Sorted by date Results 110 - 134 of 140
While we’re dealing with one of the worst threatening wildfires in the U.S. right now here with our Rice Ridge Fire on Seeley Lake’s doorstep, Senator Jon Tester and Governor Bullock both came to Seeley Lake to make serious inquiries and evaluate what additional resources we might need. On Aug. 11, Montana’s U.S. Senator Steve Daines emailed the following newsletter to his Montana constituents commenting on having just returned from a wonderful backpack trip and wondering how we’re enjoying our summer. He stated, “Last week rang in the 86th...
MONTANA – Governor Steve Bullock issued a new Executive Order declaring a fire emergency to exist in the state of Montana. “We will continue to do everything we can to make sure folks on the ground have the resources they need to protect Montanans and their property until every single fire is put out,” said Governor Bullock. “Firefighters, emergency personnel and volunteers are working hard every day. On behalf of all Montanans, we thank them for their efforts.” This declaration allows Governor Bullock to continue to mobilize additiona...
SEELEY LAKE – Governor Steve Bullock (D-MT) and senior Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) visited Seeley Lake to get a firsthand look at the efforts to fight the Rice Ridge Fire. The pair attended a morning briefing at Seeley Lake Elementary Friday, Aug. 4. "The number one fire in the nation is right here in Seeley Lake right now," said Bullock after the briefing. "I feel confidence in the crew doing it but it's heartbreaking for the community." The Rice Ridge Fire has burned more than 8,000 acres as o...
SEELEY LAKE - Polson is developing a $17.6 million sewer upgrade after the EPA came in and levied a $40,000 fine on the district for exceeding its wastewater discharge limits. Sewer bills will jump from $20 per month to $60, and that’s for 2,000 residents. The State of Montana loaned Polson $14.6 million. Lincoln is upgrading its two lift stations at a cost of $300,000 per station and that sewer station serves about 400 users. That’s after 15 years of use. Their sewer rate increase will depend on how much money it can get from the state. Lin...
SEELEY LAKE - Trenton M. Johnson, 19-year-old firefighter from Missoula, sustained injuries from a falling tree while fighting the Florence Fire on the Seeley Lake Ranger District the afternoon of July 19. Johnson was flown to Missoula but was later pronounced deceased at St. Patrick's Hospital. A small lightning fire was called in Tuesday night five miles northeast of Seeley Lake on Rice Ridge. Wednesday morning, nine firefighters from the Seeley Lake Ranger District began suppression operation...
MONTANA – Citing active wildfires and extreme fire danger across the state, Governor Steve Bullock has issued an executive order declaring a fire emergency in Montana. Prior to signing the executive order, the governor was briefed by the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation and Disaster and Emergency Services at the Department of Military Affairs. He also spoke with Rick Connell, the Incident Commander at the Lodgepole Complex area, which is currently the state’s largest fire. “Montana is facing extreme fire conditions. Our top p...
HELMVILLE - Montana Highway 141 is a 32-mile-long road that meanders through western Montana without passing through a single town. Close to the northern end of the highway however, a mere mile long deviation will land you in the collection of buildings that make up Helmville. Less than 250 people call Helmville home. But once a year, nearly 2,000 people descend upon the community for a weekend, swelling the population enough to jump into the top 50 most populous cities in the state. The...
On Friday, March 22 Seeley Lake Elementary (SLE) junior high students took their biannual trip to Helena to visit Montana Wild and the State Capitol. Students participated in three different Montana Wild programs and were able to watch the Senate in action as well as meet Governor Steve Bullock. The junior high takes this trip every other year when the legislature is in session. SLE Civics Teacher Duane Schlabach has his students follow a bill of their choice in Civics class so they understand t...
After uncertainty about how the upcoming special congressional election would change the makeup of the Montana Legislature, the nomination of Democrat Rob Quist and Republican Greg Gianforte means it’s back to business as usual at the state Capitol. Multiple legislators had announced their intention to run for the vacant congressional seat after former Rep. Ryan Zinke was nominated and then confirmed as U.S. Secretary of the Interior. Sen. Ed Buttrey, R-Great Falls, and Reps. Amanda Curtis, D-Butte and Kelly McCarthy, D-Billings all vied for t...
SEELEY LAKE - Montana’s first watercraft inspection stations opened Friday in Pablo and at Clearwater Junction at the junction of Highways 200 and 83. The inspection stations will be operated by the Flathead Basin Commission (FBC) under a memorandum of understanding with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP). These inspection stations represent the first of what will be an expanded aquatic invasive species inspection station program for the 2017 boating season in Montana. This effort is in response to the positive detection last fall of a...
Caution To All Seeley Lake Water Customers SEELEY LAKE - The Water District has had numerous calls regarding frozen water service lines. This is a friendly reminder to all customers to take care of their pipes. Insulate pipes well and keep them warm. Refrain from plowing snow above water lines and driving on them. The snow is a good insulator and moving it actually drives the frost deeper. It is also recommended to trickle cold water. A small trickle of water keeps the water moving and keeps it from freezing. Due to the cold weather and the...
SEELEY LAKE – Agency representatives, non-government organizations and concerned citizens met Jan. 4 to discuss a strategy for local lakes in response to the discovery of invasive mussel veligers (larvae) in Montana's Tiber Reservoir. Everyone at the meeting agreed that all boats should be inspected prior to launching in local waters and ballasted boats should be decontaminated before launching. Ideas of how to implement and enforce this were also discussed. It is Clearwater Resource Council (CR...
HELENA - A new grant from Montana’s Forests in Focus program will make homes safer, create well-paying jobs and improve forest health – all at the same time. The $249,534 grant will be used to thin out dense forest to reduce the hazards posed by wildfire. Besides reducing the fuel load for any potential wildfire, the work will open up the forest, allowing more light and moisture in to nurture the trees that are left. The work will create 17 jobs between this December and November of next year and will supply 3,166 tons of materials to local mil...
Who is behind the anti-trapping Initiative, I-177? This threat to Montana’s hunting and trapping heritage is being driven by out-of-state animal rights activist groups such as .PETA, ASPCA, Humane Society etc. Out-of-state environmental organizations like Sierra Club, Defenders of Wildlife, etc. are also pushing for passage of I-177. What is alarming is that these same groups are also funneling political action cash (PAC Money) into Steve Bullock’s re-election campaign. Unfortunately, Montana’s elected Democratic office holders throu...
OVANDO – The Blackfoot Community Conservation Area (BCCA) has been the recipient of two Forest in Focus (FIF) grants totally nearly $315,000. Of the 5,600 total acres within the BCCA core, 863 acres have been treated with FIF grants generating around 6,600 tons of saw logs and pulp. The BCCA is located in the mid-reaches of the Blackfoot watershed near Ovando Mountain. It combines community forest ownership and management within the Core 5,609 acres with cooperative ecosystem management for m...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Community Council hosted a candidate forum, Sept. 19 at the Seeley Lake Community Hall. Candidates for Governor/Lieutenant Governor, U.S. Congress, Secretary of State, Supreme Court Justice and State Attorney General races answered various questions from moderator and council chair Klaus von Sutterheim and the audience. All candidates that will appear on the ballot including Republicans, Democrats and Libertarians, were invited. Only the Supreme Court Justice race h...
POTOMAC - At approximately 9 p.m. Monday, Sept. 20, Michael C. Fellows, age 59 of Missoula, Mont., was involved in a head on collision at mile marker 16.5 on Highway 200. Fellows died at the scene. The person in the other involved vehicle was transported to a local hospital for treatment. The initial investigation suggests that Fellows was traveling west on Highway 200, returning from a campaign function held in Seeley Lake when the crash occurred. The Montana Highway Patrol is conducting the crash investigation while the sheriff’s office c...
Seeley Lake Library News SEELEY LAKE - Many of the residents of Missoula and surrounding areas will be reading the same book when the Big Read returns to Missoula Public Library and its branch libraries in September. The National Endowment for the Arts, in partnership with Arts Midwest, created the Big Read as a way to “restore reading to the center of American culture.” This year’s “read” will feature Louise Erdrich’s “Love Medicine.” The Big Read will also feature a Middle Read, “The Birchbark House” by Louise Erdrich and a Little Read, “The...
SEELEY LAKE – Governor Steve Bullock launched the National Forest and Rangeland Management Initiative in his capacity as Chair of the Western Governors' Association (WGA) at Pyramid Mountain Lumber, Inc. Tuesday, Aug. 16. The work of the initiative will position western governors to recommend and promote congressional efforts to improve forest management and encourage more effective collaboration throughout the West. "We have a responsibility to do everything we can to keep workers in our f...
Regarding my letter to the editor July 14, 2016, I would like make the following comments. It is a fact that the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security have both stated that there is no way to obtain accurate security background checks for any Muslim Syrian refugees that enter the United States. So why would our “public servants,” starting with Governor Steve Bullock, put us and our families at risk by insisting that unvetted Muslim Syrian refugees be given a go pass to Montana? The Germans and other European countries have admitted tha...
To the left is the future for Montana if Governor Steve Bullock, the Missoula Mayor, his City Council and the Missoula County Commissioners bring unvetted Muslim refugees to Montana as planned. They are all contributing to President Barack Hussein Obama's Muslim pipeline to America, and they are all contributing to Islamic jihad on American soil. Protest this insane proposal and remember these misguided "public servants" on Election Day. If it's refugees they want, bring those who do not grow...
It all started at a kitchen table in the Blackfoot Valley. Back around 1970. Local folks like us, including our good friend and neighbor Bill Potter. Worried about increasing recreational pressure on the river, our property and the lands surrounding ours. We knew what we wanted to do but we weren't sure how to do it. We knew we wanted to engage the public. They had a stake in the river and the land that surrounded it. So we got together...some landowners, river users, hunters, agency folks...to...
“Montana’s National Forests BURNING AN EMPIRE” is the title of the Spring 2016 edition of “Evergreen” magazine. The title creates a dire picture facing Montana forests. According to Montana State Forester Bob Harrington, “Nearly 50 percent of Montana’s forest lands have been significantly affected by insects, diseases and wildfire.” Many factors come into play creating today’s forestry issues. Early day logging practices took the best quality trees, fire suppression and a cool, wet period that began in the 1930s allowed a growth in shade t...
SWAN VALLEY - Dixie and Neil Meyer learned in February they would receive the Montana Neighbor Award, offered by a group of Montana agencies and organizations, and the office of the Governor. The award program recognizes "land-owners who go the extra mile through collaborative efforts to enhance our Montana sense of community." Swan Ecosystem Center, with the support of the Upper Swan Valley Historical Society (USVHS), nominated Neil and Dixie last fall. USVHS President Steve Lamar said, "If...
Montana Recreational Trails Program Grants Available HELENA – Montana State Parks announced that federal Recreational Trails Program (RTP) grants are available for trail projects in Montana. Applications are due by March 11 at 4 p.m. Montana State Parks manages the annual grant program that administers federal funding with oversight from the Federal Highway Administration. Projects include: development, maintenance and rehabilitation work on urban, rural, and backcountry trails; planning and construction of community trails and a variety of t...
