Tribes, conservation groups challenge DEQ over ending ‘bad actor’ lawsuit
The state environmental agency has abandoned a lawsuit against a mining executive once involved in a company that left taxpayers on the hook for millions
Latest Environmental Reporting
State removes roadblock to northwest Montana mines
The Montana Department of Environmental Quality has asked a judge to dismiss its ‘bad actor’ case against the CEO of Hecla Mining Co., which is trying to develop two copper and silver mines in Lincoln County.
MTFP launches MT Fire Report
With an expansive drought drying out vegetation across the state, 2021 is shaping up to be a particularly active year for Montana wildfires. MTFP’s new Fire Report has information on the location and size of fires reported across the state, as well air quality ratings for Montana communities with monitoring stations, updated hourly.
Missouri River tributary runs dry after restoration project
Helena anglers are anxious about the loss of surface flow to Beaver Creek, an important tributary of the Missouri River for spawning trout, after restoration work on the stream. The Forest Service says the improvements just need time to take hold.
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MORE ENVIRONMENTAL COVERAGE
Sale of Crazy Mountain Ranch finalized
Crazy Mountain Ranch has been purchased by Lone Mountain Land Company, a subsidiary of CrossHarbor Capital Partners, which owns the Yellowstone Club near Big Sky.
What ‘waters of the U.S.’ means for Montana
The EPA is revisiting a 2020 rule that removed Clean Water Act protections from a huge number of smaller streams and wetlands in Montana.
High-elevation forests now burning more frequently than any time in the past 2,000 years
UM fire ecologist Philip Higuera says climate change is shrinking the window between wildfire events in subalpine forests of the central Rockies
The Crazy Mountains’ next act
With a heliskiing operation looking for a foothold and the rumored sale of one of the largest ranches in the range, Montanans are wondering what’s next for this isolated and iconic landscape.
Hecla forging ahead with northwest Montana mines
Officials with an Idaho-based mining company developing two large copper and silver mines in Northwest Montana said they are undeterred by a recent ruling that could let the state label its CEO a “bad actor” because of a failed mine clean-up more than two decades ago in a different part of the state.
Oil spill reported on Crow Indian Reservation
EPA says the spill is likely coming from a gathering line, a pipeline used to transport crude oil from a wellhead to a central collection point.
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MORE ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTING
Checkerboard chess in the Crazy Mountains
With thousands of acres at stake, proposals to consolidate ownership and clarify access are inspiring collaboration and conflict.
Great Falls group petitions for slaughterhouse study
Citizens and the city commission want the state to study environmental impacts of what would be the largest food processing plant in the U.S.
Whose Crazies are they?
How the Crazy Mountains became ground zero in Montana’s most vexing land-use debate.
What’s next for water quality?
Montana is positioned to become the first state to strike numeric standards for nitrogen and phosphorus — just six years after becoming the first state to adopt them. How Montana will enforce water quality instead isn’t yet clear.
Conservation groups challenge logging project on Rocky Mountain Front
Alliance for the Wild Rockies and Native Ecosystems Council filed a lawsuit Wednesday asking the U.S. District Court in Great Falls to stop a 10,331-acre noncommercial logging and prescribed burn project in a roadless area southwest of Augusta.
Haaland creates climate task force, pledges to address environmental injustices
Interior Secretary Deb Haaland issues two new orders prioritizing climate change and environmental justice.
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