coalbed methane, gold mining, North Fork Flathead

In the annual “Throne Speech,” British Columbia Lt. Gov. Steven Point declared the Canadian portion of the Flathead River Valley off limits to mining and energy extraction. Assuming no subtle weasel-wording, this means B.C. just shut the door to activities such as coal and gold mining and coalbed methane development in the Canadian North Fork. [...]

Tags: British Columbia, coal mining, coalbed methane, gold mining, North Fork Flathead

Here’s an item your friendly web-weenie meant to post earlier. Alas, the press of business sometimes interferes with such things…
The resource development threats to the Canadian Flathead, and the Trans-boundary Flathead in general, have become a bit of a cause célèbre. Enough so, that they were a significant point of concern at the 9th World [...]

Tags: British Columbia, Canadian Flathead, Flathead River Valley, Trans-boundary Flathead, Wild9, World Wilderness Congress

Uh, oh. It appears the threat of a gold mining operation in the trans-boundary North Fork is growing. From today’s online edition of the Missoulian . . .
Expanded gold exploration north of Glacier National Park has Montana interests worried about downstream environmental and economic impacts.
“The mining company has apparently made a business decision that investment [...]

Tags: British Columbia, Canadian Flathead, gold mining, Max Resource Corporation, North Fork Flathead River

The Flathead Coalition is less than amused at BP-Canada’s approach to environmental science. They don’t think much of British Columbia’s fox-guarding-the-henhouse rules for conducting environmental studies, either.
A press release pubished today by Citizens Concerned About Coalbed Methane summarizes the issue . . .
The Flathead Coalition announced today that its internal evaluation of BP-Canada Energy Company’s [...]

Tags: BP Canada, British Columbia, Citizens Concerned About Coalbed Methane, coalbed methane, Flathead Coalition, Mist Mountain Project

The Flathead Beacon posted a tardy, but well-written article covering both of  the North Fork’s recent “endangered river” designations . . .
As the threat of large-scale mining continues to bear down on the headwaters of the Flathead River Basin – and as funding for conservation research hits a snag – Ric Hauer believes the North [...]

Tags: American Rivers, BP Canada, British Columbia, Cline Mining, Flathead Lake Biological Station, Flathead River Valley, Foisey Creek, North Fork Flathead River, ORBC, Ric Hauer

The Hungry Horse News has a nice article about a press conference held at Blankenship to discuss American River’s listing of the North Fork as one of the ten most endangered rivers in the U.S.
Here’s the lead . . .
On a bright blue day at Blankenship black bugs come off the water and land on [...]

Tags: American Rivers, BP Canada, British Columbia, Cline Mining, Flathead River Valley, Foisey Creek, North Fork Flathead River