Conservation Acquisitions Approved for Butte and Swan Valley

In good news for conservationists, the Land Board unanimously approved two significant acquisitions in recent months.

The Duhame property near Butte will add 1,745 acres of significant wildlife habitat to the existing Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) Fleecer Mountain Game Management Area. The acquisition is being funded by a grant of $1.644 million from the Natural Resource Damage Program. As part of the grant, $155,979 is included to cover costs for surveying, fencing, and weed control for five years. The grant was approved by the Governor, the Natural Resource Damage Trustee Council, and the Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission prior to coming before the Land Board for its approval.

Attorney General Mike McGrath praised the acquisition, saying "it is an important part of the program to clean up and restore the lands along Silver Bow Creek, has very strong support from the people that live in the community, and provides substantial access for sportsmen." His comments were echoed by Governor Schweitzer, who said the Silver Bow Creek mitigation work "is going to be one of the most remarkable reclamation projects in America. It started out where you couldn't drink the water and now it will be a great fishery in our lifetimes. This is a great opportunity and it adds a great deal of value to the wildlife habitat that we already have in the area."

The Swan Valley Conservation Project is a considerably larger project, encompassing approximately 10,880 acres of checkerboarded Plum Creek lands in Lake County that are being phased in as acquisitions or conservation easements as money becomes available. The first phase, valued at $7.9 million, will place conservation easements on 6,083 acres, the second phase will put another 1,121 acres under conservation easement and the final phase will acquire fee title to an additional 3,600 acres. FWP came to the Land Board asking approval to move forward with the expenditure of the funds, most of them federal funds, for phase one.

The properties, as FWP Director Jeff Hagener told the Board, are "outstanding riparian, wetland, and forest habitat" that "support threatened and endangered species of grizzly bear, bull trout, wolf, lynx, and bald eagle along with cutthroat trout, moose, elk, deer and other wildlife." The lands also provide "significant public access" for recreation.

As part of the Forest Legacy Program, about 75 percent of the approximately $27-30 million that will be required for the entire project will be federal monies coming from the Forest Legacy Fund. FWP expects the rest of the money -- the required match -- to come from private funds, non-profit land trusts, foundations, and individual donors. Additionally, funding from natural resource grants from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Habitat Conservation Program and the Bonneville Power Administration's Fisheries Mitigation Fund is expected. Over $2 million has already been committed by the Trust for Public Lands.

FWP expects to transfer those lands that are within the Swan State Forest to DNRC with the conservations provisions, since the Forest Legacy Program requires a continued forest management program.

The Land Board unanimously approved both acquisitions.