All posts by nfpa

For bears, ‘chickens are the new garbage’

Environmental Issues, News, , , , ,

Bears like chickens, which is causing headaches for bear management personnel . . .

Wildlife and land managers say they are seeing gradual acceptance and improvements in public education and outreach for grizzly bear conservation, but there also are setbacks in some areas, most notably the proliferation of bear-attracting chicken coops across Western Montana.

“The hobby chicken farmer is one of the greatest threats to the grizzly bear these days,” Chris Servheen, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service grizzly bear recovery coordinator, said Wednesday in Hungry Horse.

Servheen was one of the speakers during a meeting of the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem subcommittee, a multi-agency panel that guides bear conservation and management.

As state grizzly bear management specialist Jamie Jonkel puts it, “chickens are the new garbage.”

Read more . . .

700 miles and seven weeks on Canada’s Churchill River

News, , ,

I attended this presentation last week. Good stories and fascinating photos . . .

Jonathan Klein spent more than 30 years working in wilderness and wilderness management during his career with the Forest Service.

In all those years, there were plenty of black bear encounters — every time he just gave a shout and the bear took off running.

That’s the conventional wisdom in Montana — black bears run if you yell and holler enough.

But on this day, Klein was standing on the edge of the Churchill River yelling his lungs out at a black bear that had all the intentions of not going anywhere until it had thoroughly and completely consumed Klein.

Read more . . .

B.C. Parliament settles with Cline Mining for lost Flathead coal rights

Environmental Issues, News, , , , ,

Looks like Cline Mining has gone from major watershed threat to final bankruptcy . . .

The Parliament of British Columbia has agreed to a nearly $10 million settlement with a mining company that lost its right to develop coal deposits in the transboundary Flathead River near Glacier-Waterton International Peace Park.

The bankrupt Cline Mining Corp. announced Monday it had reached the out-of-court settlement after claiming it was losing a $500 million potential operation. The B.C. government had revoked mining rights as part of the Flathead Watershed Area Conservation Act in 2010. That legislation solidified an agreement worked out with former U.S. Sen. Max Baucus and Gov. Brian Schweitzer of Montana to protect the Flathead River.

A similar U.S. measure, the North Fork Watershed Protection Act, has passed the House of Representatives but has been blocked in the Senate. It would place the Montana side of the river, known as the North Fork of the Flathead, off limits to energy development. The international agreement allows logging, gravel mining and other recreation activities.

Read more . . .

Mercury-tainted fish found in Glacier Park’s Lake McDonald

Environmental Issues, News, ,

Here’s a considerably more detailed article on the recent announcement of unacceptable mercury levels in some fish in certain areas of a number of western national parks . . .

A “first-of-its-kind” study released last week discovered mercury in fish in some of the most remote and pristine lakes and streams in national parks across the western United States and Alaska – but it wasn’t a surprise to Glacier National Park fisheries biologist Chris Downs.

Glacier is updating information for a brochure it already puts out regarding guidelines for fish consumption from waters inside the park because of contaminants such as mercury, which is harmful to both human and wildlife health.

“The national study continues to demonstrate that contaminants are reaching places we think of as isolated or protected,” Downs said. “Because of airborne transport, it’s a global issue.”

Read more . . .

Further reading: The actual report (PDF format, 6.7MB), Mercury in Fishes from 21 National Parks in the Western United States—Inter- and Intra-Park Variation in Concentrations and Ecological Risk.

Mac Minard: North Fork protection needs straight vote

Commentary, Environmental Issues, ,

Mac Minard, executive director of the Montana Outfitters and Guides Association, is circulating a testy opinion piece on the legislative shenanigans hindering passage of the North Fork Watershed Protection Act . . .

North Fork protection passed the House but fell short in the Senate — for the wrong reasons.

The North Fork Watershed Protection Act is a bipartisan legislative effort that started with former Sen. Max Baucus in 1974, and represents locally driven efforts to protect the historic and majestic North Fork area in the Flathead Valley. The legislation has tremendous support within the outdoor community and has received endorsements from various groups concerned with land management decisions and conservation efforts.

Rep. Steve Daines joined the effort last year, and introduced a companion bill in the House. A few months ago, in what was nothing short of a herculean effort, freshman congressman Daines ushered the North Fork Watershed Protection Act through the House with strong bipartisan support — a huge milestone. The House passage of North Fork Watershed Protection Act, which has been around for several decades, represented the first time the bill passed either chamber of Congress.

However, two weeks ago, this important bill was blocked in the Senate by what can only be described as an election-year political stunt.

Read more . . .

High mercury levels found in small percentage of national park fish

Environmental Issues, News,

Not clear what it means yet, but a study turned up high mercury levels in some national park fish…

Federal scientists have found high amounts of mercury in sport fish caught in remote areas of Western national parks, including Glacier National Park, according to a study released Thursday.

Researchers for the U.S. Geological Survey and National Park Service said that most fish they caught had acceptable levels of mercury, but 4 percent exceeded healthy levels.

Mercury occurs naturally, but scientists say its presence in national parks, which are supposed to leave wildlife unimpaired for future generations, was cause for concern.

Read more . . .

Kellyn Brown: North Fork politics

Commentary, Environmental Issues,

Over at the Flathead Beacon, Kellyn Brown is not happy about the political process surrounding the North Fork Watershed Protection Act . . .

The real problem with the failure to pass the North Fork Watershed Protection Act is how it happened. Others can argue over the merits of the legislation, but let’s take a look at how the sausage was made. Or, in this case, not made.

Both Montana Sen. John Walsh and Rep. Steve Daines, who is challenging Walsh in the forthcoming U.S. Senate election, appeared eager to pass this bill and lay claim to protecting an area that conservation groups and energy companies alike agree should be off limits to new mineral development. To be clear, this is a rather noncontroversial bill. In a letter, ConocoPhillips’ vice president expressed support for the added protections.

Anymore, that matters very little, because Congress eagerly uses convoluted and preposterous rules in the name of politics. And this is just the latest perfect example of why many of us sit back dumbfounded by the ease at which this country’s governing bodies tie themselves into knots so they don’t have to do any real governing.

Read more . . .

Flathead National Forest hosts NCDE spring meeting

Environmental Issues, News, , ,

The Flathead National Forest is providing space for the spring Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem meeting. Here’s the press release . . .

Next Steps for Grizzly Bear Conservation & Bear Management Updates

The public is invited to participate in the upcoming Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem (NCDE) Spring Meeting hosted by the Flathead National Forest.

The meeting is scheduled from 10:00 AM to 3:30 PM on April 23, 2014 at the Hungry Horse/Glacier View and Spotted Bear Ranger District Office located at 10 Hungry Horse Drive in Hungry Horse, Montana.

During the meeting there will be an update on the time line and next steps for the Conservation Strategy Plan, efforts to provide a new Grizzly Bear Lesson Plan for high schools, bear mortality rates for 2013 and bear management spring activity.

The Flathead National Forest is one of many agencies and organizations working to ensure the sustainability of the grizzly bear population in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem. Additional information on those efforts can be found at: http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/species/mammals/grizzly/continentalindex.html

Click here for the NCDE Spring Meeting agenda.

Whitefish Range Partnership Agreement summary available online

Documents, Environmental Issues, News,

For those of you interested in the Whitefish Range Partnership Agreement, but who don’t wish to wade through an entire ring binders’ worth of material, a two page summary of the agreement is now available to view or download in PDF format.

We have hosted a copy of the agreement summary here: https://www.gravel.org/files/04.15.2014_WRP_summary_Final.pdf