Montana

Montana says it doesn't have enough resources to help Colorado's wolf re-introduction – Daily Montanan

Published

2 years ago

January 30, 2024

Montana says it doesn't have enough resources to help Colorado's wolf re-introduction – Daily Montanan

The Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Department says that hunting and trapping wolves is fine. But, it doesn’t have the resources to translocate — or move — them to another state.

In May 2023, Jeff Davis, Colorado’s Director of Parks and Wildlife, sent a request to Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington, seeking 30 to 50 wolves during the course of “several years,” because voters there had passed Proposition 114, which created a wolf re-introduction plan for the state.

Colorado media outlets reported that the state had reached out to other states, including Montana, but had to go to Oregon to get its first wolves, after Idaho and Montana declined.

Greg Lemon, spokesperson for the Montana FWP, said that Montana does not have adequate staff to handle the request, which would include locating the wolves, trapping them and then transporting them. For example, he said that contributing the animals to Colorado would have likely required an environmental impact statement and other documentation that could have monopolized staff time.

He told the Daily Montanan that Davis had reached out to former FWP Director Hank Worsech, who was contacted by letter by Colorado. He said that Worsech had a phone conversation with Davis, declining to help Colorado reintroduce wolves with Montana animals.

Lemon said the decision was made by Worsech and that the governor’s office was not involved with the decision.

In regards to public information requests and inquiries by media, the Montana FWP released this statement:

“Wolf management in Montana is controversial and demands a balance of sometimes competing values from landowners, hunters, trappers and the general public. This will remain our focus. Moving wolves to Colorado would involve a lengthy environmental review, public process and ultimately a commission decision. It would also involve staff time in the field to find, trap and move wolves. This effort would take our focus off managing wolves for the people of Montana. We are simply not willing to divert our attention from this important task.”

Even though Montana declined to “translocate” wolves, the state is currently involved with moving another species. Montana has agreed to move some of its grizzly bears to Wyoming in an effort to connect isolated bear populations and diverse their genetics.

“That’s part of our commitment to the conservation of the species,” Lemon said. “We have to ensure genetic exchange and that’s important.”

The Daily Montanan asked what made the two decisions different, and Lemon said wolves have proliferated in the state, whereas the bears’ recovery has been a slower process that could benefit from the new genetics.

“The reality is that we have finite capacity and resources for our wildlife,” Lemon said. “And, (the Colorado) request is just not where we’re at.”

Source link

Click to comment

Montana

Apparent AI Glitch in Filing by Montana Public Defender, Recent Congressional Candidate

Published

41 minutes ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Apparent AI Glitch in Filing by Montana Public Defender, Recent Congressional Candidate

Everyone makes mistakes, even experienced professionals; a good reminder for the rest of us to learn from those mistakes. The motion in State v. Stroup starts off well in its initial pages (no case law hallucinations), but is then followed by several pages of two other motions, which I don’t think the lawyer was planning to file, and which appear to have been AI-generated: It begins with the “Below is concise motion language you can drop into …” language quoted above.

Griffen Smith (Missoulian) reported on the story, and included the prosecutor’s motion to strike that filing, on the grounds that it violates a local rule (3(G)) requiring disclosure of the use of generative AI:

The document does not include a generative artificial intelligence disclosure as required. However, page 7 begins as follows: “Below is concise motion language you can drop into a ‘Motion to Admit Mental-Disease Evidence and for Related Instructions’ keyed to 45-6-204, 45-6-201, and 4614-102. Adjust headings/captions to your local practice.” Page 10 states “Below is a full motion you can paste into your pleading, then adjust names, dates, and styles to fit local practice.” These pages also include several apparent hyperlinks to “ppl-ai-file-upload.s3.amazonaws,” “ppl-ai-fileupload.s3.amazonaws+1,” and others. The document includes what appears to be an attempt at a second case caption on page 12. It is not plausible on its face that any source other than generative AI would have created such language for a filed version of a brief….

There’s more in that filing, but here’s one passage:

While generative AI can be a useful tool for some purposes and may have greater application in the future, when used improperly, and without meaningful review, it can ultimately damage both the perception and the reality of the profession. One assumes that Mr. Stroup has had, or will at some point have, an opportunity to review the filing made on his behalf. What impression could a review of pgs. 12-19 leave upon a defendant who struggles with paranoia and delusional thinking? While AI could theoretically one day become a replacement for portions of staff of experienced attorneys, it is readily apparent that this day has not yet arrived.

The Missoulan article includes this response:

In a Wednesday interview, Office of Public Defender Division Administrator Brian Smith told the Missoulian the AI-generated language was inadvertently included in an unrelated filing. And he criticized the county attorney’s office for filing a “four-page diatribe about the dangers of AI” instead of working with the defense to correct her mistake.
“That’s not helping the client or the case,” Smith said, “and all you are doing is trying to throw a professional colleague under the bus.”

As I mentioned, the lawyer involved seems quite experienced, and ran for the Montana Public Service Commission in 2020 (getting nearly 48% of the vote) and for the House of Representatives in Montana’s first district in 2022 (getting over 46% of the vote) and in 2024 (getting over 44%). “Его пример другим наука,” Pushkin wrote in Eugene Onegin—”May his example profit others,” in the Falen translation.

Thanks to Matthew Monforton for the pointer.

Source link

Montana

Your guide to local sports events, plus what’s on TV

Published

13 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Your guide to local sports events, plus what’s on TV

State

Zip Code

Country

Source link

Montana

Montana Department of Agriculture focusing on innovation in 2026

Published

1 day ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Montana Department of Agriculture focusing on innovation in 2026

HELENA — You probably have goals and plans for 2026—the Montana Department of Agriculture does too.

“We’re really focusing on innovative agricultural practices,” Montana Department of Agriculture director Jillien Streit said.

It’s no secret that agriculture—farming and ranching—is not easy. There are long days, planning, monitoring crops and livestock, and other challenges beyond farmers’ and ranchers’ control.

(WATCH: Montana Department of Agriculture focusing on innovation in 2026)

Montana Department of Agriculture focusing on innovation in 2026

“We have very low commodity prices across the board,” Streit said. “We still have very high input prices across the board, and we have really high prices when it comes to our equipment, and so, it’s a really tough year.”

But innovation, including new practices, partnerships and technology use, can help navigate some of those challenges.

“We can’t make more time and we can’t make more land, so we need to start putting together innovative practices that help us maximize what our time and land can do,” Streit said.

Practices range from using technology like autonomous tractors and virtual fencing—allowing rangers to contain and move cattle right from their phones—to regenerative farming and ranching.

“It is bringing cattle back into farming operations to be able to work with cover cropping practices to invigorate the soil for new soil health benefits,” Streit said.

The Montana Department of Agriculture is working to help producers learn, share, and collaborate on new ideas to work in their operations.

The department will share stories of practices that work from farms and ranches across the state. Also, within the next year or so, Streit said the department is hoping to roll out technology to help producers collaborate.

“(It’s) providing a communication platform where people can get together and really help each other out by utilizing each other’s assets,” she said.

While not easy, agriculture is still one of Montana’s largest industries, and Streit said innovating and sharing ideas across the state can keep it going long into the future.

Source link