Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
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U.S. Senator Steve Daines and Representatives Matt Rosendale and Ryan Zinke sent a letter on Jan. 27 urging the Biden administration to hold its appeals hearing concerning the American Prairie Reserve Grazing Proposal in Malta, instead of Billings, which is over 200 miles away from Phillips County. This would allow Montanans most affected by the proposal to easily attend the hearing. “The American Prairie Reserve’s proposal, if implemented, will open nearly 70,000 acres in Phillips County to grazing by non-production livestock, eliminate int...
In their first meeting of the year and Commissioner Mary Armstrong’s first meeting as Chairman, the Valley County Commissioners met for their regular Discussion and Decision meeting on Jan. 4. In addition to their normal business of approving employment and termination/resignation notices, the Commissioners discussed the Valley County Healthy is Wellness Program Proposal, the Stop the Bleeding program, Resolution No. 7-2023, and provided information on the cooperative status on the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Resource Management Plan (...
Governor Greg Gianforte announced on Dec. 23 his administration has filed its briefing in the appeal of a judge’s decision denying the state’s petition for stay after the Biden Administration approved the American Prairie Reserve’s request to graze bison on Bureau of Land Management land in northeast Montana. In briefing, entitled a Statement of Reasons (statement) and submitted to the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Board of Land Appeals, the Gianforte administration again requested a stay of the decision pending appeal, highlig...
On Oct. 28, Congressman Matt Rosendale sent a letter demanding that the Montana Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) reverse their position on livestock grazing on land allotments in Montana. The decision ignores 90 years of best range management practices and current federal law. The letter was sent to Judge Veronica Larvie, Administrative Judge for the Department of Interior’s Office of Hearings and Appeals, and Tracy Stone Manning, Director of the Bureau of Land Management. At the helm at BLM, Ms. Manning...
The Montana Stockgrowers Association (MSGA) commends the state of Montana for their action in not providing authorization of bison grazing, construction, modifications, or electrification of fences on Flat Creek and Whiterock state allotments. “We would like to thank Governor Gianforte and his administration for their leadership and continued perseverance on this issue. We stand with the state and agree there are deficiencies within the BLM Environmental Assessment and final grazing decision. The decision to not approve grazing on the two a...
U.S. Senator Steve Daines sent a letter to Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Director Tracy Stone-Manning on Oct. 27, demanding an explanation for the flagrant dismissal of Montana ag groups’ concerns in the decision making process for the America Prairie Reserve Grazing Proposal. “On July 28, 2022, the Bureau of Land Management issued a Final Decision for the America Prairie Reserve Grazing Proposal covering nearly 70,000 acres of land in Phillips County. As you know first-hand, given the unprecedented nature of this proposal—authorizing grazi...
Dear Editor, Stockwater is one of Montana's oldest water uses and is critical to the continued survival of a Montana livestock industry. Before the Montana Water Use Act of July 1, 1973, livestock water rights belonged to whomever owned and watered livestock on a customary range. The person did not need to own the land or file a claim. The right became private property as soon as the livestock drank water. The right was for exactly as much as the herd needed to drink and no more. Livestock...
Dear Editor, The Montana Cattlemen's Association is disappointed in the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) decision to authorize the American Prairie Reserve to use 63,065 acres of public lands in Phillips County for bison. In reaching this decision, a number of important issues have been overlooked or completely ignored. This unprofessional failure on the part of BLM to consider all the implications of allowing bison to graze public lands is disturbing. Among the issues ignored are public...
In addition to Attorney General Knudsen and the Montana Stockgrowers Association (MSGA) filing appeals, Governor Greg Gianforte has also appealed the Biden administration’s approval of the American Prairie Reserve’s (APR) bison grazing proposal for 63,000 acres of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land in northeast Montana. The federal decision comes despite significant opposition from impacted communities and elected officials in Montana. In an appeal to the U.S. Department of Interior (DOI), the governor outlined reasons the BLM’s decis...
Dear Editor, Every person in Montana, regardless of income, deserves an opportunity to enjoy our great outdoors. That's why I'm happy to report that two recent developments at American Prairie have made it easier for all Americans to access their prairie grasslands and enjoy native wildlife now and into the future. New Public Access on 73 Ranch In mid-July, we announced the public is welcome to access and enjoy the historic 73 ranch. American Prairie purchased the 73 in late 2021. It's a...
On Aug. 26, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen asked a federal board to overturn the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) decision to grant a permit change allowing bison grazing in Phillips County. The permit is a part of the American Prairie Reserve’s broader effort to expand bison grazing on the plains across northern and eastern Montana. Attorney General Knudsen’s appeal asks the U.S. Department of the Interior Office of Hearings and Appeals to overturn the decision and issue a stay until the appeal is resolved to prevent irreparable harm t...
The Bureau of Land Management issued a final decision on July 28 for a bison grazing proposal involving seven allotments in Phillips County, held by American Prairie, which allows for bison grazing on six of the seven allotments. The Telegraph Creek, Box Elder, Flat Creek, White Rock, French Coulee, Garey Coulee and East Dry Fork allotments – a total of approximately 63,500 acres of BLM-administered lands – currently provide 7,969 animal unit months of permitted use. One common allotment grazed with another livestock operator would remain app...
Dear Editor, There is a saying in northeastern Montana that a couple of good rains make every rancher a good grass manager. The converse is that a couple of years of severe drought show who the good grass managers really are. Over the years grazing management has morphed from continuous grazing to incorporating rest periods to facilitate vegetation recovery. Often, during periods of ideal growing conditions, the benefits of rest periods are not readily noticeable. However, they really show up...
Dear Editor, After four years of analysis and public input, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) issued their proposed decision on American Prairie's application to restore bison across 63,000 acres of public lands in north central Montana. As Director of Bison Restoration for American Prairie, it is my job to manage those bison as an ecological tool to benefit wildlife, protect our public lands, and improve the prairies where they graze. My team does this work by relying on sound science,...
The following letter written by the Valley County Commissioners was sent to Field Manager Tom Darrington at the Bureau of Land Management Malta Office on April 13. Tom Darrington, Field Manager Bureau of Land Management Malta Field Office 50 I South Second Street East Malta, Montana 59538 4/13/2022 Dear Tom Darrington, The Valley County Commissioners protest your Notice of Proposed Decision concerning APR’s grazing applications in southern Phillips County. We believe your decision is in error because it would establish a precedent for p...
Dear Editor, Unfortunately, the stars are lining up for the World Wildlife Fund's (WWF) grandiose plan to rewild the Northern Great Plains. Their pilot project in northeastern Montana, being coordinated by their spin-off, the American Prairie Reserve (APR), has recently received a shot in the arm. Emails, via the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), detailed the cozy relationship between the Bullock administration and the APR. Now two former members of the Bullock administration are heading the...
U.S. Senator Steve Daines and Congressman Matt Rosendale wrote a letter to Department of Interior Secretary Debra Haaland and Bureau of Land Management Director Tracy Stone-Manning on April 4 urging to extend the protest period on the proposed decision affecting grazing allotments on the American Prairie Reserve in Phillips County. The full letter is below: April 4, 2022 The Honorable Debra Haaland Secretary Department of the Interior 1849 C Street, N.W. Washington DC 20240 The Honorable Tracy Stone-Manning Director Bureau of Land Management...
This article contains information provided by the Bureau of Land Management, Montana Stockgrowers Association and the Montana Public Lands Council. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has issued a proposed decision on a bison grazing proposal involving seven allotments in Phillips County, Mont., held by American Prairie (AP). In conjunction with the proposed decision, the BLM released an associated Environmental Assessment (EA) and Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). The Telegraph Creek, Box Elder, Flat Creek, White Rock, French Coulee,...
Dear Editor, In the next few weeks, it is believed that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will be releasing its Record of Decision (ROD) on the American Prairie Reserve's (APR) application for bison grazing in south Phillips County. Based on the language in the draft Environmental Assessment BLM released last year, it is likely that BLM will approve some form of APR's application for bison grazing on its federal allotments. BLM's anticipated decision comes as no surprise given the multiple...
Biden Intends to Rescind Keystone XL Permit JAN. 20 - In yet another setback to TC Energy and the building of the Keystone XL pipeline, CBC in Canada was first to report on Jan. 17 confirmation of President-elect Joe Biden's intent to rescind the KXL pipeline permit. Biden campaigned on canceling the Canadian pipeline project, which will run through Valley County, after having opposed it during his time as Vice President under President Barack Obama. Obama punted the controversial political...
Hovering directly above the remains of a tyrannosaurid discovered in the Badlands of Valley County, helicopter pilot Rob Sperry needed to remain stationary as archaeologist Josh Chase connected a steel cable hanging from the Chinook to the steel frame on the ground containing the fossils. Not only did Chase need to be wary of the cable and hook –weighing in excess of 100 pounds and potentially becoming a wrecking ball – but of the electricity generated by the helicopter. "That helicopter gen...
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen is worried the American Prairie Reserve's (APR) bison grazing change of use permit proposal could have a disastrous economic impact on Valley County farmers and Ranchers. "I think it moves in that direction, that is the concern," Knudsen told The Courier over the phone late last week. "One of the big concerns I have is there seems to be two different sets of rules. There is a set of rules for farmers and ranchers who have these federal allotments, and...
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen at 6 p.m. Sept. 15 stopped by the Malta High School Auditorium to give citizens a chance to comment on a grazing issue involving Bison, the American Prairie Reserve, and the Bureau of Land Management. Phillipts County News (a sister newspaper of The Courier) caught up with Montana AG Knudsen after the event. "It went great," Knudsen said. "We had a huge turnout, way bigger than we expected." The event, which hosted over 250 concerned citizens, gave those...
Lately, deliberate misrepresentations have been circulating regarding American Prairie’s proposal to graze bison on six federal allotments in Phillips County. While most Montanan’s who have commented thus far clearly welcome our proposal, some remain committed to a misinformation campaign based on rumors and misdirection. This only serves to perpetuate divisions and erode our civic fabric. As such, I am compelled to set the record straight. The Bureau of Land Management can issue grazing permits or leases and modify existing permits to sub... Full story
Out in the Badlands of Valley County lie the last remains of a herd of duck-billed dinosaurs. No one knows for sure how the little group of Hadrosaurids met their end. But, paleontologists from the Badlands Dinosaur Museum of Dickinson, North Dakota are collecting forensic evidence to make a best guess. "They had a bad day somehow," Dr. Denver Fowler, PhD., Curator of the Badlands Dinosaur Museum, told The Courier during a recent visit to the dig site. "A little herd of them all died. All the...
