News - Montana Wildlife Federation

Spotted Dog Wildlife Management Area

July 7, 2021December 14, 2018 by Marcus Strange

Just west of MacDonald Pass lies the Spotted Dog Wildlife Management Area (WMA). Consisting of nearly 38,000 acres of prime wildlife habitat, this land was placed in the public trust ensuring quality wildlife habitat and increasing hunter opportunity in an area where access is shrinking. MWF strongly supported acquiring the Spotted Dog WMA and believed that this acquisition would permanently conserve and provide recreational opportunity for thousands of Montanas. This fall, I chose to see this country for the first time while hunting for elk.

We struck out in the dark. It was snowing and the moon reflected off each flake, making our headlights unnecessary. We trudged along, cutting a trail through the freshly fallen snow. After two miles we reached our destination, a saddle where a swath of open meadows meandered between thick stands of pines. As we stood in the stillness, snow falling, our breath suspended in the air, an elk stepped into the meadow.

First one elk, then another stepped into the clearing. With no cover available, we dropped into the snow to blend in as much as possible. Moving quickly I dropped my pack and propped my rifle on the frame. But the elk had become conscious of our presence and, giving no shot, turned and made their way up the hill. My heart sank. Out of nowhere, two more elk wander into the meadow. I settled back in, took in a breath, let it out, and squeezed.

This hunt, like so many others, was made up of moments when things when right that could have gone wrong. But for me, the moment that defines this hunt and that I can stop thinking about was the moment when the Spotted Dog WMA became public land in perpetuity. That conservation effort made my moment on that snowy hillside possible and has provided similar opportunities for so many other Montanans. The efforts to secure and open access to public lands must continue, or future generations will miss out on opportunities such as this. We should not begrudge them their moment in time.

Fish, Wildlife, and Montana’s Economy Threatened by Clean Water Rule Repeal

July 7, 2021December 11, 2018 by Guest Profile

Today, the Environmental Protection Agency unveiled plans to replace the Clean Water Rule which they repealed last year with a new, substantially weaker set of requirements for protecting water quality. The new proposal would drop Clean Water Act protections for a wide expanse of Montana’s streams and wetlands.

In response to the proposal, Dave Chadwick, Executive Director of the Montana Wildlife Federation said the following:

“This new proposal throws out protections for Montana’s headwater streams and isolated wetlands, which will have a severe impact on fish and wildlife habitat as well as drinking water supplies for our communities. Headwater streams are Montana’s fish hatcheries, supporting our world-class fishing opportunity. This proposal will endanger that resource, which will ultimately hit our outdoor economy.

“Equally troubling, today’s proposal is yet another effort by the federal government to throw out years of hard work for no good reason. In addition to being bad policy, this change is going to provoke more lawsuits and unleash chaos for water and land users. At some point, we need our leaders in Washington to lead our nation forward instead of spending all their time rolling back existing policies.”

According to geologists:

60% of Montana’s wetlands are geographically isolated
60% of Eastern Montana’s streams are ephemeral
30% of Western Montana’s streams are ephemeral

These areas will lose protection from dredging, filling, dumping, and other development activities under the proposed rule.

Funding to Recover America’s Wildlife

July 7, 2021December 10, 2018 by Marcus Strange

One of several priorities for the Montana Wildlife Federation is the passage of legislation to increase funding to prevent wildlife from becoming endangered. The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act would dramatically increase funding for every state wildlife agency, including $29 million/year for the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, to implement on-the-ground projects to conserve fish and wildlife.

The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act would be good for wildlife and for people. By supporting early intervention to conserve wildlife before they reach the brink of extinction, it would reduce the cost to taxpayers and the regulatory burdens on farmers, ranchers, and other resource users. The bill enjoys broad support from conservation organizations, the energy industry, businesses, and wildlife managers.

Like the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act enjoys broad, bipartisan support. The bill has more than a hundred cosponsors, including both Republicans and Democrats, from all over the country.

Federal Rewrite of Sage-Grouse Plans Throws Out Years of Hard Work

July 7, 2021December 10, 2018 by Guest Profile

https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/ — Photo by Jennifer Strickland, USFWS.

On December 6, the Bureau of Land Management released a proposal to rewrite conservation plans that were intended to conserve the greater sage-grouse. Dave Chadwick, Executive Director of the Montana Wildlife Federation, said the following:

“The 2015 sage-grouse conservation plans were the product of years of hard work by wildlife managers, conservationists, hunters, ranchers, local government and the energy industry. It wasn’t easy, but we worked together to find a way to protect sage-grouse habitat, prevent the species from becoming endangered, and maintain all the different ways people use our public lands.

“In Montana, a deal is a deal. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to hold true in Washington, DC. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has decided to walk away from the bargain that the federal government made with Montanans – and all Westerners. By throwing out local input and multiple-use management in the name of ‘energy dominance’, the federal government is putting the sage-grouse back on the road to extinction, endangering hundreds of other species, and threatening public access to public land.

“The federal government’s reckless move has emboldened some Montana legislators to call for backing out of the sage-grouse conservation at the state-level as well. More than a dozen bills have been unveiled that would repeal hard-negotiated habitat protections at the state level. The ‘not warranted’ decision was predicated largely on the strength of state plans. If we roll those back, on top of the rollbacks we’re seeing from Washington, we leave it up to a judge to decide the fate of not only the sage-grouse, but all Westerners who live, work and recreate on our public lands.”

Clock is Ticking for Congressional Action on Public Lands, Wildlife

July 8, 2021December 3, 2018 by Guest Profile

The midterm congressional election was bruising in Montana and nationwide. Fortunately, conservation was one issue that was not a point of contention in these divided political times. Montana saw the re-election of Senator Jon Tester and Representative Greg Gianforte, both of whom are on record supporting several important Montana conservation priorities. Immediately after the election, Congress returned to Washington for a “lame duck” session that will continue through adjournment in December. MWF and our conservation partners will be watching closely and working tirelessly to get several Montana priorities enacted in this crucial window of time.

Restoring the Land and Water Conservation Fund

At the end of September, Congress allowed the 50-year old Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) to expire. LWCF is one of the nation’s most important programs, funding the acquisition of public land and public access. In Montana, the program has funded projects in every county of the state, including everything from wilderness lands to local soccer fields. It has been crucial to our state’s unmatched access to the outdoors and abundant wildlife populations.

Unfortunately, the authorization for LWCF expired at the end of September, endangering future conservation projects. Senator Jon Tester has long been a champion for permanent authorization and full funding for LWCF, and in recent months he has been joined by both Senator Steve Daines and Representative Greg Gianforte in supporting this important Montana priority. LWCF also enjoys broad, bipartisan support nationwide.

During the closing weeks of the year, MWF will be working with our partners in Montana and across the nation to secure permanent reauthorization and full funding for LWCF.

Spotted Dog Wildlife Management Area

Fish, Wildlife, and Montana’s Economy Threatened by Clean Water Rule Repeal

Funding to Recover America’s Wildlife

Federal Rewrite of Sage-Grouse Plans Throws Out Years of Hard Work

Clock is Ticking for Congressional Action on Public Lands, Wildlife

Jeff Lukas

Elk Campaign Manager