All posts by nfpa

Foresters may extend ‘let it burn’ policy beyond wilderness areas

Fire Information and Status, News

From the Wednesday, June 11, 2008 online edition of the Missoulian . . .

(Note that there is an open house to discuss these changes to fire suppression policy tomorrow, from 7 to 8 p.m., at Sondreson Hall.)

Foresters looking to fight fire with fire have started looking beyond the boundaries of designated wilderness areas, and this summer will apply a sort of “let it burn” policy to public lands throughout northwest Montana.

They call it “wildland fire use” and this summer it could be used in the North Fork Flathead drainage above Columbia Falls, the Swan Range near Bigfork and the Mission Mountains.

Read the entire article . . .

University study outlines dust risks

Environmental Issues, News

From the Tuesday, June 10, 2008 online edition of the Daily Inter Lake . . .

Two University of Montana professors revealed the results of the North Fork Road Dust Study to Flathead County commissioners Monday morning.

The conclusion: Airborne particulate matter along the road during summer months is often twice the nationally accepted amounts, which could lead to significant health problems.

Read the entire article . . .

Coalition wants Glacier area declared

Environmental Issues, News

From the Saturday, June 7, 2008 online edition of the Missoulian . . .

Glacier National Park and its neighbor to the north are endangered by mining proposals, and those threats should be recognized by the international community.

So says a coalition of environmental groups from both sides of the U.S.-Canada line, who this week petitioned the United Nations to investigate dangers posed by coal and coalbed methane production plans directly upstream of Glacier.

Read the entire article . . .

From the archives: Field & Stream photoessay on the Cline Mine

Environmental Issues

Back in February of last year, when database problems caused a gap in our coverage, Field and Stream magazine posted a photo essay by Bigfork outdoor writer Todd Tanner on the potential impact of the Cline Mine on the North Fork. It’s still relevant and well worth a look . . .

Here’s a question I bet you never thought you’d have to ask. Should a Canadian mining company with German and Japanese financial backing be allowed to pollute one of our finest trout streams so that it can ship low-quality coal to China?

View the photo gallery . . .

Obama takes on proposed Canadian coal mine

Environmental Issues, News

From the Monday, June 2, 2008 online edition of the Missoulian . . .

A Canadian coal company hoping to open a massive mine north of Glacier National Park has encountered a powerful new critic – Sen. Barack Obama.

Obama, who was back under the Big Sky campaigning for president on Friday, has joined Montana’s bipartisan congressional delegation in opposition to the mining proposal, “and that’s important, because whoever becomes our next president will have a direct role to play, in terms of presenting this issue in an international forum.”

So said Will Hammerquist, the local representative for the National Parks Conservation Association.

About a month ago, Hammerquist met with Obama during a campaign stop in Missoula. He had the senator’s attention for only a couple minutes, he said, but it was “just enough time to brief him on the issue.”

Read the entire article . . .

Obama opposes B.C. coal mine

Environmental Issues, News

From the Tuesday, June 3, 2008 online edition of canada.com . . .

A long-simmering sore point in Canada-U.S. relations – a proposed open-pit coal mine in a pristine B.C. valley – is irritating Democratic Sen. Barack Obama, who wants to be the next U.S. president.

“Barack Obama supports efforts by Senator Max Baucus and Senator Jon Tester as well as Gov. Brian Schweitzer to stop the Cline mine,” Obama campaign official Matt Chandler wrote last week in an e-mail to Will Hammerquist of the U.S. National Parks Conservation Association.

“The Flathead River and Glacier National Park are treasures that should be conserved for future generations.”

Environmentalists say the mine could pollute the north fork of the Flathead River, which flows from B.C. into Montana and forms the western boundary of Glacier National Park.

Read the entire article . . .

Dupont ousts Hall in GOP showdown

News, ,

Apologies for all the political news today. This item is relevant because “roads and dust” was a hot button during the primary and because Hall’s approach to the issue likely cost him some votes.

From the Wednesday, June 4, 2008 online edition of the Daily Inter Lake . . .

Jim Dupont has limited Gary Hall to one term as Flathead County commissioner.

Dupont, longtime former sheriff, far outdistanced incumbent Commissioner Hall in Tuesday’s primary election to win the Republican nomination for the county’s top job.

[…]

Dupont campaigned on three key issues: roads and dust, public safety and private property rights. He said he is running because he believes the county needs someone on the commission who can make better decisions.

Read the entire article . . .

Protect Waterton-Glacier park, groups implore UN

Environmental Issues, News

From the Wednesday, June 4, 2008 online edition of the Globe & Mail . . .

Several leading environmental groups in the U.S. and Canada have written to the United Nations asking that proposed energy developments along British Columbia’s Flathead River be investigated as threats to a World Heritage Site.

In a letter sent yesterday, the organizations state that Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, which links globally significant national parks in Alberta and Montana, be placed on the UN’s World Heritage in Danger list.

“There is substantial danger that the existing statutory and regulatory framework will fail to adequately protect Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park and its surrounding lands from adverse impacts caused by mining and CBM [coal bed methane] development in the headwaters of the Flathead River,” the groups state in a letter to Francesco Bandarin, director of the UN’s World Heritage Centre.

Read the entire article . . .

The Road. Again.

Commentary, News, , ,

Last week, a couple of rather pointed letters to the editor appeared in local newspapers in response to Commissioner Gary Hall’s missive that appeared in the April 24 edition of the Hungry Horse News. The full text of Hall’s letter is available here. Hall is in favor of paving the North Fork Road as far as the Camas Creek entrance to Glacier Park. He also announced a couple of meetings related to this issue. The first is on May 21st. It was originally scheduled to be held in the conference room at Freedom Bank, but has since been moved to the North Valley Hospital Community Center, which is a couple of blocks north of Smith’s in Columbia Falls. The second meeting is the “reveal” of the short-term North Fork Road dust study conducted last summer and paid for by the NFRCHS. It will be held in the County Commissioner’s meeting room on June 9th.

Both letters take a jaundiced view of spending big money on a section of the North Fork Road when the need is so much greater elsewhere. The full text of the letters follows…

Continue reading The Road. Again. →

North Fork Hostel sees some flood waters

News

From the Monday, May 19, 2008 online edition of the Daily Inter Lake . . .

Area rivers topped flood stage on Monday, sending water into low-lying areas of West Glacier and Polebridge.

[…]

In Polebridge, the North Fork of the Flathead River rose gradually over the last few days, finally swamping the lawn at the North Fork Hostel on Sunday night.

“I have some water in my yard as of this morning,” said hostel owner Oliver Meister, who has been watching the National Weather Service online river forecasting closely. “Believe me, I’ve been looking at that for the last five days.”

The river gauge at Polebridge showed flows reaching 11.25 feet Monday, just below the river’s 12-foot flood stage. But the North Fork was forecasted to crest just above flood stage by this morning.

Meister said he was prepared to sandbag his house to keep water out of his kitchen.

The hostel has the lowest-lying structures in the Polebridge area, and Meister speculated that the river would have to exceed its forecasted peak by quite a bit to cause problems for neighboring homes.

Read the entire article . . .