Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
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As the Keystone XL Pipeline project continues to encounter legal battles and delays, the Trump administration has requested the U.S. Supreme Court to revive the permit program that would allow the pipeline and other new oil and gas pipelines to cross waterways with little review. The permit program, also known as Nationwide Permit (NWP) 12, allows pipelines to be built across streams and wetlands with minimal review if they meet certain criteria. The permit isn’t specific to the Keystone XL project as the permit is also utilized by other pipeli...
Dear Editor, In a recent U.S. District Court ruling by Judge Brian Morris, the American public heard loud and clear that the federal administration broke the law when it offered leases on public lands in critical sage grouse habitat. This court decision speaks volumes about how public lands should be managed, with certainty, and in a manner that considers true multiple use – including maintaining wildlife populations. The Department of Interior was found to have violated the law by issuing an i...
Dear Editor, Water rights in Montana have been the topic of much discussion and rulings, both legislatively and judicially, over the past 40 plus years. To say this has resulted in a totally confused mess would be an understatement. When the dust finally settled it became apparent that vested water rights on allotments managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in Montana were being taken away from the private citizens. How did this happen? After many hours of poring through historic and...
Army veteran and Assiniboine-Sioux Tribe member Lance Fourstar's voice was being carried out over the prairie by a stiff westerly wind as he chanted a traditional Native American song accompanied by a drum and flute. The sounds traveled out overtop of the Keystone XL pipeline's border crossing from Canada as diesel engines revved and back up signals beeped in the distance on April 14. As Fourstar sang, an elder woman danced and played the flute, and a youth played the drums while the other...
Dear Editor, For decades Montana has been the envy of hunters who pursue elk. Our state has healthy elk herds because of our incredible habitat on public and private lands. We enjoy the longest season in the West – with a six-week archery season and a five-week rifle season. No other state comes even close. With our strong elk herds comes challenges in their management. Landowners at times struggle with the damage that large groups of elk can cause to crops, haystacks and fences. Montana F...
Dear Editor, There has recently been a lot of press about bison being designated a free roaming animal in Montana. As a retired cattle rancher, I would like to raise a few thoughts that have not been brought out in various opinion pieces. The public needs to understand that the concept for re-wilding lands in Montana with indigenous bison is not limited to just Montana Fish, Wildlife and Park's (MTFWP) recently announced bison restoration planning. In fact, there are multiple interest groups...
Dear Editor, Many wilderness advocates, scientists, and public land managers have long recognized the threat that excessive recreational use poses for Wilderness. Howard Zahniser, the Wilderness Act's author, warned over 50 years ago that Wilderness can be threatened "from development for recreation." He emphasized the need for humility and restraint in our dealing with Wilderness. The 1978 edition of Wilderness Management, the definitive professional tome on Wilderness management, summed it...
TC Energy (formerly TransCanada) is putting the past year’s legal battles behind them and is moving ahead with plans to construct the Keystone XL pipeline. On Jan. 21, Terry Cunha, a spokesman for TC Energy, told the Williston Herald that the project reached several key milestones and filed a status report with the U.S. District Court of Montana the week before. The status report stated TC Energy will move heavy equipment to storage yards in Montana and South Dakota in February and would also transport and install worker camp modules in both s...
The Bureau of Land Management filed a Notice of Intent (NOI) on Jan. 21 to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) with the intent of overhauling grazing regulations on public lands. The NOI filed with the federal registry established the beginning of a scoping process intended to solicit public opinion and identify issues. Four public meetings have been planned for stakeholder comment on the proposed revisions, including one in Miles City, scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 6. BLM will host the input-gathering session from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m....
A convocation (also called a jubilee or a tower) of bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) has settled in at Fort Peck Dam over the past few weeks. The birds, which number in the tens to hundreds, are likely migrating through for the winter or, possibly, wintering for the season near the perennially open waters below the powerhouses. According to Bureau of Land Management Biologist and Fort Peck native John Carlson, the birds tend to congregate near food sources for the winter and likely travele...
Dear Editor, Ranchers running livestock on federally managed lands are facing a major taking of which few appear to be aware. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has filed thousands of water rights with the Montana Department of Natural Resources (DNRC). The problem is these filings conflict with the vested water rights of the allotment holders. Montana is a prior appropriation doctrine state which means, 'first in time, first in right' (miners' law). Most of the ranches using federal lands...
As court cases continue to be heard and moved through the judicial system regarding the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline, a public meeting, hosted by the U.S. Department of State, was held at the Billings Convention Center on Oct. 29. The meeting’s purpose was to gather comments on the federal government’s Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the pipeline project. The meeting itself did not include a public hearing however did provide for individuals to give comments directly to computers for submission or spe...
The Montana Wilderness Association Island Range Chapter is excited to announce the 2019 season of Wilderness Walks. This year, participants will be able to choose from 123 walks spanning the state from the Cabinet Mountains to the Big Snowy Mountains to the grasslands of the Bitter Creek Wilderness Study Area. Walks range from alpine backpacking adventures to trail runs to creekside strolls, ensuring that any and everyone can find a suitable and enjoyable outing. Glasgow will host two walks in...
The Wheatgrass Arts & Gallery (WAG) is expanding its horizons, its artist horizons, that is. A longtime friend of WAG owner Mary Fahlgren, Ann Patterson Bishop has agreed to show her extensively known art work during the month of May. Please join us on Friday, May 3, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Wheatgrass Arts and Gallery, 523 2nd St. So. for an artist's reception. Unfortunately, Patterson Bishop will not be able to be present at her reception but you can "Visit the Artist" and even check out her...
This week marked the first full week of committee hearings after the transmittal break. For the remainder of the legislative session the brunt of our work will focus on making sure bills we support continue to make it through the process. The exception to this rule is any bill which is considered a revenue bill. Any legislation with money attached to it has a later transmittal deadline of approximately April 1. While the volume of new bills certainly decreases after the initial transmittal deadline, we are keeping our eyes peeled for anything n...
Saturday, March 2, marked the official transmittal deadline and halfway point of the 66th Montana Legislature. While most farmers and ranchers across the state are busy digging out of the recent snow accumulation, legislators in Helena have been busy digging out of the pile of bills that were racing against the clock to meet transmittal. Committee hearings concluded Feb. 27 and both the Senate and the House focused on completing their floor work. The Senate completed their work and adjourned for the transmittal break Feb. 27, but the House...
Clarence Tieszen passed away Sunday, Feb. 24, 2019, at the age of 96, in the home of his nephew, Eldon Toews, where he had lived since 2010 after moving from his orchard farm in eastern Washington near Kettle Falls. He was born in 1922 in Lustre, Mont., and left the Lustre community for Alternate Service during WWII and then lived in Great Falls, Mont., before moving to Alaska in 1949. During the time he lived in Alaska, he made full use of the state's abundant opportunities for skiing, hiking,...
After 35 days of being furloughed workers, members of the community who serve the public in government-funded agencies such as the National Weather Service, FBI, Bureau of Land Management, USDA Farm Service Agency and Fish, Wildlife Services are all back to work as of Jan. 28 and the agencies are fully operational. During a press conference on Jan. 25, President Trump announced he has approved legislation to open the government until Feb. 15, allowing all federal government employees the...
The partial government shutdown is now officially the longest government shutdown in history, currently on day 24 as of press time, breaking the previous shutdown record of 21 days, which occurred at the end of 1995 through the beginning of 1996 under President Clinton. Certain agencies within the federal government, including the Department of Commerce, Department of Agriculture, Departmentn of Interior, Department of Homeland Security, among others, ran out of funding when the budget for these agencies expired on Dec. 22. Employees of the...
The Valley County Pioneer Museum will be open Tuesday and Thursday, 10 a.m to 4 p.m. They will be closed for the month of January. For further information or special arrangements call 406-263-7344. THURSDAY – DEC. 6 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. - Hinsdale First Community Bank Christmas Open House. 4 – 6 p.m. - Open House at the recently remodeled Bureau of Land Management Malta Field Office, 501 South Street East, Malta. 5 p.m. - Bell Mortuary Christmas Tree of Remembrance Service and Open House. Coffee and cookies will be served at 5 p.m., followed by a se...
Dear Editor, Matt Rosendale has lived in eastern Montana for nearly two decades but over that time he still remains out of touch with eastern Montanans. During Rosendale’s 2014 campaign for the House of Representatives, he called for the transfer of federally managed public lands to the state. Even going so far as to claim Bureau of Land Management lands were unconstitutional. That same year, in an interview during the race, he called PILT (Payments in Lieu of Taxes) a welfare check to local counties. Here in Valley County, we received $1.15 m...
In an exclusive meeting with local farmers, ranchers and community leaders Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke talked about issues ranging from the restructuring of the Department of the Interior, the St. Mary River Diversion upgrade, the Bureau of Land Management, the Charles M. Russell Wildlife Refuge and the government's role in infrastructure development on public lands. The meeting occurred Sunday at 10 a.m. after being facilitated and planned by local Republican Sarah Swanson. The...
Dear Editor, I was a range management specialist for the Malta Bureau of Land Management (BLM) field office for over thirty years. After retiring in 2007, I was hired by the American Prairie Reserve (APR). As such, I’ve had considerable professional experience managing range land health and closely observing the impacts of bison on range health in Montana. APR has been and will continue to be held to the same required BLM standards and guidelines as other permittees regardless of their type of livestock, season of use, or grazing system. All o...
Local law enforcement officials, fire department crews and emergency medical technicians, along with area Special Olympic athletes, proudly carried the State Special Olympics Torch through Glasgow May 10. The torch has been making its way across the state to raise awareness and funding for the Special Olympics to be hosted in Great Falls this week, May 15 to 18. The local area games and the Law Enforcement Torch Run were organized and coordinated by Glasgow Police Officer Tim Fisher and Valley...
On the morning of April 27, a farmer surveying cattle from the air discovered an oil spill approximately five miles west of the Frazer/Richland Road and East Grains Road Junction. The farmer reported the spill to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), who notified Valley County Dispatch and the Fort Peck Tribes Office of Environmental Protection. Both entities sent personnel to the scene to investigate. The contract operator of the well, Adaranko Minerals Inc, had started the cleanup by the...
