The prairie grasslands of central Montana have been the focal point of wild bison restoration attempts for many years. So far, past bison rewilding efforts have met with little success in our region, notwithstanding the American Prairie Reserve’s attempt to raise bison as domestic livestock for release one day as a wildlife species.   

While American Prairie Reserve’s plan for creating a multimillion acre wild bison reserve remains palpable, it seems their effort is now being augmented by a new bison rewilding paradigm developed last year by Department of the Interior.  

On March 23, 2023, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland issued Secretarial Order 3410 titled: Restoration of American Bison and the Prairie Grasslands. The order provides for restoring bison on tribal lands throughout the west and centers on Haaland’s precept that “restoring bison and healthy grasslands can serve as a step toward national healing and reconciliation after centuries of federal policies designed to erase Native people and their culture.” 

Haaland’s playbook calls for the translocation of bison from various places to Indian reservations throughout the west. While establishing bison herds on tribal lands seems inoffensive at first glance, one could argue that this tactic is part of a backdoor plan to phase in bison on native grasslands in Montana.  

For example, the Blackfeet announced several years ago that they intend to release some of their bison onto adjacent national forest lands. A former superintendent of Glacier National Park stated that he would welcome bison that stray into the park from the Blackfeet Reservation.  

Over time, there will be escaped bison from tribal lands that are left to wander because they are tough to round up and hard to retrieve. Add planned bison releases by some Montana tribes to the mix and a bison rewilding paradigm becomes reality.   

But there’s more. Haaland indicates that Interior’s bison rewilding plan will not be limited to tribal lands and has directed her Bison Working Group to: “Actively pursue bison restoration on both Federal and Tribal lands; support partner restoration efforts (e.g. APR); and, pursue opportunities with other federal agencies for bison restoration on lands they manage.”  

Going forward, the tea leaves seem to read that the CMR National Wildlife Refuge (CMR) will soon be revising its wildlife management plan to provide for free ranging bison on the refuge. 

Bison on the CMR would be managed unfenced the same as any other wildlife species. Natural barriers, no tolerance zones and perhaps a few drift fences will be the only management tools used to control bison.  Because American Prairie Reserve owns thousands of acres of private land around the CMR, bison that stray off the refuge would be welcomed on American Prairie Reserve’s private holdings and allowed to proliferate as a wildlife species. And, let’s not forget that American Prairie Reserve has also purchased land that butts up to the Fort Belknap Reservation.  

Haaland portrays her bison rewilding initiative as a win-win for everyone and states that: “The best science shows that returning bison to grasslands can enhance soil development, restore native plants and wildlife, and promote carbon sequestration, thereby providing benefits for agriculture, outdoor recreation, and Tribes.”  

Ready or not, it won’t be long before meta populations of free ranging bison will be scattered throughout Montana. They will leak in from tribal lands and from other federally managed lands like monuments, refuges and parks. 

It’s a new bison rewilding paradigm for Montana.  

Ron Poertner lives in Winifred.

A crew of 20 wildland firefighters will be sent to Helena, Montana to help battle a large fire that has burned thousands of acres of land.

The firefighters will be working to put out one of the nine large, active and uncontained fires that have already burned almost 46,000 acres across the state, according to the state Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR).

The department added that this is the first time a DCR crew is being deployed to assist with increased fire activity across the northwest, California and the Rocky Mountain states.

A slice of paradise in Montana is suffering economic disruption, but it isn’t a result of any political battles or environmental change. Instead, Seeley Lake’s problem lies in its lack of a centralized sewer system.

The Missoula County community’s reluctance to come up with a plan to replace its septic system means no affordable housing can be built for working people. While high-end septic systems can service multi-family dwellings, local officials explain that they’re not cost effective for the type of housing developers would seek to build in the area. The solution? Only a sewer system will do.

That lack of accommodation means Seeley Lake’s biggest employer — Pyramid Mountain Lumber — can’t attract enough workers to continue, and is closing the family-owned business which has been operating for 75 years.

“To make the announcement to the crew was probably the toughest thing; I’ve got friends, family, you know, generations, good friends that work here. I had to tell them we’re going to shut the doors,” Todd Johnson, a third-generation lumber mill worker whose grandfather started the mill in 1948, told ABC News.

“I’ve never drawn a paycheck from any other business in my whole life. I started here in sixth grade,” Johnson said. “This is all I’ve ever known.” Johnson has since worked his way up to become general manager.

Missoula County was once home to multiple sawmills and a thriving lumber industry. Pyramid Mountain Lumber is the last one, so its shuttering will mark the industry’s end in the area.

“There hasn’t been an apartment, duplex or fourplex built in this town in over 30 years,” Johnson said. “When you’re talking about entry-level housing for more blue collar workers…it’s not available.”

Pyramid isn’t the only local business affected by the worker shortage. Rovero’s Hardware is “running on a skeleton crew” as its busiest season approaches, general manager Kyle Marx noted.

“No affordable housing here,” he said. “Rentals have diminished since COVID hit, and everybody came up here, bought every rental darn near that was available and turned them into vacation rentals or moved up here themselves.”

Dee Baker, who owns antique store Grizzly Claw Trading Company, said it’s a long-term issue.

“There could be low-income housing built, but the people in the town cannot come to an agreement [for a sewer system] with Missoula County,” Baker said. “And it’s been going on for years and years.”

The situation was borne from local reluctance to pay for a centralized sewer system that would allow Seeley Lake to expand, and a fear that such a major infrastructure change would alter the community’s character, according to Missoula Board of County Commissioners chair Dave Strohmaier.

“The irony is that the lack of the infrastructure is … a big reason why Pyramid Mountain Lumber cannot find the housing for their employees and the employees to keep it going, and hence change is upon us,” Strohmaier said.

Johnson offered a glimpse of how much the town would lose once the lumber business closed.

“Our payroll just here to our employees is over $6 million a year,” he said. “You take that out of this economy, it’ll change the fabric of the town. There’s no doubt.”