Gravel-bed rivers a primary ecological feature in western North American mountains region

Environmental Issues, News, , ,
Scientific illustration shows the complexity of organisms that benefit from gravel-bed river floodplain ecosystems - credit: Ric Hauer
Scientific illustration shows the complexity of organisms that benefit from gravel-bed river floodplain ecosystems – credit: Ric Hauer

Here’s a very interesting study led by Ric Hauer of the University of Montana. Recommended reading . . .

Gravel-bed river floodplains are some of the most ecologically important habitats in North America, according to a new study by scientists from the U.S. and Canada. Their research shows how broad valleys coming out of glaciated mountains provide highly productive and important habitat for a large diversity of aquatic, avian and terrestrial species.

This is the first interdisciplinary research at the regional scale to demonstrate the importance of gravel-bed rivers to the entire ecosystem.

University of Montana Professor Ric Hauer, director of the Center for Integrated Research on the Environment, leads a group of authors who looked at the full continuum of species and processes supported by gravel-bed rivers, from microbes to bull trout and from elk to grizzly bears.

Read more . . .

Federal judge blocks BLM fracking rules

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Oil and gas development at Colorado's Roan Plateau. Photo by Ecoflight.

Things are not going well for Bureau of Land Management fracking regulation . . .

A federal judge in Wyoming has struck down the Obama administration’s regulations on hydraulic fracturing, ruling that the U.S. Bureau of Land Management doesn’t have the authority to establish rules over fracking on federal and Indian lands.

In the ruling on Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Scott Skavdahl said Congress had not granted the BLM that power, and had instead chosen to specifically exclude fracking from federal oversight.

Skavdahl made it clear what he was — and wasn’t — considering in his ruling.

Read more . . .

How Reddit helped find woman who defaced national parks

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St. Mary Lake
St. Mary Lake in Glacier National Park

Happily, this ‘artist’ didn’t get up to this corner of Montana . . .

Colorful acrylic paintings on red and gray rock formations and profiles of people smoking cigarettes, signed with a repetitive “Creepytings,” caused an uproar on Reddit more than a year ago. Now, the uproar is calming.

After spending a month drawing and painting on the rocks in seven national parks, Casey Nocket, 23, of San Diego, was banned this month from national parks and other federally administered lands, according to the National Park Service.

The conviction is owed largely to a band of Reddit users faithful to keeping natural spaces free from what the NPS called vandalism…

Read more . . .

Flathead Forest holds open house to discuss draft revised management plan

Environmental Issues, News, ,

From a Headwaters Montana bulletin . . .

The Flathead National Forest has released its long-anticipated “Draft Revised Management Plan” for the 2.3 million-acre forest. This revised plan will set the course for forest management for the next 15-20 years. Because of the anticipated longevity, it’s very important that folks who enjoy and appreciate our local national treasure to show up and participate in the revision process.

You have two opportunities to attend an open house hosted by the Flathead Forest to learn more about the proposed plan and demonstrate your interest.

Kalispell
When: Monday, June 20, from 2-6pm
Where: The Flathead National Forest Supervisor’s Office, 650 Wolfpack Way

Missoula
When: June 22, from 2-6pm
Where:
Hilton Garden Inn, 3720 N. Reserve Street

Want to read up on the Forest Plan before you get there? Go here. (Hint: Start with the maps and Appendix G.)

Partnership works to keep collaborative efforts in final forest plan

Environmental Issues, News, ,

Round 2 begins . . .

As the revised Flathead National Forest Plan enters the most recent phase of public comment, members of a diverse coalition of stakeholders who collaborated on the draft document are regrouping to weave a spirit of collaboration into the final plan.

Formed in 2012, the Whitefish Range Partnership is a coalition of longtime adversaries who banded together to help inform management of public lands on the Flathead National Forest.

After nearly three years of meetings and analysis, the Flathead National Forest released the draft version of its revised forest plan last month, unveiling a proposed blueprint for all aspects of management on the Flathead National Forest, from recreational opportunities to designated wilderness, timber production, wildlife and habitat.

Read more . . .

Want to read up on the Forest Plan? Go here. (Hint: Start with the maps and Appendix G.)

Glacier Lake Ecology BioBlitz students study in North Fork

Environmental Issues, News, ,

An interesting item from the Daily Inter Lake . . .

The Crown of the Continent Research Learning Center in Glacier National Park hosted 45 students for the Glacier Lake Ecology BioBlitz on May 25 and 26.

The students were from Flathead and Columbia Falls high schools in Northwest Montana, De La Salle Collegiate High School from Warren, Michigan, and Luther College from Decorah, Iowa.

Students observed loons nesting, feeding, calling and interacting on lakes in the North Fork area of Glacier National Park.

Read more . . .

MWA: Zinke flip-flops on public lands transfer

Commentary, Environmental Issues, ,
Three Types of Public Lands
Three types of public lands: Flathead National Forest is in the foreground, left and right; Montana’s Coal Creek State Forest, including Cyclone Lake, is in the middle distance; Glacier National Park stretches across the background.

Rep. Ryan Zinke Voted in favor of an ill-considered public lands-related bill and the MWA is pretty annoyed. Election year posturing is such a pain . . .

In a recent op-ed, Congressman Ryan Zinke called himself a “Teddy Roosevelt conservationist.” He based that self-characterization on a few votes he made against the transfer and sale of public lands and for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. But his vote today in the House Natural Resources Committee in favor of H.R 2316 (the Self-Sufficient Community Lands Act) is far from Rooseveltian. In fact, it’s a direct attack on the legacy Teddy left us – our National Forest lands.

Read more . . .

Lisa Bate receives Jack Potter Glacier National Park Stewardship Award for work with birds and bats

Environmental Issues, News, ,
Biologist Lisa Bate counts birds during the annual Christmas bird count in Glacier in 2010.
Biologist Lisa Bate counts birds during the annual Christmas bird count in Glacier in 2010.

Lisa Bate recently got some well-deserved recognition for her work with Glacier Park’s birds and bats . . .

While Glacier National Park is known for the grizzlies and goats, Lisa Bate has long been more interested in its birds and bats.

“It’s fun to bring attention to something that’s not a large carnivore,” she said last week. Bate has done groundbreaking work in the Park, most notably studying its harlequin ducks and its diverse, though seldom seen, bat population.

While those two species might not grab headlines, they face just as many threats due to climate change and other factors as the mega fauna species.

“I like the underdogs and I try to give them a voice,” she said.

Read more . . .

Lawsuit challenges Wyoming grizzly delisting plan

Environmental Issues, News, ,
Grizzly Bear - courtesy NPS
Grizzly Bear – courtesy NPS

Yet another challenge to Wyoming’s grizzly delisting plans . . .

Groups are challenging the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission over its recently adopted grizzly bear management rules.

The Humane Society of the United States, the Center for Biological Diversity and Jackson, Wyoming-based filmmaker James Laybourn filed a lawsuit against the commission Friday in state court in Cheyenne.

The lawsuit claims the commission failed to follow public notice and comment requirements before adopting grizzly management rules earlier this year.

Read more . . .

Home Ground Radio interviews Headwaters Montana and Stoltze Lumber

Environmental Issues, News, , , , ,

From Dave Hadden at Headwaters Montana . . .

If you’re a regular listener and donor to Montana Public Radio, then you’re familiar with the voice of Brian Kahn, the host and producer of “Home Ground Radio.”  Brian sat down with Paul McKenzie and me to discuss the challenges and successes of finding common ground on national forest management issues.

The interview aired on MTPR last Sunday, May 29, but is available for your listening pleasure anytime by clicking here.

In typical Home Ground Radio style, Brian led the conversation from introductions to a ‘take home message.’

Paul McKenzie works for Stoltze Land and Lumber Company in Columbia Falls, Montana, as the land and resource manager.  It’s been my pleasure to get to know Paul as a sincere, intelligent and committed individual who cares deeply about the forest resources he manages and the people employed at Stoltze’s lumber mill.

Paul and I have sat across the table from one another for several years now as part of the Whitefish Range Partnership, and Kootenai Forest Stakeholder Coalition’s Common Ground” committee.

These conversations have been joined by many other individuals representing other constituencies.  The conversations haven’t always been easy.  However, they have been necessary. Continue reading Home Ground Radio interviews Headwaters Montana and Stoltze Lumber →