Category Archives: Environmental Issues

Wildlife biologists plan grizzly catch-and-release studies in Northwest Montana

Environmental Issues, News, ,

In the spring, a wildlife biologist’s thoughts turn to bear studies . . .

As a way to monitor the ongoing trend of grizzly bear recovery, wildlife biologists are about to begin capturing grizzlies in western Montana this month for an ongoing population study in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem.

Biologists will begin monitoring the distribution and population of bears in their respective jurisdictions this month. In order to attract bears, biologists utilize natural food sources such as fresh road–killed deer and elk. Potential trapping sites are baited with these natural foods and if indications are that grizzly bears are in the area, snares or culvert traps will be used to capture the bears. Once captured, the bears are sedated, studied, and released in accordance with strict protocols.

Continue reading . . .

Aerial survey indicates pine beetle infestation tapering off in Montana

Environmental Issues, News, , , ,

The pine beetle infestation may finally be tapering off . . .

Mountain pine beetle activity is declining in Montana, a U.S. Forest Service official says.

The finding is the result of aerial surveys last year and analyzed in the 2011 Montana Forest Insect and Disease Conditions report prepared by the Forest Service and state Department of Natural Resources and Conservation.

But the report also found emerging problems with western spruce budworm and pine butterfly.

The report covers about 20.5 million forested acres in Montana, including federal, state and private lands.

Continue reading . . .

U.S. Forest Service to purchase and restore lands

Environmental Issues, News, ,

The U.S. Forest Service is spending money on several land acquisition projects, including two in Montana . . .

The Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the U.S. Forest Service will dedicate $40.6 million for land acquisition projects in 15 states including Montana in an effort to help safeguard clean water, recreational access and wildlife habitat and wilderness areas.

The money is made available through the Land and Water Conservation Fund, created by Congress in 1964 to provide funding to federal, state and local governments to purchase land, water and wetlands. The fund receives the majority of its money through royalty payments from offshore oil and gas revenues to mitigate the environmental impacts of those activities, the DOA said. Those funds also are augmented by additional money or in-kind services of a variety of partnerships.

Continue reading . . .

Investigating a grizzly bear attack in Yellowstone

Environmental Issues, ,

Slate posted a very lengthy, detailed piece by Jesicca Grose on Monday centered around the investigation of a pair of fatal grizzly bear attacks in Yellowstone National Park last year. Boing Boing, a very popular web log, just picked up on this, so there’s likely to be quite a bit of discussion of this article over the next few days . . .

A grizzly was ambling along the Yellowstone River on a clear day in late September 2011, when she lifted her nose up and smelled something familiar in the air. She couldn’t tell quite what it was, but it smelled like food. Maybe the shredded remains of a bison taken down by a wolf pack, its innards sloughing out of its stomach and onto the riverbank. The sow may have spent the day digging up pocket gophers, but a feast like this would really help her to pack on weight. Within eight weeks she’d be taking her two young cubs into a den in the side of a slope for the long Western winter. They needed fat, and soon.

After months of a diet consisting mostly of grass and nuts and roots, the scent of dead meat was impossible to resist. The mother grizzly walked in the direction of the carrion with her cubs scrambling along behind her. The bigger one, with the blond face, was probably closer on his mother’s heels, with his brother, the color of burnt sienna, lagging behind. The sow had to keep a close eye on her offspring. There was always the threat of male bears trying to kill her family. They knew she wouldn’t go into heat again as long as her cubs were with her.

“It’s time to pull in the bird feeders and secure the trash”

Environmental Issues, News, , ,

The bears are off to an early start this year . . .

Bears are stirring earlier than usual and have already resumed behavior that led to a record number of captures last year.

Officials with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks recently relocated a 535-pound male grizzly bear that killed seven calves in four nights near Lincoln. The local FWP office has also been receiving reports of bear sightings near Whitefish and Columbia Falls.

The reemergence of bears has led to a campaign by wildlife officials reminding residents to clean up attractants that increase the likelihood of conflicts.

Continue reading . . .

Opinions decidedly mixed on new U.S. Forest Service planning rule

Environmental Issues, News,

The Missoulian takes on the thankless task of summarizing the new Forest Service planning rule . . .

The U.S. Forest Service’s recently released planning rule could turn the agency into a more efficient decisionmaker or create a department of perpetual planning, depending on who you listen to.

“We are ready to start a new era of planning that takes less time, costs less money and provides stronger protections for our lands and water,” Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell said in an email announcing the final version of the rule. “This new rule will bring 21st century thinking to a process that is sorely needed to protect and preserve our 193 million acres of amazing forests and grasslands.”

Critics have been equally expansive. Andy Stahl of the Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics predicted the process “would die of its own weight.”

“Anyone who thinks this rule will make forest plans quicker to develop is naive,” Stahl said . . .

Continue reading . . .

Researcher says bear spray stops angry grizzlies better than guns

Environmental Issues, News, , ,

More evidence in support of bear spray. Also, read to the end to find our very own Frank Vitale’s bear spray story.

Bear spray doesn’t supply “brains in a can” to survive a grizzly attack, but it appears to work a lot better than spraying bullets.

That’s the conclusion researchers presented to more than 300 bear experts at the Fourth International Human-Bear Conflict Workshop in Missoula last week.

University of Calgary bear expert Steve Herrero was involved in two separate studies that looked at the effectiveness of bear spray and firearms in bear attacks . . .

Continue reading . . .

Less than two weeks to send comments in support of the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act

Environmental Issues, News, ,

The Montana Wilderness Association (MWA) has been heavily involved in supporting the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act since its inception. Here’s a lightly edited excerpt from one of their recent announcement encouraging everyone to support this legislation . . .

Last Thursday, a bill to permanently protect the incomparable Rocky Mountain Front got its day in Congress with a hearing before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

This is a crucial step in the journey of a Heritage Act, a bill that will forever protect our wilderness heritage along the Front, including hundreds of miles of quiet trails and some of the finest backcountry hunting and fishing  in North America.

To help get this passed, Senator Max Baucus is asking for our support. The more demand we create for the Heritage Act the better chance we have of getting it signed into law this year.

To submit a comment in support of the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act, visit savethefront.org’s Quick Guide to Submitting Written Comments to the Congressional Record.

If needed, here are a few important points to remind lawmakers back in Washington, D.C.

Made-in-Montana

Montanan’s were able to work across party lines when crafting this legislation and now it’s the Senate’s chance to do the same and help pass it into law. Working together, ranchers, outfitters, business owners and conservationists listened to each other and to people from across the state.  The Heritage Act is product of five years of public meetings, countless kitchen table discussions and group meetings with permitees, landowners and local officials.

Big Game needs Big Country

Montana sportsmen and women get it.  Big, unbroken habitat means healthy big game herds and longer hunting seasons.  And keeping the Front just the way it is means the next generation of Montana hunters will have the same access and opportunity we have today.

Best Defense is a Good Offense

We can’t wait until elk have no food source, fish have no clear water and our native plants have nowhere to grow.  That’s why the Heritage Act will place a high priority on the eradication of noxious weeds on the Front and require land managers to prioritize their efforts.

For more information about the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act please visit savethefront.org or go to http://www.baucus.senate.gov.

Additional background can also be found at the MWA’s Rocky Mountain Front Wilderness Campaign page.

Flathead National Forest proposes logging to collect larch cones

Environmental Issues, News, ,

Here’s an obscure forest management issue . . .

Larch tree cones grow near the top of very tall trees, which makes them tough to collect for anything other than squirrels.

The Flathead National Forest needs a lot of larch cones for its reseeding efforts, and it’s seeking public comment on how best to get them. The trees have brittle branches and bark that flakes off easily, making them difficult for humans to climb. Another alternative is shooting cone-bearing branches off the tree. “That’s apparently not one we’re interested in,” Flathead Forest spokesman Wade Muelhof said. The cones aren’t much bigger than grapes, and lots of them get lost as the branches fall to the ground.

So the preferred alternative involves cutting down about 270 trees over 10 years to supply seedling needs.

Continue reading . . .

Rocky Mountain Front wilderness bill gets a hearing

Environmental Issues, News,

Here’s the Missoulian’s take on yesterday’s Senate hearing on the Rocky Mountain Front wilderness bill . . .

Supporters of the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act had their day in Congress on Thursday when U.S. Sen. Max Baucus led off testimony on the bill.

“I think this is a no-brainer,” Baucus told Senate Public Lands and Forests Subcommittee chairman Sen. Ron Wyden. “There’s no conflict. People worked very hard to make this happen. I hope we can get this passed this year.”

Choteau rancher Dusty Crary called the bill “our homeland security bill.” The act would add 67,000 acres to the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex and designate another 208,000 acres of U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management land as conservation management areas . . .

Continue reading . . .