Environment
FWP: Highly pathogenic avian influenza found in wild birds in Montana
Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus was detected in a snow goose from Canyon Ferry and a Canada goose from near Belgrade last week, according to a news release Monday from Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. FWP also said HPAI was detected earlier this month in domestic poultry in Judith Basin and Cascade counties, and […]
EPA tackles Billings Superfund site that deals with toxic chemical vapors
For years, officials in Billings have known that powerful cleaning solvents may be in the ground, near the site of a dry cleaning and laundry service. But testing and an effort in Congress has gotten a significant swath of the city designated a “Superfund” site to clean chlorinated, volatile organic chemicals and petroleum hydrocarbons. EPA […]
Center for Biological Diversity gives notice that it will sue to protect rare Montana plant
The Center for Biological Diversity has given the U.S. Department of the Interior and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service a 60-day notice of its intent to sue for failure to protect a rare plant species only found in the arid deserts of the Pryor Mountains in southern Montana and northern Wyoming. The thick-leaf bladderpod […]
Gianforte stopped FWP effort to bolster streamflow, requires protocol
At the start of last summer’s heat waves, Gov. Greg Gianforte barred Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks from enforcing FWP water rights to keep enough water in two rivers for ecosystem health. Now, on the verge of what’s predicted to be another dry summer, some worry about a repeat or the possibility that similar bans […]
Judge halts mine project that could affect iconic Smith River
A district court judge has halted a proposed mine near the headwaters of the iconic Smith River after saying the Montana Department of Environmental Quality’s actions were “arbitrary, capricious and unlawful.” The future of the Black Butte Copper Mine, owned by Tintina Resources, will be halted until satisfactory plans are presented, or until a higher […]
Scientists get together to role play volcano eruption predictions
In February, 100 scientists got together to practice coordinating themselves during a pretend volcanic eruption. As scientists who work on potentially active volcanoes, we ask ourselves “what” questions a lot. What if a volcano starts showing signs that it’s waking up? What sort of eruption might happen at a given volcano? What types of hazards […]
Judge stops Forest Service plans in Castle Mountains
A federal judge in Montana has stopped a large-scale logging project northeast of Bozeman in the Castle Mountains because the United States Forest Service failed to properly inventory roads in its assessment and the plans would have violated protections for elk and the northern goshawk. More than 1,800 acres in the Castle Mountains were scheduled […]
Biden goal for U.S. transition to electric vehicles cast into doubt at U.S. Senate hearing
A White House climate goal to transition the United States to electric vehicles is in trouble if the nation cannot produce more minerals that go into those vehicles’ batteries, U.S. senators of both parties said Thursday. Members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee agreed during a hearing that more domestic production of lithium, […]
Scientists discover new thermal areas in Yellowstone National Park
On the North side of the Mallard Lake resurgent dome there are several isolated thermal areas that were recently mapped using high-resolution visible satellite and aerial data. These are not new thermal areas like the one near Tern Lake; instead, they have been there for decades but eluded our thermal-area mapping—until now. In Yellowstone, thermal […]
Montana group sues over public records related to wolf hunting
An environmental nonprofit focused on preserving wolf populations in the northern Rockies is suing Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks as part of a public records dispute, the organization said. Attorneys for Wolves of the Rockies wrote in a complaint filed in Lewis and Clark County last week that FWP has failed to respond to a […]
Yellowstone County approves permit for NorthWestern Energy natural gas power plant in Laurel
Carol Blades remembers the eruption that looked like something from Yellowstone National Park, a geyser of water spraying into the air from beneath the Yellowstone River, just south of Laurel. She saw that as she was crossing the bridge less than a half-mile from her home, as she was being ordered out of her residence […]
Group sues EPA over Montana water quality revisions
A Montana environmental group is making good on its warning that it would sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to halt the revision of water quality standards for streams and rivers in the state, filing a complaint in federal court in Great Falls alleging that the federal regulator failed to a respond to the change […]