Two regional land bills pass Senate Committee, could get final vote

Both Montana Senators passed their separate public lands bills from a committee in the Senate, opening both bills up to a final vote as the federal government debates a potential shutdown.

Sen. Jon Tester passed the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act (BCSA) out of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, while Sen. Steve Daines passed the Montana Sportsmen Conservation Act out of the same committee.

The Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act would reclassify roughly 79,000 acres near the Bob Marshall and Mission Mountains as wilderness. The bill would also create a 2,000 acre recreation area for snowmobiling and almost 4,000 acres for mountain biking.

The Montana Sportsmen Conservation Act would remove roughly 100,000 acres of public land from Wilderness Study Areas. This would include the Hoodoo Mountain WSA and Wales Creek WSA between Ovando and Drummond, each roughly 10,000 acres.

Another 80,000 from the Middle Fork Judith WSA in the Lewis and Clark National Forest would be declassified as wilderness.

In a press release on Wednesday, leaders from Seeley Lake praised the BCSA bill.

"The Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act protects our freedom to recreate in the places we love, and we're grateful for Senator Tester for moving the bill forward in the Senate," said Jack Rich, owner of Rich's Montana Guest Ranch in Seeley Lake in the press release. "With all the growth and expansion we're seeing, we need our wild places and open spaces now more than ever. Today's hearing is a historic step towards ensuring that our lands will be managed not just for us, but for generations yet unborn to enjoy and appreciate America's great outdoors."

Gordy Sanders, resource manager at Pyramid Mountain Lumber, also was happy with the bill

"The BCSA is a realistic compromise that's been led by the loggers, snowmobilers, outfitters, ranchers, mountain bikers, and business owners who know this area," Sanders said in the release. "We appreciate Senator Tester's leadership on the issue, now it's time for our congressional folks to work together and find the path forward across the finish line."

The bill is endorsed by The Lewis & Clark County Commission, The Missoula County Commission, The Powell County Commission, Pyramid Mountain Lumber, MTB Missoula, Wild Montana, Montana Wildlife Federation, The Wilderness Society, Business for Montana's Outdoors, MT Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, MT Trout Unlimited, and the Teddy Roosevelt Conservation Partnership.

Tester first introduced the bill in 2017.

Daines's office said the Hoodoo Mountain and Wales Creek WSA have been unsuitable for wilderness based on Bureau of Land Management studies. A 2020 Missoula Resource Management Plan agreed with the findings, writing that the areas should be managed with public input, resource conditions and ecological needs.

"The BLM has indicated Hoodoo Mountain and Wales Creek WSA have been devastated by a Mountain Pine Beetle outbreak leaving a high volume of standing and downed dead timber which poses a public safety risk for sportsmen and increases the likelihood of catastrophic wildfire," the release said. "Removing the WSA designation allows land managers to mitigate these risks, restore, and reforest this land."

With no wilderness designation, the land could be recategorized as a Backcountry Conservation Area, opening the door for wildlife and forest management. Parts of Wales Creek could stay under an Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) designation.

Daines's Montana Sportsmen Conservation Act has support from Supports of Daines' bill include Judith Basin County Commissioners, Powell County Commissioners, Montana State Senate Leadership, Montana Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, Montana Farm Bureau, Montana Outfitters and Guides Association, Blue Ribbon Coalition, Great Falls Bicycle Club, Montana Logging Association, Northern Rockies Wildland Fire Contracting Association and American Forest Resource Council.

Both bills could be voted by the entire senate, but their future is uncertain as the federal government currently deliberates on a budget before a government shutdown on Sept. 30.