A new YouTube video on the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks YouTube channel features Matt Bell of The Montana Land Reliance. Matt and Bryce Maxell with the Montana Natural Heritage Program led a Bat Cruise along the Missouri River near the Gates of the Mountains, north of Helena. Take a look at the two minute video and you’ll see several Montana bats flying through the nighttime sky.
NRCS Announces Regional Conservation Partnership Program Details
The NRCS yesterday announced FY19 program details for the Regional Conservation Partnership Program, a program designed to build partnerships around the NRCS suite of landowner conservation programs such as ALE, EQIP, CSP and others. MALT ALE Program Coordinator Tom Mallon will continue working to obtain information for land trusts to assist them navigate through the RCPP application process. Final applications must be submitted by Dec. 3, 2019.
Five Valleys Land Trust, Montana TNC Celebrate National Public Lands Day Sept. 28 at Mount Dean Stone
Five Valleys Land Trust and The Nature Conservancy in Montana will be saluting National Public Lands Day on Sept. 28 with volunteer trail building crews on Mount Dean Stone. The fun starts at 8:30 AM. Five Valleys is encouraging volunteers to bring gloves, proper footwear and be ready to build trail at Little Park Creek on the Miller Creek side of Mount Dean Stone. Tools will be supplied, as will lunch.
Montana Land Reliance: ‘A Million Acres’ Anthology
A million acres is slightly larger than the state of Rhode Island. A million acres will also be the subject of a series of essays within a book produced by The Montana Land Reliance that celebrates the one million-plus acres of conserved lands made possible by MLR and landowner cooperation. A MLR Facebook post on August 28 publicly announced the publication, “an anthology of writing celebrating our work protecting Montana’s open spaces.“ The book will go on sale in October. Some prominent Montana authors are included in the anthology…people like Maile Meloy, Rick Bass, Jim Robbins, Jamie Harrison, Joe Wilkins, Christine Carbo and others. The book is edited by Keir Graff with unforgettable photographs by Alexis Bonogofsky. Books can be preordered from local booksellers, with online ordering information coming soon. Congratulations to MLR for the anthology, and all the work that made it possible.
Falls Creek Purchase Provides Public Access to 26K Acres Near Augusta
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation has led an impressive effort to open up 26,000 acres of the Rocky Mountain Front for expanded public recreational access. RMEF hosted a well-attended August 27 celebration at the Falls Creek area to celebrate the project’s accomplishments.
Skalkaho Bend Park Ahead of Schedule
The crew at Bitter Root Land Trust had planned to transfer the 70 acres of the future Skalkaho Bend Park to the City of Hamilton in 2020, but given the tremendous community support that transfer might occur later this year. From the Ravalli Republic: “Overall, we’re ahead of schedule,“ said the trust’s executive director, Gavin Ricklefs, Friday morning as he watched members of the Hamilton High School cross-country team gather on the property just south of River Park. He added that transfer could occur in 2019. “That’s an indication of this community wanting to see this happen,“ Ricklefs said. “They have been behind this project right from the beginning. Whether that came in the form of a donation or today’s group of kids coming out to pull weeds, it’s been clear that this community sees the value in preserving open space and riparian habitat.”
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Video Highlights North Central Montana Resource Stewardship
A new short video released by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation features north central Montana among the examples of NFWF/ranchers/public land managers agricultural cooperative conservation and resource stewardship. Montana land trusts and MALT are working with NFWF on grasslands, ag conservation and sage grouse habitat projects.
Kaniksu Land Trust Celebrates Pine Street Woods Community Forest Grand Opening on Sept. 21
The Pine Street Woods Community Forest will officially open on Sept. 21 with a grand opening celebration led by Kaniksu Land Trust. Pine Street Woods Community Forest is a 180-acre parcel owned by Kaniksu Land Trust and is managed for diverse outdoor recreation and outdoor education activities, and with full opportunity “for all to play and learn outside.” Sept. 21 promises to be a full day of activities and fun, with full details coming soon. Visit the KLT website for details.
Montana Ranks Highest in State Pride
According to a Gallop Poll, Montana and Alaska are tied for the highest percentage of residents with the most state pride. 77% of Montana and Alaska residents said their state was the best or one of the best possible states to live in. There are a lot of reasons for that, and among them are open lands and outdoor recreational opportunities.
LWCF Helps BLM Acquire Lands in Blackfoot Valley
The Nature Conservancy in Montana is working with the BLM and the Land and Water Conservation Fund to improve access and recreational opportunities in the lower Blackfoot Valley. Over the next couple years TNC plans to sell about 13,000 acres to the BLM, which will use LWCF dollars to purchase the lands. TNC acquired the land in 2014 through a purchase of 117,000 acres of Plum Creek lands, with the intention of converting some of the lands to public ownership. The purchased land shares boundaries with BLM-managed lands in the Lower Blackfoot River-Belmont Creek area, about 25 miles northeast of Missoula. The project was hailed by US Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt and Missoula County Commissioner Dave Strohmaier.