Category Archives: News

Zinke won’t mess with Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument

Environmental Issues, News,
Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument in Montana - Bob Wicks/BLM
Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument in Montana – Bob Wicks/BLM

The Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument is officially on the “do not touch” list . . .

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke says he will not recommend changes to Montana’s Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument as he continues to review national monuments for possible elimination or reduction.

Zinke says the monument is one of the only free-flowing areas of the Missouri that remains as explorers Lewis and Clark saw it more than 200 years ago.

Montana Gov. Steve Bullock had asked Zinke to keep the Breaks monument unchanged as he reviews 27 national monuments designated by previous presidents. President Donald Trump ordered the review, calling many monument designations land grabs by the federal government. Monument designations protect federal land from energy development and other activities.

Read more . . .

Humans have been altering tropical forests for at least 45K years

Environmental Issues, News, Science,
Tropical forest vegetaton - Patrick Roberts
Tropical forest vegetaton – Patrick Roberts

Here’s a thought provoking scientific study. It appears that people have been altering tropical forests for a long time — “sustainably” in some cases, but altering them nevertheless . . .

The first review of the global impact of humans on tropical forests in the ancient past shows that humans have been altering these environments for at least 45,000 years. This counters the view that tropical forests were pristine natural environments prior to modern agriculture and industrialization. The study, published today in Nature Plants, found that humans have in fact been having a dramatic impact on such forest ecologies for tens of thousands of years, through techniques ranging from controlled burning of sections of forest to plant and animal management to clear-cutting. Although previous studies had looked at human impacts on specific tropical forest locations and ecosystems, this is the first to synthesize data from all over the world.

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Yellowstone grizzlies removed from threatened species list

Environmental Issues, News, ,
Grizzly Bear - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service-Terry Tollefsbol, NPS
Grizzly Bear – U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service-Terry Tollefsbol, NPS

Grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem were officially removed from the threatened species list on July 31. Of course, there’s the matter of dealing with a number of lawsuits . . .

For the second time in a decade, the U.S. government has removed grizzly bears in the Yellowstone region from the threatened species list.

It will be up to the courts again to decide whether they stay off the list.

The decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to remove federal protections from the approximately 700 bears living across 19,000 square miles in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming took effect Monday.

Read more . . .

Also read: States taking over grizzly management Monday (Bozeman Daily Chronicle)

Getting city kids into the woods

News,
Woods Project participants at Cyclone LO, July 23, 2017 - by W. K. Walker
Woods Project participants at Cyclone LO, July 23, 2017 – by W. K. Walker

From NFPA President Debo Powers: The Woods Project gets inner-city high school students into the woods. Two groups of these students visited Cyclone Lookout this past week . . .

It’s hard to find nature when you’re surrounded by concrete and steel.

The 16 teenagers from Houston gathered in the shade of the Cyclone Lookout on the Flathead National Forest last week would tell you that’s a fact. For many of them, the concrete, steel and busy bustle of Houston’s city life has been the only thing they’d ever known until good fortune shined on them when their paths crossed with The Woods Project.

Started in 2006, the program has offered an opportunity for hundreds of teenagers from low-income families a chance to broaden their horizons through year-round outdoor programming that includes a 14-day adventures into the wilds.

Read more . . .

REMINDER: NFPA Annual Meeting is this Saturday, July 29

Environmental Issues, Member Bulletins & Information, News, ,

NFPA Annual Meeting on July 29
at Sondreson Hall

5:30pm Potluck Supper

6:45pm Business Meeting and Elections

7:30pm Dr. Tabitha Graves on “A Search for Berry Treasure in the North Fork: Huckleberry Ecology”

Huckleberries on Moran Creek Trail (T2) in Flathead NF - W. K. Walker
Huckleberries on Moran Creek Trail (T2) in Flathead NF – W. K. Walker

Huckleberries are a keystone food source for many wildlife species and are culturally and economically important to our region. USGS Research Ecologist, Dr. Tabitha Graves will share information about current projects investigating interactions among weather and site conditions that influence huckleberry distribution, productivity, and phenology.

Monitoring river flows from space

Environmental Issues, News,
Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite - NASA/JPL
Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite – NASA/JPL

The North Fork of the Flathead River gets a passing mention in this mildly technical article from Earth and Space Science News discussing a technique to track river flows from space . . .

For hydrologists, everything begins with water. This essential resource drastically alters the land surface and powers the basic cellular respiration underlying all living things.

When water falls on land and begins its slow passage to the ocean, its path almost invariably includes rivers, the most visible veins through which our planet’s lifeblood courses. To best study freshwater systems, we need a fairly precise idea of how much water flows in Earth’s rivers. You might think that we have this precise idea, right? Wrong.

Given the importance of water—especially river water—in ecosystems, industry, and agriculture, this lack of knowledge must be addressed. This issue is far more than academic: Well-documented issues of water data secrecy, toxic water politics, and even water conflict highlight the urgent need to better understand and monitor freshwater fluvial fluxes.

Read more . . .

Stage II fire restrictions in effect

Fire Information and Status, News,
Wildfire Plume - USFS
Wildfire Plume – USFS

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, trying to stay cool, you probably know that just about our entire region is under Stage II fire restrictions.

The short version::

  • No fires, including campfires.
  • No smoking except “within an enclosed vehicle or building, a developed recreation site or while stopped in an area at least three feet in diameter that is barren or cleared of all flammable materials.”
  • No motorized vehicles are allowed off designated roads and trails.

Also, there are “hoot owl” restrictions (prohibited from 1:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.) on

  • Operating any internal combustion engine (e.g., a chainsaw).
  • Welding, or operating acetylene or other torch with open flame.
  • Using an explosive.

Additionally a one hour foot patrol in the work area is required following cessation of all “hoot owl” activities.

For more information on area fire restrictions, see https://firerestrictions.us/mt/.

For the full text of the press release sent out by area agencies, see https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/flathead/news-events/?cid=FSEPRD552299.

Olympic National Park to get rid of its mountain goats

Environmental Issues, News,
Mountain Goat - David Restivo-NPS
Mountain Goat – David Restivo-NPS

One area’s natural wonder is another’s invasive specie . . .

The mountain goats at Olympic National Park in Washington have worn out their their welcome and park officials are moving ahead with plans to get rid of them.

On Monday the National Park Service released a mountain goat management plan, laying out three methods of dealing with the population, which park officials say not only is damaging the environment but is dangerous to people.

One method is killing the animals with shotguns or high-powered rifles. The other is relocating them. And the last option is a combination of the two.

Read more . . .

Waterton-Glacier Science and History Day, July 25

News,

From the official press release . . .

Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park will host the 14th annual Waterton-Glacier Science and History Day on Tuesday, July 25th, from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm at the West Glacier Community Building in Glacier National Park.

The event is free of charge, and open to the public. Attendees are encouraged to bring a sack lunch to enjoy during the one-hour lunch break. Held yearly on the fourth Tuesday in July, this event alternates between the two national parks with Glacier hosting in odd years, and Waterton Lakes hosting in even years.

Science and History Day is an opportunity for the public to hear the latest results from scientists and historians carrying out projects in and around the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park. Presentations for this year are grouped into themes of history, wildlife, and aquatic and land environments.

Continue reading Waterton-Glacier Science and History Day, July 25 →

Chrisman Family named Tree Farmers of the Year

News,

Chrisman Family - Tree Farmers of the Year 2016

Wow! First the Hoilands, now the Chrismans . . .

About 50 yards from the Chrisman family home up the North Fork, there’s a lodgepole pine tree. It isn’t doing very well, at least not compared to the trees near it. The bark is rubbed off in several spots and the tree, quite frankly, has seen better days.

But Allen Chrisman won’t cut it down, even though he runs a tree farm on the 300-plus acre spread, because the lodgepole pine is a special tree for the bears that roam through the place. About a dozen or so grizzlies have stopped by the lodgepole, for whatever bear reason, to rub their backs, shoulders and bellies on that tree. Black bears stop by and rub, too and every once in awhile a mountain lion or a wolf gives it a sniff.

Chrisman knows this because he set up a critter cam nearby, and has many of the encounters record.

Read more . . .