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Upper Missouri Breaks

Majority of Montanans Oppose Changes to the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument

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Two people look out over the Upper Missouri Breaks NM. - CC License - Bob Wick
Two people look out over the Upper Missouri Breaks NM. – CC License – Bob Wick

A survey of Montanans released today by the Montana Wildlife Federation showed strong support for protecting the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument and clear opposition to any attempts to reduce its size or change its management.

Last month, the Interior Department initiated a review of national monuments designated over the last 20 years to determine if monuments designated by previous presidents should be eliminated, reduced, or altered. The review includes the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument in central Montana.

  • When asked about the Administration’s national monuments review, 59% of poll respondents said that they oppose eliminating the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument or reducing its size, with only 28% supporting such changes.
  • Fully 49% of respondents strongly opposed reductions in the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument.
  • Speaking about national monuments in general, 58% of respondents said that we should leave national monuments the way they are, with an additional 16% calling for more land to be protected through the designation rather than less.

“The Missouri Breaks include some of the richest wildlife habitat in the entire Great Plains, supporting trophy elk, deer, bighorn sheep and countless other species. This landscape has supported Montana’s hunting heritage for generations and created jobs in local communities,” said Dave Chadwick, Executive Director of the Montana Wildlife Federation.

“This survey confirms how much Montanans want to keep the Missouri Breaks the way it is now, so that future generations can continue to experience this important part of Montana’s natural history and cultural heritage,” he continued.

The Upper Missouri Breaks National Monument was designated in 2001 after two years of discussion by local communities, conservation advocates, ranchers, and other stakeholders. The monument protects 377,000 acres of public land under a management plan developed by Montanans to protect the Breaks’ natural resources, ensure public access, and maintain grazing and other traditional land uses.

“If the Department of Interior concludes its review and recommends reducing the size of the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument or eliminating it entirely, the federal government will be at odds with a majority of Montanans,” said Andrew Maxfield, the researcher who conducted the survey.

The poll follows the release of an analysis earlier this month by Headwaters Economics which showed that communities near national monuments experienced population growth and economic expansion after the designation.

“Hard data on key economic indicators show that the communities around the Missouri Breaks saw continued economic growth after the designation of the national monument,” said Chris Mehl, with Headwaters Economics. “This confirms what we’ve seen across the West: that national monuments are consistent with economic growth in adjacent local communities.”

The poll was conducted by Maxfield Strategic Communications Research, a national public opinion research firm. The results are based upon 702 random telephone interviews among likely 2018 voters in Montana. Sample was obtained from a list of active voters in Montana. Interviews were conducted by live interviewers reaching land lines and cell phones from May 21-25, 2017. This random sample of 702 has a worst-case 95% confidence interval of ±3.7% about any one reported percentage.

Share your voice, and speak up for the Missouri Breaks!

Results from a Survey on the Breaks National Monument_MSCR_MT_May 2017
Headwaters Economics Missouri Breaks NM Summary

Missouri Breaks Still Worthy of Protection

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Upper Missouri Breaks NM - CC License - Bob Wick
Upper Missouri Breaks NM – CC License – Bob Wick

President Trump’s executive order last month to review all national monuments established over the past 21 years is an exercise in government inefficiency.

Over the next six months, the Interior Department is going to review every national monument designated in the last 21 years. This review will find that each one of them is worthy of protection – for the incredible scenic, wildlife and cultural values that they were originally set aside for. In almost every case, these monuments were the result of lengthy discussions by local officials, conservationists, area ranchers and tribal interests as they worked to hammer out agreements to preserve multiple-use public lands and waters in special places around the nation.

That was certainly the case with the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument, an expanse of incredible country in the rugged breaks that rise off of the Missouri River in central Montana. The monument was established in 2001, when President Clinton used the Antiquities Act to protect this remarkable landscape.

It’s a law passed in 1906 and signed by President Theodore Roosevelt, and since then eight Democrats and eight Republicans have used it to protect some of our most treasured cultural and scenic areas. The list includes the Grand Canyon and Zion national parks, as well as cultural sites like the Statute of Liberty and Pompey’s Pillar.

The Breaks monument didn’t happen until there were public meetings, discussions with local interests and a visit from then Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt. And while not everyone supported the monument designation – never is there full agreement – the end product drew broad support from Montanans.

What we’ve seen since then is that the monument works. Hunters have still had access to pursue big game and birds on the monument. Ranchers with grazing leases have maintained those. And floaters who enjoy the river that Lewis and Clark came up two centuries ago still float this waterway. The monument designation kept this important area in the heart of Montana from being altered, developed, or taken away from the public for years.

That is all at risk now. The President’s executive order was shrouded in language about local control and state management, but that’s just a political talking point by anti-monument politicians who have already made up their minds. The Breaks, and all national monuments, are multiple-use public lands, and local voices have always had tremendous say through Resource Advisory Councils and other means.

The Upper Missouri River Breaks shows exactly how a national monument is supposed to work: it keeps our public land as it is: open to hunting and fishing, livestock grazing, and other traditional uses, rather than locking our lands up for large-scale oil and gas, mining, or other development activities that close off public use. That is good for hunters and anglers, good for ranchers, good for our Montana way of life.

Nick Gevock is the conservation director for the Montana Wildlife Federation.

Jeff Lukas – MWF Elk Campaign Manager

Jeff Lukas

Elk Campaign Manager

Jeff Lukas is a passionate conservationist who has been fishing and hunting his entire life. Whether it’s floating a small stream chasing trout, pursuing elk in the high country, or waiting in a blind for ducks to set their wings, Jeff is always trying to bring more people afield to show them what we are trying to protect. He loves being in the arena, and he will never shy away from conversations about the beautiful and unique corners of Big Sky country.