FWP begins review of Whitefish Lake watershed easement

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks is beginning the review of a proposal to conserve 13,398 acres of Weyerhaeuser property nine miles northwest of Whitefish.

FWP is planning to work with The Trust for Public Land on the project. FWP is seeking public input on the proposal and environmental assessment during a meeting Wednesday, June 21 at 6:30 p.m. at Grouse Mountain Lodge. The hearing is a chance to ask questions about the proposed project and submit public comment.

The project, known as the Whitefish Lake Watershed Project, calls for TPL to acquire the entire project area from Weyerhaeuser by the end of September 2017. FWP would purchase the Lazy Creek Conservation easement at about 10,000 acres in two phases with a combination of federal and state funding.

The Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation would purchase the underlying fee ownership from TPL once the conservation easement is in place.

The Bonneville Power Administration would provide funding for the purchase of the remaining 3,000 acres in the Swift Creek watershed. In exchange for their funding, BPA would retain a perpetual conservation easement with ownership of these sections being transferred to either DNRC or FWP.

The environmental assessment evaluates the proposed FWP actions of purchasing the Lazy Creek Conservation Easement and the potential for FWP to assume ownership of five sections in the Swift Creek drainage. DNRC’s potential actions are subject to their separate review and approval process.

The draft environmental assessment is out for a 30-day public review through 5 p.m. on July 12. Copies of the draft are available at the FWP office, 490 N. Meridian Rd., Kalispell and online at fwp.mt.gov/News/Recent Public Notices/Environmental Assessments/Acquisitions, Trades & Leases; and available for viewing at local libraries.

Comments can be submitted to: Nancy Ivy; Fish, Wildlife and Parks; 490 North Meridian Road, Kalispell, MT 59901 or call 406-751-4579 or by email at nivy@mt.gov.

For more information, contact Alan Wood at 406-751-4595 or awood@mt.gov; or Kris Tempel at 406-751-4573 or ktempel@mt.gov.