Category Archives: News

Montana state senator new CEO of lands privatization group

February 5, 2016Environmental Issues, NewsAmerican Lands Council, Jennifer Fielder, land privatizationnfpa

Montana state Sen. Jennifer Fielder, a Republican representing Thompson Falls, is the new CEO of the American Lands Council. The ALC is one of the point organizations behind the movement to demand that federal lands be turned over to state control. The states, in turn, would auction management of these lands off to private control.

What we have here, folks, is a serious conflict of interest what with her being a legislator involved in public land study/bills and being CEO of a group that wants public lands to be transferred to states. Senator Fielder has already had issues with a legislative staffer being a paid lobbyist of ALC and other groups.

You just can’t make this stuff up.

The Salt Lake Tribune has more details . . .

Dispute over Badger-Two Medicine drilling leases still simmering

February 5, 2016Environmental Issues, NewsBadger-Two Medicine region, oil and gas leases, oil exploration, Solonexnfpa

The Hungry Horse News has a nice summary of the battle over drilling leases in the Badger-Two Medicine . . .

The battle over oil and gas leases in the Badger-Two Medicine will continue. The Department of Interior and Solonex, the company that owns the leases had asked U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon to suspend the case so the two parties could negotiate a settlement in the 30-plus year battle. But those talks have fallen apart.

Now Solonex, in a brief to the court on Jan. 19, claims that any attempt to cancel the leases by the DOI would be arbitrary and contrary to federal law. Solonex is represented by the Mountain States Legal Foundation, a nonprofit that often takes up private business and citizens issues in land use disputes in federal court.

The DOI in December said it tentatively planned on canceling the leases altogether, claiming the U.S. Forest Service never did a proper examination of the impacts on Blackfeet Tribe cultural resources when it sold the leases in 1981.

North Valley working on climate change solutions

February 3, 2016Environmental Issues, Newsclimate changenfpa

A report from Debo Powers, NFPA President, on last Monday’s community climate solutions project meeting . . .

On Monday, concerned citizens met at the Whitefish City Hall to explore a possible community climate solutions project. A diverse group of thirty-four stakeholders attended the meeting which included people working on fire and water issues, tourism and recreation, economic development/ Chambers of Commerce, high schools, local food and renewable energy. Four members of the North Fork Preservation Association attended the meeting in a packed conference room.

Steve Thompson spoke about what other Montana communities are doing to understand and adapt to climate change. One of the questions that Steve asked the group was whether this project should be for just Whitefish or for the entire North Valley, including Columbia Falls and the North Fork. The meeting featured two guest speakers from Missoula: Chase Jones from the City of Missoula and Amy Cilimburg from the Missoula Community Foundation who spoke about the new Climate Smart Missoula project. This exemplary project is focused on reducing Missoula’s carbon footprint, promoting energy conservation and renewable energy, and pursuing climate-smart economic opportunities.

Immediately following this meeting, the Whitefish City Council met for a more formal work session. In April 24, 2014, the city council set a goal of developing a climate solutions plan and this was the council’s first detailed conversation about the possibilities.

……….

Meeting about road draws North Fork crowd

February 3, 2016NewsNorth Fork Road, traffic analysisnfpa

Debo Powers sent in this report on the traffic management meeting at the Columbia Falls city hall last week . . .

On January 28, many North Fork winter residents braved a foggy morning and icy roads to drive to Columbia Falls to attend a 9:00 am meeting at the Columbia Falls City Hall where officials would be discussing paving the North Fork Road to Camas Creek. North Forkers on both sides of the issue attended the meeting, but no one from the audience was allowed to speak.

Participating in the discussion was Montana State Senator Dee Brown, Columbia Falls City Manager Susan Nicosia, Flathead County Commissioner Phil Mitchell, Columbia Falls Mayor Don Barnhardt, Public Works Director Dave Prunty, and Flathead County Road and Bridge Superintendent Ovila Byrd.

The officials discussed traffic congestion that will occur in 2017 when the new bridge over the South Fork is constructed on Highway 2 near Hungry Horse. Although a temporary bridge will carry traffic, the construction will most likely cause delays in travel. The two detours that were discussed were the North Fork Road to Blankenship Road or the North Fork Road to Camas Creek Road.

Since a proposal to pave the North Fork Road to Camas Creek would have to clear many legal and procedural hurdles, as well as major opposition from many landowners and conservation groups, paving the road by 2017 to provide a detour for construction on Highway 2 is not a viable option. However, the meeting showed that the paving issue is still alive and well in many people’s minds. The North Fork Preservation Association, founded in 1982 to oppose paving the North Fork Road, has vowed to fight any proposal to pave any section of the road.

Information about the road and other North Fork issues will be presented at the Winter Interlocal Meeting on February 17.

Conservation groups join to fight Kootenai snowmobile lawsuit

February 1, 2016Environmental Issues, NewsIdaho Panhandle National Forest, Kootenai National Forest, recommended wildernessnfpa

As we mentioned a week back, several area conservation organizations joined together to intervene in the lawsuit challenging the inclusion of recommended wilderness areas in the Kootenai and Idaho Panhandle National Forests . . .

A coalition of conservationists has asked to intervene in a lawsuit filed by snowmobilers challenging wilderness provisions in the Kootenai and Idaho Panhandle national forest plans.

The Ten Lakes Snowmobile Club, Citizens for Balanced Use and five other interest groups sued the U.S. Forest Service in November, accusing the agency of improperly excluding snowmobile use from the forest’s recommended wilderness areas and improperly recommending new waterways for the national Wild and Scenic River Act designation.

On Jan. 25, The Wilderness Society, Headwaters Montana, Idaho Conservation League, Montana Wilderness Association, Panhandle Nordic Ski and Snowshoe Club and Winter Wildlands Alliance formally asked to intervene in the case.

Read more . . .

Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation and Montana Wilderness Association partner to present the 4th annual ‘Wilderness Speaker Series’

February 1, 2016Environmental Issues, NewsBob Marshall Wilderness Foundation, Montana Wilderness Association, Wilderness Speaker Seriesnfpa

From the press release . . .

Now in it’s 4th year, the Wilderness Speaker Series at Flathead Valley Community College invites Montanans of all ages to learn more about the history and ecology of the public lands here in the Treasure State. The Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation and the Montana Wilderness Association will host these FREE public events on the first Thursdays of February, March and April from 7:00pm 8: 30pm at FVCC. All three events will take place in the Arts and Technology Building.

This year, the Wilderness Speaker Series features three diverse and renowned speakers from across the region:

February 4: Wilderness Fire Management and Specific Challenges in the Flathead National Forest by Seth Carbonari (Room 139)
Wilderness managers strive to allow the ecological role of natural fire in Wilderness areas. The 2015 fires on the Flathead National Forest provide examples of some of the challenges faced in fire management; including protecting wilderness values, public safety and access.

March 3: From Flathead to Yellowstone to Yukon : Nature Needs Half, a Hopeful Agenda for the Future of Wild Nature and Humanity by Harvey Locke (Room 144 A/B)
Renowned conservationist Harvey Lock explores the “no holds barred”, Bob Marshall style declaration of love for the wild world and the landscape-scale management tactics it will take to save the precious ecosystems we have left.

April 7: This is the Crown of the Continent, Our Home by Rick Graetz (Theatre)
Photographer and naturalist Rick Graetz takes the audience on a stunning tour of the wild places in our own backyard through the eye of his camera lens and through the eye of history.

Grab a friend and join MWA and the BMWF to learn more about the beautiful mountains and region that we call home. For more information, please contact Amy Robinson at 284-1747 or arobinson@wildmontana.org. Wilderness Speaker Series events are listed on the FVCC Continuing Education Calendar.

Flathead Forest proposes salvage logging in Trail Creek burn

January 28, 2016Environmental Issues, NewsFlathead National Forest, salvage logging, Trail Creek Firenfpa

The Forest Service wants to salvage some of the standing timber from last year’s Trail Creek Fire. There’s no word on any objections to the sale, yet . . .

The Flathead National Forest is proposing a salvage timber sale within the more than 20,000 acres that burned in the Trail Creek Fire last summer.

The forest is accepting public comments on its plan to log 1,351 acres — about 6 percent of the total fire area — about two miles northeast of the Spotted Bear Ranger Station.

Forest officials estimate it would generate 6 million to 7 million board-feet of timber. The harvest, limited to burned areas outside the Bob Marshall Wilderness, would target only dead trees and those burned badly enough that they would likely die within three years.

Read more . . .

Conservationists seek to defend recommended wilderness against snowmobiler lawsuit

January 25, 2016Environmental Issues, NewsEarthjustice, Idaho, Idaho Panhandle National Forest, Kootenai National Forest, Mallard Larkins Range, Montana, Roderick Mountain, Scotchman Peaks, Selkirk Range, wilderness protectionnfpa

NEWS RELEASE: January 25, 2016

CONTACT: Tim Preso, Earthjustice, (406) 586-9699, tpreso@earthjustice.org

Missoula, MT – A coalition of conservationists, represented by Earthjustice, today requested to intervene in a lawsuit filed by snowmobilers that seeks to overturn restrictions on motorized use in recommended wilderness areas on the Kootenai and Idaho Panhandle National Forests.

At issue are the Forest Service’s 2015 revised forest management plans for the two forests, which recommended certain rugged and pristine areas for wilderness designation and prohibited motorized use within their boundaries to protect wilderness character and preserve the opportunity for permanent protection under the federal Wilderness Act. Snowmobile interest groups filed a lawsuit in November 2015 that asks a federal judge to overturn these recommended wilderness designations and open the protected areas to motorized use by snowmobiles and four-wheelers.

“Snowmobilers already have access to 86 percent of the Kootenai forest and 70 percent of the Idaho Panhandle forest,” said Earthjustice attorney Tim Preso, who is representing the conservationists. “We are standing up to defend the peace and solitude of the last pockets of wilderness-quality lands in these otherwise heavily logged and motorized forests.”

The recommended wilderness areas at issue include landscapes prized for their outstanding backcountry recreation opportunities, including Scotchman Peaks and Roderick Mountain in Montana and the Mallard Larkins and Selkirk Range in Idaho. These areas are home to mountain goats, grizzly bears, Canada lynx, wolverines, and a wide variety of other species, including the last remnant population of woodland caribou in the continental United States. In total, they constitute just 4 percent of the 2.2-million-acre Kootenai National Forest and 7 percent of the 2.5-million-acre Idaho Panhandle National Forests.

Earthjustice is representing The Wilderness Society, Headwaters Montana, Idaho Conservation League, Montana Wilderness Association, Panhandle Nordic Ski and Snowshoe Club and Winter Wildlands Alliance. The groups seek to defend the Forest Service’s designation of recommended wilderness areas and wild and scenic river eligible areas and its decision to restrict motorized access in these areas.

Earthjustice, the nation’s premier nonprofit environmental law organization, wields the power of law and the strength of partnership to protect people’s health, to preserve magnificent places and wildlife, to advance clean energy, and to combat climate change. Because the earth needs a good lawyer.

Judge asked to halt cancellation of Badger-Two Medicine drilling lease

January 21, 2016Environmental Issues, NewsBadger-Two Medicine region, oil and gas leases, Solonexnfpa

After a brief pause for closed-door negotiations that just happened to fall over the holiday season, the lawsuit over drilling in the Badger-Two Medicine is back in action . . .

A Louisiana company has asked a federal judge to block government plans to cancel a long-stalled federal energy lease on land considered sacred to American Indians.

The Interior Department announced in November that it plans to cancel the 6,200-acre lease near Glacier National Park because it was improperly issued in 1982. It’s owned by Solenex LLC of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

In a Tuesday court filing, company attorney Steven Lechner said the government arbitrarily reversed course last year after previous determinations that the leases were valid.

Read more . . .

Ten Lakes debate could impact future wilderness proposals

January 17, 2016Environmental Issues, NewsKootenai National Forest, Ten Lakes Wilderness Study Areanfpa

Over at the Missoulian, Rob Chaney has put together an excellent article, including maps and supporting documentation, on the issues and conflicting interests surrounding the Ten Lakes Wilderness Study Area.