Comment period extended on river proposal

The Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission has extended the comment period until Aug. 8 for its proposal to amend boating rules on a section of the Whitefish River.

Currently the Whitefish River has a no wake restriction from the outlet of Whitefish Lake to the JP Bridge. The city of Whitefish submitted the original petition to the Fish and Wildlife Commission to restrict motorized boating year-round. The Commission initiated rulemaking, and public comment was taken from March 13 to April 18. At its June 12 meeting, the Commission did not adopt that proposal, and instead is proposing an alternative for consideration.

The Commission proposes restricting the Whitefish River to manually and electric powered watercraft from the railroad trestle south of the Whitefish Lake outlet to the bridge on JP Road from July 5 through Sept. 30.

An extension of the comment period is necessary to address the alternative language. The commission will consider the original proposed amendments and the new alternative amendments at their Oct. 16 meeting.

 Concerned persons may submit their data, views or arguments concerning the proposed actions in writing to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, 490 N. Meridian Rd., Kalispell, MT 59901; by fax at 406-444-4756; or by email to cjust@mt.gov.

 Comments may also be submitted online at fwp.mt.gov under Public Notices. All comments must be submitted by Aug. 8.