News - Montana Wildlife Federation

MWF Update: Wildlife News from Legislative Interim Committee

August 2, 2021March 23, 2018 by Guest Profile

This week, the Legislative Environmental Quality Council (EQC) met in Helena for two days to discuss a variety of issues. Montana Wildlife Federation staff attended the meeting to track issues and provide testimony on a panel to discuss wildlife policy and landowner relations.

EQC is the state committee that oversees Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) during the interim between Legislative Sessions. The agenda was packed with items for FWP, including the status of the aquatic invasive species program, an update on State Parks in Focus initiative and a proposed rewrite of state law on bird dog training.

MWF Conservation Director Nick Gevock represented hunter and angler interests throughout the meeting. Gevock also took part in a panel to discuss wildlife policy and landowner relations, in particular how it relates to elk management. The agenda item was spurred by the issue of elk populations exceeding the established objectives in some areas of the state, shoulder seasons and how landowners and hunters can work together to achieve better outcomes.

MWF has a strong record of working to enhance Montana’s suite of programs to encourage public hunting access to private lands and through private lands to public lands. We also have worked on numerous bills to support landowners for providing wildlife habitat and resolve wildlife conflicts with farmers and ranchers in recent years, including livestock loss renewal, increasing the amount that landowners can receive for Block Management and renew the Unlocking State Lands tax credit, among others.

Hunters and landowners have long been solid partners to conserve wildlife in our state, and MWF will continue to be there to build on that working relationship to ensure better outcomes for wildlife, landowners and hunters and anglers.

The next EQC meeting is in will be in May, and MWF staff will be there to track the issues that matter to you. Follow MWF on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram or sign up for our action alerts for more breaking news.

New poll: Montanans strongly support Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Project

August 24, 2020March 15, 2018 by Alec Underwood

DSC 5424 — Senator Jon Tester introduced the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act in 2017

A poll of Montanans released today by the Montana Wildlife Federation shows continued strong support for the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Project and collaborative efforts to protect wildlife habitat, recreational access, and timber jobs.

The Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Project was developed through more than decade of local discussions among conservation, recreation, and timber groups in the Seeley Lake area. The project provides for forest restoration activities to support local timber jobs, the development of additional recreational trails, and the designation of 79,000 acres of additional wilderness on public land adjacent to the existing wilderness areas of the Mission Mountain, Bob Marshall, and Scapegoat. Senator Jon Tester introduced the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act (S. 507) in February 2017 to complete full implementation of the project.

The poll released today by the Montana Wildlife Federation found:

Montanans continue to support the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Project, which would protect wildlife habitat, ensure access to public land for hunting, fishing, and other recreation, and support timber harvesting to create jobs and improve forest health. 68% support the project and only 27% oppose the project.
Support for the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Project was consistent across party lines, with 79% of Democrats 63% of Republicans, and 63% of independents expressing support for the proposal.
Montanans are strong supporters of collaborative efforts like the BCSP that bring together different stakeholders to find common ground over public land management issues. 75% of Montanans say they would be more likely to support a forest management plan developed through a collaborative approach, versus only 10 percent who would be less likely.
Fully 85% of Montanans think that members of Congress should hold in-person town hall meetings to hear from the public about public land management issues.

“This poll shows that Montanans know that the best way to protect wildlife habitat, public access, and local economies is for stakeholders to roll up their sleeves and work together. Senator Jon Tester knows how important it is to listen to Montanans and carry their fight to Washington. Now we need the rest of our congressional delegation to follow his lead and get this proposal over the finish line,” said Dave Chadwick, the Montana Wildlife Federation’s executive director.

The strong support for the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Project collaborative effort mirrors other polls over the last several years, which have shown consistently strong support among Montanans for the project.

This poll was conducted by Public Policy Polling (PPP), a national public opinion research firm. PPP surveyed 512 Montana voters from February 14-16, 2018. The margin of error is +/- 4.3%. This poll was conducted by automated telephone interviews.

BLM Offering Up More Wildlife Habitat For Oil Drilling

August 2, 2021March 14, 2018 by Guest Profile

Last week, Secretary Ryan Zinke deferred the oil and gas leases on 17,300 acres near Livingston and in the foothills of the Absaroka and Beartooth Mountains, citing the cultural and economic significance of the surrounding area. Despite this positive step forward, oil and gas lease sales around the state marched forward today. The sale included one lease adjacent to the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument which sold for $2/acre. Many other similarly cheap leases were squarely in the middle of crucial big game winter range and priority sage-grouse habitat.

Secretary Zinke, who has yet to hire a BLM Director, offered the public barely any opportunity to weigh in around today’s lease sales. While we were all heartened to see a few areas saved, it is irresponsible for the Secretary to unilaterally decide to protect some landscapes and endanger others with similar irreplaceable cultural and recreational resources, not to mention super big game and critical sage grouse habitat, as well as important water resources on a whim.

Future generations of Montanans deserve the same opportunities we’ve had to access and enjoy Central and Eastern Montana’s unique landscapes. This area is simply too important to be sold to the highest bidder for oil and gas drilling. Secretary Zinke must uphold the Department’s multiple-use mandate, and protect the cultural, recreational, water and wildlife resources that are critical to local communities and our outdoor heritage.

Take Action: Tell Secretary Zinke to Protect Western Lands

In Defense of National Monuments

August 2, 2021March 7, 2018 by Marcus Strange

Public lands leave a mark on one’s soul. I’ve laid on my back, feeling the dirt and grass cradle my tired body, and looked into an ever-expansive sky giving new meaning to the name, Big Sky Country. Hunters, hikers, birdwatchers, photographers, and anglers all gather on public lands like the Missouri River Breaks to experience these singular moments of clarity, to reconnect with their humanity, and to leave little more grounded than when they came.

And yet, our public lands are currently under the single greatest coordinated attack they have ever undergone. Earlier this year, Secretary Zinke unilaterally decided to review national monuments and since then, Secretary Zinke, Senator Daines, and Representative Gianforte have increased their efforts to remove permeant protection from legally designated public lands. These actions have largely come as top-down memorandums with little public input from the users of these lands.

We must remember that “Our duty to the whole…bids us restrain an unprincipled present-day minority from wasting the heritage of these unborn generations, ”Theodore Roosevelt. If we care about the future of our public lands, now is the time to remind our politicians that it is their duty to help us protect our public land legacy.

Visit www.holdourground.com and www.ourlandourlegacy.com to voice your support for our public lands.

Rep. Gianforte Launches Unprecedented Attack on Public Lands

August 2, 2021March 2, 2018 by Guest Profile

Today, Rep. Greg Gianforte introduced a pair of bills to repeal protections for 700,000 acres of wilderness study areas managed by the US Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management. Under Rep. Gianforte’s bills, these public lands would be subject to expanded motorized use, mining, oil and gas development, and other industrial activities that would degrade wildlife habitat and close off public access.

The public lands targeted by Rep. Gianforte’s bill provide habitat for fish and wildlife and opportunities for Montanans to hunt, fish, camp, and hike. These places are not just abstractions, they are real places to real people.

Montanans know that the best way to make public land management decisions is for stakeholders to work together and have real, transparent conversations. That approach works, and Montanans know it because we have lived it. It is disappointing that Rep. Gianforte would introduce legislation affecting 700,000 acres of Montana’s public lands without holding a single public meeting. Instead of top-down, one-size-fits-all political fixes, our elected officials should be listening to Montanans.

Jeff Lukas

Conservation Director