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A New Season for Clark Fork CoalitionDear Friends, Organizations are a lot like rivers. They don’t stand still. They move and shift. They cut new channels. They have seasonal flows. As the Clark Fork River went about its summer business of moving snowmelt through western Montana, the Clark Fork Coalition (CFC) was busy with its own… -
The Mess at Smurfit-StoneA Living River, A Toxic Legacy Situated in the heart of the ancestral homelands of the Salish, Kalispel, and Ksanka peoples, the Clark Fork River plays an important part not only in the history of the region, but also in the present and future… -
Public Comments Open on Upper Clark Fork Strategic PlanThe State of Montana’s Superfund cleanup of legacy mining pollution from the upper Clark Fork River corridor – between Warm Springs Creek and Garrison – has been underway for 13 years. In that time, the State has removed metals-laced soils from roughly 14 of the project’s 47 river miles and… -
Peak Snow Water Equivalent SeasonHappy peak SWE (snow water equivalent) season! For those of us who really like to nerd out on the climate data, this time of year is always exciting. Most mountainous locations in western Montana experience peak levels of snowpack accumulation anywhere from mid-March through mid-May (largely dependent on elevation) but… -
Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunity to Help America’s WildlifeIt’s been 15 years in the making and when it’s done, it will be one of the biggest funding boosts to help wildlife and their habitats in many, many decades. The federal bipartisan Recovering America’s Wildlife Act (RAWA) will help conserve fish and wildlife in every state in the country,… -
Racetrack Creek Finally Has Chance to Connect to Clark Fork Riverby Andrew Gorder “The plaintiffs are owners of lands requiring irrigation, which could be served by Racetrack Creek, were the waters of the stream sufficiently copious. […]. Conceiving that an ample supply of water might be obtained if the surplus flood and waste waters of the… -
Commissioners weaken selenium standardby David Brooks, executive Director, Montana Trout Unlimited; Andrew Gorder, legal director, Clark Fork Coalition; Ellie Hudson-Heck, conservation assistant, Idaho Conservation League; Derf Johnson, Clean Water Program director and staff attorney, Montana Environmental Information Center Commissioners not telling the truth about selenium standard As the adage goes: everyone is entitled… -
Clark Fork Litter Is a Global Issueby Sam Dwyer I’ve spent 94.9% of my life in Montana, but a few years ago I had an opportunity to work at an international school in the Middle East. When I moved to Oman, one of the most striking cultural differences wasn’t the Arabic language or the abayas—there… -
Upper Clark Fork Diversion Dam Removal ProjectAbove: Alvi-Beck site in October 2021 after installation of rock riffle diversion and… -
Gianforte’s Refusal to Enforce Bad Actor Law Is Dead Wrong for MontanansGUEST OPINION by Jeffrey Stiffarm, Kathi Slora, Jim Nash, Dave Lyman, and Debbie Lyman After we read Jerry Bennett’s recent guest opinion, “Montana DEQ did the right thing on Hecla mining proposal” (Helena Independent Record, Dec. 7, 2021), we couldn’t help but wonder, “right for whom?” The Department of Environmental… -
Making Progress with Beaver Conflict ResolutionSummary of the 2021 field season of the Montana Beaver Conflict Resolution Program by Anne Greene During the 2021 field season, Elissa Chott was busy as a beaver. It’s hard to avoid the comparison since Elissa is the beaver specialist with the Montana Beaver Conflict Resolution Program, a partnership… -
Keep Our Rivers Clean, Not GreenNutrient Pollution in Waterways Set to Worsen Click for enlarged view and links. You might remember that around this time last year we asked for your help in fighting legislation that would abandon longstanding science-based and data-driven methods of preventing…