Backcountry Musings

Montana state officials have already made a New Year’s resolution: Sue the federal government. In a lawsuit filed on Dec. 31, Montana Governor Greg Gianforte accused the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) of violating established agreements for managing bison.

Federal wildlife officials have ignored Montana’s concerns about increased numbers of bison, the lawsuit said, and also avoided vaccinating the animals against brucellosis, a disease that worries the state’s cattle-ranching industry.

It’s the latest escalation in a decades-long conflict between state and federal officials over management of bison herds in Yellowstone National Park. The core issue is about how to manage the animals when they leave park borders and roam into Montana. According to the lawsuit, the NPS changed the rules regarding bison numbers and vaccination in a 2024 environmental impact statement without consulting state officials.

The lawsuit was filed in district court by Gianforte’s office, the Montana Department of Livestock, and the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks. The NPS didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday.

“The new Bison Management Plan is another example of Yellowstone National Park’s tendency to do what it wants, leaving Montana to collect the pieces,” the lawsuit said.
READ FULL STORY

READ FULL STORY

Uncle Sam has a belated Christmas gift for anyone who loves visiting national parks.

After years of political wrangling between state and federal officials, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced Monday the purchase of 640 acres of additional land within Grand Teton National Park. Known as the Kelly Parcel, the “picturesque landscape” has mountain views and “world-class wildlife habitat,” federal officials said in a news release.

The parcel was the largest remaining piece of unprotected land within the national park’s boundaries. By adding the area to the park, wildlife managers can maintain “essential connectivity for wildlife in the southern Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem,” officials said. They called the zone one of the last remaining temperate ecosystems on the planet that’s mostly intact.

The $100 million sale to preserve the parcel was made possible through a partnership between the Interior Department and the National Park Service. They pooled money from the Grand Teton National Park Foundation ($37.6 million), the Land and Water Conservation Fund ($62.4 million), and the National Park Foundation. But private donations were a big part of the conservation victory as well. Nearly 400 donors from 46 states made gifts ranging from $10 million to $15 million.

“We are in awe of the incredible generosity of hundreds of people who stepped forward to protect this essential parcel,” Grand Teton National Park Foundation President Leslie Mattson said.