Montana

Montana Governor and Park Superintendent clash over Yellowstone Bison

Published

2 years ago

July 27, 2024

Montana Governor and Park Superintendent clash over Yellowstone Bison

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK — Yellowstone National Park published its bison management plan for the coming years this week to both praise and condemnation. Parks superintendent Cam Sholly is reacting to some strong criticism from Montana Governor Greg Gianforte.

“This comes down mostly to population,” said Sholly.

He added, “We’ve tried to strike a balance, listen to various stakeholders, cooperating agencies, tribes, the general public, to come up with a balanced plan that’s by far not perfect.”

MTN NEWS

“We’ve tried to strike a balance, listen to various stakeholders, cooperating agencies, tribes, the general public, to come up with a balanced plan that’s by far not perfect,” said Cam Sholly.

Yellowstone bison, have always elicited a strong response from people. Some want to see a lot more, others want to see a lot less. The state of Montana is among the latter. It has almost always advocated for fewer bison.

Sholly says reducing the herd too much could jeopardize the population. He said, “People remember the 2022-23 season. We had almost 4,000 bison out of the park. We had to capture almost 1,000 and hold them for almost two months to prevent a massive starvation situation, which no one wants.”

This week, Yellowstone National Park published its bison management plan for coming years this week to both praise and condemnation. Parks superintendent Cam Sholly is reacting to some strong criticism from Montana Governor Greg Gianforte.

That season the herd dropped from about 5,900 animals to about 3,700 in just a matter of months.

“If we had only 3,000 bison as a state as requested in the population and we had another migration out like that, then what?” Asked Sholly.

Montana Governor Greg Gianforte said the state has legitimate concerns about the bison population and claims that the Park Service is refusing to listen. He said in a letter to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland that Montana was shut out of the conversation. He wrote, “The NPS did not solicit meaningful input from, or collaborate with, my administration prior to the publication of its January 28, 2022, Notice outlining the alternatives for consideration.”

Sholly maintains that’s not what happened. He said, “I offered for the state to present its own alternative that we would include in the analysis that didn’t happen.”

Sholly claims the park’s efforts to protect Montana’s cattle from brucellosis are successful.

“There’s been elk transmitting to cattle. There’s not been a documented bison transmission. That’s because we maintained that separation successfully,” said Sholly.

But Gianforte says facts are on his side. in the letter, he writes the state was, “Given only 15 days to review a 230 page document.” He added that on May 1 he was given until May 24th to schedule a meeting with the park. He wrote, “Unable to accommodate such a short and impromptu comment timeframe… I declined YNP’s offer to meet.” He also said the state asked for a 60-day extension of the comment period but the park only extended that time by 15 days. Sholly maintains the state’s desire to have a fixed population of 3,000 bison is not realistic.

“You can’t manage a wild species to a static population target. Even the state just changed, from their elk objective of 2005, which was somewhere around 92,000, to a range last year, which is like 96,000 to 140,000, because they were over their objective in multiple areas in the state, including North of Yellowstone,” said Sholly.

Gianforte concluded his letter by writing there is a new day in the West and closed with an ominous note, when he wrote, “Repeated and continuous procedural abuses, like those outlined above have hardened those who once believed in fair play. Instead states like Montana will now show up prepared for marginalized participation, short-changed processes, dishonest brokerage and ultimately, litigation.”

“So it’s pretty easy just to come out against everything. It’s another thing to come up with solutions to managing the species successfully,” said Sholly.

Sholly said the park works successfully on bison management with many agencies, plus the public and Indian tribes.

NPS announces decision on bison management plan in Yellowstone National Park
Rare, sacred white bison has not been seen in Yellowstone since birth
Yellowstone National Park calls for more bison in new plan
Buffalo Field Campaign reacts to NPS Bison management plan

Source link

Click to comment

Montana

Evacuation orders issued as 5,000-acre wildfire burns near Roundup, Montana

Published

3 hours ago

February 27, 2026

Press Room

Evacuation orders issued as 5,000-acre wildfire burns near Roundup, Montana

ROUNDUP, Mont. —
The Rehder Creek Fire is burning 16 miles southeast of Roundup has grown to about 5,000 acres, prompting evacuation orders for residents in the Bruner Mountain Area/Subdivision.

The fire started Feb. 26, the cause is unknown and containment was at 0%.

Evacuation orders are in effect for all residents in the Bruner Mountain Area/Subdivision. The Musselshell County Sheriff’s Office is coordinating the evacuation orders, and 911 reverse calls have been sent out to advise people in the area.

A shelter is opening at the Roundup Community Center. Residents were told to contact Musselshell County DES for further information.

Firefighter and public safety remain the top priority. The public is asked to avoid the Fattig Creek and Rehder Road area so emergency personnel can safely and effectively perform their work.

Fire resources assigned to the incident include 40 total personnel, 11 engines, one Type 2 helicopter, three tenders and two dozers.

Source link

Montana

February 26 recap: Missoula and Western Montana news you may have missed today

Published

15 hours ago

February 27, 2026

Press Room

February 26 recap: Missoula and Western Montana news you may have missed today

State

Zip Code

Country

Source link

Montana

Escobar, Jayapal, Members of Congress Call on Camp East Montana to be Shut Down – Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal

Published

1 day ago

February 26, 2026

Press Room

Escobar, Jayapal, Members of Congress Call on Camp East Montana to be Shut Down – Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar (TX-16) – joined by Representative Pramila Jayapal, the Ranking Member of the Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Subcommittee, and 22 other Members of Congress – sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Todd Lyons calling for the immediate closure of Camp East Montana in El Paso. They cite urgent humanitarian concerns following multiple deaths in custody, documented unsafe conditions, and serious deficiencies in medical care.

This marks the fourth letter Congresswoman Escobar has sent to DHS and ICE leadership. The previous three letters have gone unanswered.

The letter can be found in its entirety below and here.

“Secretary Noem and Acting Director Lyons:

We are urgently calling on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS or the Department) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to shut down Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas.

Camp East Montana has been operational for six months, and at least three people have died at the site since December 2025: Francisco Gaspar-Andres, Geraldo Lunas Campos, and Victor Manuel Diaz. The El Paso County Medical Examiner has officially ruled Lunas Campos’ death a homicide, citing “asphyxia due to neck and torso compression.”

Camp East Montana was constructed in a matter of weeks and opened before construction was complete and it does not have enough federal staff on-site to provide adequate oversight. Over the last several months, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar, in whose district this facility is located, has sent multiple letters to DHS and ICE regarding concerns about the conditions at Camp East Montana, and has received no responses.

According to detainees, there have been constant and consistent problems at the facility since it opened, beginning with the facility’s poor construction and poor ambient temperature control. Upon opening, the drinking water at Camp East Montana tasted foul and made some detainees sick. Detainees continue to be served inadequate meals, including food that is rotten or frozen; last fall, the facility was also consistently failing to make dietary accommodations for detainees. Detainees have shared that they have sporadic access to outside spaces and recreational areas, and that their dormitory pods are cleaned only once every eight days, despite pods housing up to 72 people at a time. Laundry services are not consistent, and people are washing their clothes in the facility showers. Additionally, the facility experiences flooding and sewage backups when it rains, leading to stagnant water.

One of the biggest concerns with the Camp East Montana facility is the inadequate medical care being provided to detainees. Our offices have heard that only the most ill detainees are referred to the medical unit and that there are inconsistencies as to how soon after arriving detainees are able to undergo initial medical screenings. Detainees with chronic health issues who rely on regimented medications for their health have had difficulty accessing necessary medications, including blood pressure medication and insulin.

At least one of the deaths that occurred in ICE custody, the death of Francisco Gaspar-Andres, appears to partially be the result of poor medical care by staff at the facility. According to ICE’s own account, Gaspar-Andres sought medical attention from facility staff for increasingly serious symptoms, but was only transferred to an area hospital once his condition had severely deteriorated.

In addition to our concerns about poor medical care, we are also aware that detainees have experienced irregular access to their legal counsel, including instances of detainees having only two minutes allotted per phone call every 8 days, which is contrary to ICE’s Detention Standards on access to counsel, and that the belatedly created law library lacks adequate resources for the amount of people currently held at the facility. In January 2026, ICE announced the on-site death of Geraldo Lunas Campos “after experiencing medical distress.” ICE opened an investigation into the death, but did not provide a cause of death. However, The Washington Post later reported that another man detained at Camp East Montana had witnessed guards choking Lunas Campos when he refused to enter a segregated housing unit. Weeks later, the El Paso County Medical Examiner ruled that Lunas Campos had experienced “asphyxia due to neck and torso compression” and ruled his death a homicide.

Lunas Campos is the first detainee to die at Camp East Montana as a result of a use-of-force incident, but we are strongly concerned that he will not be the last if ICE is allowed to continue operating Camp East Montana.

ICE was given $45 billion in taxpayer dollars in the reconciliation bill, $1.2 billion of which were awarded to Acquisition Logistics, LLC, a company with no previous experience managing immigration detention facilities, to build and oversee Camp East Montana. However, in the wake of three deaths in custody so far, continued concerns about conditions at the facility, and ICE’s apparent disinterest in responding to oversight letters from Congress, we do not believe Camp East Montana is being run professionally or responsibly.

Camp East Montana must be shut down. For the safety of everyone at the facility, for an end to abuses to detainees, and for fiscal responsibility to the American people, the site cannot continue to operate. We are calling on DHS and ICE to move to immediately close operations at Camp East Montana.

We look forward to hearing from the Department promptly on this matter.

The other co-signers include Representatives Yassamin Ansari, Nanette Barragán, Yvette Clarke, Lloyd Doggett, Maxwell Frost, Jesús “Chuy” García, Sylvia Garcia, Daniel Goldman, Jimmy Gomez, Henry Johnson, Stephen Lynch, Seth Moulton, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Delia Ramirez, Andrea Salinas, Janice Schakowsky, Darren Soto, Rashida Tlaib, Paul Tonko, Lauren Underwood, Gabe Vasquez, and Nydia Velázquez.

Issues: Immigration

Source link