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Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is seeking public input on a potential project that would place nearly 33,000 acres of private timberland in northwest Montana under a conservation easement and protect working lands, public recreation access, and wildlife habitat.
FWP is hosting a pair of public meetings to explain the proposed project and answer questions from the public.
The deadline to comment on this proposal is May 15. To comment and learn more, visit https://fwp.mt.gov/news/public-notices.
FWP published a draft environmental assessment that outlines the proposed first phase of the project named the Montana Great Outdoors Conservation Easement. This is the first of a potential two-phased project totaling 85,792 acres of private timberland and fish and wildlife habitat owned by Green Diamond Resource Company.
The first phase includes forestlands in the Salish and Cabinet mountains between Kalispell and Libby. The private property provides abundant public hunting and angling opportunities that would be permanently secured under this proposal. This project would conserve wildlife winter range and a movement corridor for elk, mule deer, white-tailed deer, and moose. It would provide critical habitat for grizzly bear and Canada lynx, federally threatened species found on the property, and protect streams for the westslope cutthroat trout and Columbia River redband trout, both Montana Species of Concern.
If the project were approved, Green Diamond would maintain ownership of the land under an easement owned by FWP. The easement would allow Green Diamond to sustainably harvest wood products from these timberlands, preclude development, protect important wildlife habitat and associated key landscape connectivity, and provide permanent free public access to the easement lands.