The Flathead National Forest has completed the next step in the process of arriving at a fully lawsuit-ready revised forest plan. They’ve prepared the traditional four alternatives (three really, since one of them is “do nothing”) and posted them for public comment.

Polish your glasses and find a comfy chair. it runs some 2000 pages . . .

Setting the stage for more than 2,000 pages of scientific research, new guidelines and contentious proposals, the cover of the modified management plan for the Flathead National Forest cites a symbolic quote.

“Where conflicting interests must be reconciled, the question shall always be answered from the standpoint of the greatest good of the greatest number in the long run.”

Indeed, the well-known saying by Gifford Pinchot, the first chief of the U.S. Forest Service, remains as relevant as the day it was written in 1905, and its merits are being put to the test as the agency unrolls the historic makeover of its sweeping management plan for the 2.4 million acre tract of federal land in Northwest Montana, where a rapidly growing population is placing increasing pressure on the wild interior.

After nearly three years of public meetings and analysis, the agency released the draft version of its revised forest plan on May 27, unveiling a proposed blueprint for everything within the Flathead National Forest, from recreational opportunities to designated wilderness, timber production, wildlife and habitat.

Read more . . .

Further reading:

Flathead Forest prepares for draft plan release (Missoulian)

Official forest plan website

Joe Kreuger and his staff at the Flathead National Forest have got their work cut out for them. The proposed Forest Plan triggered a lot of feedback . . .

The Flathead National Forest received over 19,000 public comment submissions for its proposed revision of the forest plan, according to the agency.

Forest officials are still sorting through reams of emails and letters following the May 15 deadline for public comment.

Joe Krueger, project leader and forest planner for the Flathead National Forest, said his team continues to count the number of submissions that were filed and some that were postmarked by last Friday may still be arriving.

Read more . . .

Well, now, you’ve got an extra 10 days to submit comments on the proposed Forest Plan Revision for the Flathead National Forest. Here’s the bulk of the official press release . . .

A 10-day extension to the public comment period, now concluding on May 15, 2015, has been authorized for the proposed action for the Flathead Forest Plan revision and the proposed forest plan amendments to incorporate relevant direction from the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem (NCDE) Grizzly Bear Conservation Strategy. Comments are used to identify the range of issues to be addressed and the significant concerns related to the proposed action. This scoping process will assist the interdisciplinary team in developing a reasonable range of alternatives and in the analysis and documentation of the environmental and social effects of the proposed plan components and alternatives, in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) procedures. There will be additional opportunities for commenting, including a 90-day comment period, once the draft environmental impact statement is available, which is anticipated in January 2016.

In March, the Flathead National Forest released for public comment the proposed action for the revision of the land and resource management plan (forest plan) as directed by the National Forest Management Act. The proposed action for the revised forest plan includes management direction to support a variety of proposed and possible actions that may occur on the plan area over the next ~15 years, or life of the plan.

The Flathead National Forest plan revision website provides the full proposed action text for the revision, describing preliminary desired conditions, objectives, standards, guidelines, and other plan content; the 2014 Assessment; summaries of the public meetings and public meeting materials, and public comments. The revision component of the proposed action is located at
www.fs.usda.gov/goto/flathead/fpr. The amendment component of the proposed action can be found at www.fs.usda.gov/goto/flathead/gbamend. Links to the 2012 planning rule and the draft NCDE Grizzly Bear Conservation Strategy can be found on these websites as well.

For further information about the project, contact Joe Krueger, Forest Planner, Flathead National Forest, 650 Wolfpack Way, Kalispell, Montana 59901, (406) 758-5243, or at flatheadplanrevision@fs.fed.us.

The first open house for the Flathead National Forest’s revised Forest Plan drew a pretty good crowd, including several North Forkers . . .

A good compromise, it’s been said, leaves everyone equally unhappy.

But despite some dismay among people at an open house Tuesday hosted by the Flathead National Forest to discuss its proposed forest plan revision, others said the agency had struck a reasonable balance between competing uses, particularly where wildlife is concerned.

“I heard from some folks tonight that this is the best plan we’ve come up with since the ’80s,” said Joe Krueger, a forest planner with the agency and the project team leader. “But I also heard concerns that it goes too far to the wilderness side.”

The Flathead National Forest has a series of public ‘open house’ meetings scheduled to provide information about the proposed Forest Plan revision. The first is on March 17, 5:30-7:30 p.m., at the Flathead NF Supervisors Office, 650 Wolfpack Way, Kalispell MT 59901.

These “community meetings are planned to provide additional information and address questions related to the Flathead NF plan revision and the amendment proposed action. The open houses will provide an opportunity for you to meet with subject matter specialists (wildlife biologist, forester, recreation specialist, fish biologist) and ask questions about the proposed management direction. There will not be any formal presentations at the open houses so stopping by at any time between 5:30 and 7:30 is fine.”

Here’s the full list of meetings:

*Primary focus is NCDE Grizzly Bear Amendment

If you wish to read the entire Flathead National Forest Plan proposal, including the grizzly bear amendment, you’ll have to wade through better than 550 pages of text and figures. If you’d prefer to start with something easier to digest, the recent press coverage offers a pretty good overview of the main points . . .

• Flathead National Forest Unveils Vision for Future Management – An excellent overall discussion of the high points of the Forest Plan by Dillon Tabish of the Flathead Beacon.
• First look at Forest Plan – An introductory article by the inimitable Chris Peterson of the Hungry Horse News.
• 5 Montana forests move to manage habitat for grizzlies – The Missoulian’s summary of the grizzly bear amendment.

Here’s a good summary of the just-released draft of the new Flathead National Forest management plan . . .

The revised guidebook for managing the Flathead National Forest is ready for public review.

Several years of workshops, surveys, debates and deliberations came to a head late last week when forest officials published the draft version in the Federal Register.

Now, anyone interested in the Flathead’s snowmobiling, wilderness, downhill skiing, river floating, timber cutting, trail hiking, wildlife research and huckleberry picking has 60 days to add their opinions.

Read more . . .