The impact of factory farming upon the American land and native biodiversity is seldom discussed, but animal protein production has a significant impact upon the Nation’s land and water. The direct environmental problems like air or water pollution associated with large factory farming operations may be clear, but less obvious are the environmental impacts associated with the agricultural production of feed crops and other consequences associated with large factory farming operations. [more]

2009 Montana State Legislature

There’s only a short time left in a legislative session that one environmentalist says has been just plain “rotten.”

“There really is very little good coming out of this session,” Anne Hedges, program director for the Montana Environmental Information Center, said. [more]

This is the way we tidy up....

Montana Attorney General Mike McGrath sued Stimson Lumber Co. on Wednesday to force the removal of a berm, a wastewater pond and some old wooden structures at the defunct mill site near the mouth of the Blackfoot River.

The berm, pond, wood pilings and old foundations are dangerous and in immediate danger of collapse, the suit says. If the berm fails, Blackfoot River waters could wash toxic metals downstream. [more]

Headwater Summit, Sept. 15-17

Local author David James Duncan will speak about what you can do about climate change in his keynote address for the free two-day Headwaters Summit in Missoula, hosted by the Clark Fork Coalition, Western Progress and the National Wildlife Federation.

Duncan's talk will be (did I mention that it will be free?) Monday, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m. at the University Theater at the University of Montana campus. Afterward, the Clark Fork Coalition will hold a cocktail reception at its office, 140 S. 4th St. W. (The nonprofit, in my experience, does a great job hosting parties.) [more]

Retrievers should wait, too

It’s going to be hot this weekend – in the ‘90s, says KIVI Ch. 6 Weatherguy Scott Dorval, but despite the wild temptation to mark the start of warm weather, don’t float the Boise river yet.

Waiting to float is a deep personal sacrifice for us, but we’ll do it. Actually, not do it. Right, Boiseans?
[more]

Understanding the land you live on

In the Intermountain West climate varies – by elevation, aspect, within valleys and even within backyards.

In natural landscapes, the varieties of plants (and where they grow) offer clues to microclimates. But man-made landscapes (like wheat fields and blue grass lawns) “mask” the diversity of climate within. The mask leads landowners to assume that the climate on their property is all the same. They discover their mistake when their plantings fail.

Natural features like elevation, aspect, and wind affect local climate, and therefore your backyard is a microclimate. [more]

NewWest.Net Conferences

The Designing the New West: Architecture and Landscape in the Mountain West Conference is wrapping up here in Bozeman at the historic Gallatin Gateway Inn. Put on by NewWest.Net and sponsored by the Sonoran Institute, the conference brought together designers from all over the country to explore innovative design ideas, identify best practices, and better understand how to bridge the gap between good architectural theory and sometimes-messy building practices in the fastest growing region in the nation.

A mix of presentations and engaging panel discussions tackled pressing Western issues like sustainable development, land design and the special challenges of urban, rural and resort design, historic preservation and affordable housing.

Click on the photo or here for a slideshow of the days' events. Click "more" for a recap of the conference. [more]

growth and rivers

Streamside setback regulations protect a stream from “death by a thousand cuts” hydrogeologist Dr. Chris Brick told City Club Missoula at its monthly luncheon Monday.

By themselves, a single home or a stretch of rip-rapped bank do not present much danger to a stream, but collectively, all the structures, armored stretches of bank and cleared riparian vegetation do, said Brick, the staff scientists for the Clark Fork Coalition, an organization focused on community development and environmental protection of the Clark Fork River.

“What we’re concerned about is how we can maintain our Montana values for our streams and rivers in the face of lots of people wanting to come here,” Brick said. [more]

A Little More Room to Breathe

For the first time in a decade, wild bison will be allowed to legally roam outside of Yellowstone National Park.

The purchase of the cattle grazing rights from the Church Universal and Triumphant’s Royal Teton Ranch will provide an approximate 5,000-acre “zone” where bison can roam outside of the park boundary while having little-to-no risk of possible interaction and transmission of brucellosis to Montana’s cattle.

Although too small in landmass to provide the title “Free-ranging Yellowstone bison," the range is released through a pact agreement and collaboration between three federal agencies, two Montana agencies, one private landowner and a coalition of four non-profit organizations.
[more]

Bison Update

As changing land use and attitudes toward bison open the possibility for reduced conflict between bison, cattle and humans on the west side of Yellowstone National Parl, a potential deal on the north side of the park could allow bison to follow a traditional migration corridor for the first time in a long time. But the deal is short some $1.5 million from the federal government, and it is also not without criticism from bison advocates. [more]