Category Archives: News

North Fork Watershed Protection Act clears House panel

Environmental Issues, News, , ,

Here is the Daily Inter Lake’s write-up on the North Fork Watershed Protection Act’s progress through the U.S. House . . .

A bill aimed at protecting national forest lands west of Glacier National Park cleared a key House Committee Tuesday, drawing praise from local supporters.

Known as the North Fork Watershed Protection Act and sponsored by U.S. Rep. Steve Daines, R-Mont., the bill would withdraw 362,000 acres of public lands from future oil and gas leasing and development, hard-rock mining and geothermal development.

Similar legislation sponsored by Montana Democratic Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester has been advancing in the Senate.

“The North Fork bill is a great example of people of all walks of alife coming together and developing local solutions for public lands issues,” said Chris Schustrom of the Flathead Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited. “This bill will help ensure that traditional land uses and fish and wildlife habitat in the valley are protected in perpetuity.”

Read more . . .

North Fork Watershed Protection Act gets past House Natural Resources Committee without opposition

Environmental Issues, News, , ,

The House version of the North Fork Watershed Protection Act easily passed its first hurdle this morning . . .

Legislation to protect the North Fork of the Flathead River from energy development passed a crucial congressional milestone early Tuesday morning.

The House Natural Resources Committee approved its version of the North Fork Watershed Protection Act without opposition, according to Rep. Steve Daines, R-Mont. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., authored the measure and got it passed through the Senate Natural Resources Committee last June. That puts the bill in position for votes by both chambers.

“The North Fork is widely treasured as a precious corner of our state, a place where we harvest timber, we hunt and fish, and lead trips into the adjacent Glacier National Park,” Daines said in an email statement on Tuesday. “The local community wants to continue using this watershed of the river to benefit their local economy – which is largely outdoor recreation based.”

Read more . . .

North Fork Interlocal meeting coming up February 19 – update

News

[Updated to correct the start time — it is now 10:00 a.m.]

The winter North Fork Interlocal Agreement meeting will be held Wednesday, February 19 at the Hungry Horse-Glacier View Ranger Station, 10 Hungry Horse Drive, in Hungry Horse. Start time is 10:00 a.m.

The Interlocal Agreement provides for face-to-face contact with representatives of agencies whose policies and actions affect the North Fork. Interlocal Agreement meetings are held in the winter (in town) and summer (at Sondreson Hall). Signatories to the agreement include the Flathead National Forest, Glacier National Park and the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation.

This is always a very interesting meeting, with reports from a range of government agencies and local organizations and often some quite vigorous discussion.

John White Lecture Series includes North Forkers

History, News, , ,

The Museum at Central School in Kalispell started holding its annual John White Lecture Series in 2002. During January and February, the museum hosts a series of four presentations by residents and experts on various aspects of local history.

This year’s series winds up with a talk in February 23 at 2:30 p.m.called “Sons of Sheriffs” involving two long-term North Fork landowners/residents, Pat Walsh and Larry Wilson. The presentation features “…three sons of former Flathead County sheriffs. Retired attorney Ty Robinson is 96 years old and sharp as the proverbial tack. His father, Cal Robinson, Sr., was Flathead Co. Sheriff in the 1930s & 40s. Pat Walsh is the son of Dick Walsh, who followed Cal Robinson as Sheriff, serving from 1947 to 1963. Larry Wilson is the son of Ross Wilson, who followed Dick Walsh, serving as Sheriff in the 1960s. All three gentlemen will share the memories and experiences of being sons of Flathead County sheriffs.”

See the John White Lecture Series web page for more information, including descriptions of the other talks in the series, ticket availability and pricing.

Also, the Flathead Beacon has an excellent write-up on the lecture series.

Largest Mission Valley easement protects wildlife corridor

Environmental Issues, News, , ,

Some encouraging news regarding habitat connectivity . . .

Animals from grizzly bears to dairy cows will benefit from the largest-ever conservation easement in the Mission Valley, according to the people who signed it.

Five Valleys Land Trust announced this week that almost 2,300 acres east of Charlo will be protected for both wildlife and agricultural purposes after a conservation easement was entered into on the property.

Grasslands on the Moiese Valley Ranch – better known locally as Hillside Farms – buffer Crow Creek, a critical corridor used by grizzlies and other wildlife to travel between the Mission Mountains and the Flathead River.

Read more . . .

National Park Service, wildlife experts developing plan to protect migrating wildlife

Environmental Issues, News,

Concerns over protection of migratory wildlife are growing . . .

The National Park Service and the country’s leading wildlife experts are developing a plan to conserve migrating wildlife as it moves through protected areas, sometimes crossing vast regions of the globe to reach birthing and feeding grounds.

Unveiled in a paper published last week in Conservation Biology, the plan details the need for more collaboration between the NPS, local governments and public landowners.

If migratory species are to survive the slow creep of human development, the plan adds, conservation efforts must begin sooner than later, and the public must have a participatory role.

Read more . . .

Second Annual Wilderness Speaker Series focuses on future

News, , , , ,

In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Bob Marshall Wilderness and the passing of the Wilderness Act, the Flathead Valley Community College will be hosting a four-part series on “50 Years of Wilderness:  What Will the Next 50 Years Look Like?”   Presentations will focus on the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, the crown jewel of the Federal Wilderness System. The series is sponsored by the Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation (BMWF) and the Montana Wilderness Association (MWA).

The first of the series, “Wilderness Turns 50 – Who Cares?”, will be on Thursday, January 23 at 7:00 p.m. The presenter will be Rick Potts, Refuge Manager, from Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge.

The lectures will be held on the FVCC campus, 777 Grandview Drive, Kalispell, in the Arts & Technology Building, Room 139, from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m.  There is no charge; everyone welcome.

Here is the full schedule. (Note that NFPA member Frank Vitale is on the March 13 panel.):

January 23:
Wilderness Turns 50 – Who Cares?
Rick Potts, Refuge Manager, Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge.

February 13:
Climate Change Effects on Landscapes and Ecosystems of Western Montana
Bob Keane, U.S. Forest Service, Missoula FireResearch Station

March 13:
Leaving a Legacy; Passing on Wilderness to the Next Generation
Panel discussion between elders and youth.
Panelists: Roland Cheek, retired wilderness outfitter and writer; Dave Owen; retired USFS wilderness ranger; Frank Vitale, Farrier and wilderness advocate; Rebecca Boslow, University of Montana student; Jonson England, high school student and BMWF summer intern

April 10:
Hair Raising Encounters with Wildlife in Wilderness
Jonathan Klein, U.S.F.S. retired Wilderness and Recreation manager (34years) on the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest

Larry Wilson: Yellowstone Park slide show lined up for Jan 20

Commentary, News, , ,

[Updated to correct time for presentation at Sondreson Hall.]

This is the seventh year Rick Graetz brings a group of his students to the North Fork and, as usual, he will be giving a presentation at Sondreson Hall. Larry Wilson’s column has the details . . .

This will be the seventh year that Rick Graetz, a University of Montana geography professor, will bring one of his classes to the North Fork.

The class will stay at the Polebridge Hostel and, as usual, Rick will present an educational program for local residents at Sondreson Community Hall. This year, the program will take place on Monday, Jan. 20, beginning at 6:30 p.m.

Rick and his wife Suzie are accomplished photographers, and the program always revolves around a slide show of photos they have taken themselves.

This year, the program will feature about 100 photos of Yellowstone National Park as well as the narrative. It will illustrate the splendor of the mountains, rivers, forests, geysers and wildlife of what was once best known as “Colter’s Hell.”

Read More . . .

Snowshoeing in Glacier National Park

News, , , ,

The Daily Inter Lake has a nice write-up — with video, no less — of a recent ranger-led snowshoe walk in Glacier National Park . . .

When winter shrouds Glacier National Park, snowshoes are a handy mode of transportation into its snowy inner realm.

Despite rain and high winds, 15 people came out for a ranger-led snowshoe walk on Jan. 11, National Winter Trails Day.

“I’m pretty impressed,” park Ranger Terry Peterson told snowshoers as they departed from the Apgar Visitor Center. “This is the best time of the year to explore the park.”

Read more . . .

Large, old trees grow fastest

News,

Alan McNeil passed on this very interesting item. Think tree growth slows with maturity? Not according to a recent article in Nature.

The USGS, which had a lot to do with this study, put out a press release. Here’s the lead-in . . . .

Trees do not slow in their growth rate as they get older and larger — instead, their growth keeps accelerating, according to a study published today in the journal Nature.

“This finding contradicts the usual assumption that tree growth eventually declines as trees get older and bigger,” says Nate Stephenson, the study’s lead author and a forest ecologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. “It also means that big, old trees are better at absorbing carbon from the atmosphere than has been commonly assumed.”

An international team of researchers compiled growth measurements of 673,046 trees belonging to 403 tree species from tropical, subtropical and temperate regions across six continents, calculating the mass growth rates for each species and then analyzing for trends across the 403 species. The results showed that for most tree species, mass growth rate increases continuously with tree size — in some cases, large trees appear to be adding the carbon mass equivalent of an entire smaller tree each year.

“In human terms, it is as if our growth just keeps accelerating after adolescence, instead of slowing down,” explains Stephenson. “By that measure, humans could weigh half a ton by middle age, and well over a ton at retirement.”

Read more . . .