'Rumbling Owl' project would reduce fuels near Holland Lake

A new project from the Flathead National Forest would do fuel reduction, logging and road management work on roughly 6,000 acres in the southeast area of the district, which officials said would help limit dangerous wildfires and increase forest health.

The project stretches from the southern edge of the Flathead National Forest to Rumble Creek, with Highway 83 and the Bob Marshall Wilderness bordering the western and eastern sides. The area would also include Holland Lake and Upper Holland Lake.

More than 4,400 acres of land in the project site would be logged, including 988 acres of regeneration tree harvest, also known as clear cutting. Another 2,022 acres would be subject to prescribed burning and precommercial thinning.

The site is also being considered a Wildland Urban Interface by the Forest Service.

The scoping document of the project, which opened on Nov. 1, said the goal of reducing fuels is to lessen the impact of wildfires in the area. The project document also said the area has not been treated in years, leaving some areas with heavy dead and downed trees.

"Vegetation treatments for fuels mitigation would create conditions in which fire may occur without devastating consequences and provide firefighters the ability to have greater success in suppression activities, thereby protecting community values," the scoping document said.

Work on the project could start as soon as spring 2024. People can comment on the scoping of the project until Dec. 13. There will also be a public meeting/field trip of the site on Nov. 29. To comment electronically, visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=64924. People can also mail hand-written comments to 200 Ranger Station Road, Bigfork, Montana, 59911, with the subject line "Attn: Christopher Dowling (Rumbling Owl)."

Other parts of the project include the restoration of two gravel pits, which currently are not used. Half of the pit on Owl Creek Loop will be used as a storage area, while the other half will be restored back to its riparian habitat. The other pit will be completely restored.

The Forest Service also proposed decommissioning three miles of previously open roads, while building four miles of temporary roads to complete logging and thinning work. The temporary roads will be rehabilitated and closed after project completion.

A similar project is also underway just south of Owl Creek, called the Highway 83 Wild Urban Interface project. That fuels reduction project would affect twice as much land as the Rumbling Owl project.