Week of April 21, 2024
Week of April 21, 2024
Five days a week, a short train rolls out of the rail yard in Whitefish with empty freight cars destined for the Flathead Valley's three surviving wood products mills in Columbia Falls and Evergreen. At one time, short trains like this could be found all over western Montana, serving mills in places like Libby, St. Regis, Darby and Pablo. But today, this is one of the few "local" freights left in the region. Since 1990, about three dozen mills have closed in western Montana,...
Helena, MT - Lewis and Clark County Public Health (LCPH) is teaming up with St. Peter's Health and the Helena Police Department to enhance and expand behavioral health and crisis intervention services through the Mobile Crisis Response Team (MCRT) Community Coalition. "When someone in our community experiences a behavioral health crisis, be it mental illness or substance misuse, we have a team of first responders that can partner with law enforcement and help take the lead on...
HELENA – Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, along with 24 other attorneys general, filed a lawsuit Thursday against the Biden Administration’s unlawful electric vehicle (EV) mandate that threatens the economy, puts jobs at risk, and undermines the reliability of the electric grid. This is the 42nd lawsuit Attorney General Knudsen has filed against the Biden administration. The new emissions rule, put in place by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), forces...
HELENA, Montana – Lewis and Clark Public Health officials, in collaboration with PureView Health Center, St. Peter's Health, United Way of the Lewis and Clark Area, Rocky Mountain Development Council, and the Montana Department of Health and Human Services, are overseeing a first-of-its-kind community health survey in a multi-county area that spans Lewis and Clark, Jefferson, Powell, Broadwater, and Meagher counties. Scheduled for late June, the Community Assessment for...
Lincoln Solid Waste Customers: Beginning May 1, aluminum recycling will be moved from the Lincoln Senior Center to the Lincoln Transfer site. When bringing your aluminum to the site, please be sure to remove it from any trash bags or boxes. Plastic bags in the aluminum recycling bin soils the load. Paper recycling has been discontinued at this time. The recycling bins located at the Senior Center will be removed from the parking lot. Please call...
About every 20 years, Lewis and Clark County tackles the thorny issue of drafting a new, updated policy to plan for anticipated changes as the result of population growth in the county. Later this month, Lewis and Clark County will host a series of open house meetings to gather information from residents on the direction the county should take in develping a new Comprehensive Growth Policy. Since the county adopted its current policy in 2004, the county has seen a population...
Gasoline prices are ending the week several cents higher on average than the week prior, according to AAA data. For now, prices have remained relatively stable given analysts' forecast that drone attacks on Russian oil and gas infrastructure might drive prices for oil higher. "Renewed Ukrainian attacks on Russia's oil infrastructure and increasing tension in the Middle East spiked oil prices recently," AAA spokesperson Andrew Gross said in a statement this week. "And with...
Gov. Greg Gianforte announced Tuesday that the state is deploying a small number of Montana National Guard troops to the nation's southern border, describing the action as an effort to help the state of Texas police cross-border drug trafficking in light of what he described as inaction by the federal government. According to the announcement, 10 Montana National Guardsmen have volunteered for active duty as part of Texas' Operation Lone Star. The Guardsmen are scheduled to...
LINCOLN, Mont.: This summer, the Montana Department of Transportation and Sletten Construction, in cooperation with Lewis and Clark County, will replace the Dalton Mountain Road Bridge over the Blackfoot River, located three miles west of Lincoln. Sletten Construction was awarded the contract to build the bridge for $3.9 million. Starting in early April, initial work will begin with crews trimming and removing trees. The traveling public should expect flaggers and short...
The pending closures of Missoula County's two largest wood products employers, announced separately this month, will have effects beyond the local economy, limiting options for landowners and other mills throughout the region and making forest management projects more expensive, according to local and industry officials. "It's not just the facilities and jobs that are impacted at those facilities," said Todd Morgan, director of the University of Montana's Forest Industry...
BOZEMAN – The Museum of the Rockies will host the third annual “Dinosaurs and MOR!” festival April 12-14, bringing together top paleontologists, dinosaur enthusiasts and a lineup of activities for all ages. Events include family-friendly programs, junior paleontologist passport stations and 18 presentations by scientists from around the globe. For more information and to purchase tickets to any of these events, visit museumoftherockies.org/dinos. “Dinosaurs and...
Our region is at a critical time in its energy landscapes, navigating a complex network of resources, policies, and environmental concerns. This latest winter was a great case study for the reliability problem of intermittent green sources that are being pushed nationwide. In Montana, Northwestern Energy spokesperson Jo Dee Black commented in January, "Wind and solar generation could not produce much if any, power during the extreme cold." In Washington, Grant County PUD...
It's well known locally that Lincoln counts a larger than usual number of veterans among its residents, but it's not always obvious, even to other veterans, who they are. Finding a way to let veterans connect with one another was at the heart of the March 29 Veterans Meet and Greet Pancake Breakfast sponsored by Lincoln American Legion Post 9. Nearly 50 veterans and family members turned out for the free pancake breakfast, which was seen as a good turnout, particularly for a...
The Bureau of Land Management on Thursday adopted a long-awaited rule that aims to put conservation initiatives "on equal footing" with oil and gas leasing, grazing and other commercial uses of federal land. The rule "combines our ongoing work with a vision for conservation to help us manage lands into the 21st century," BLM Director Tracy Stone-Manning said in a video announcing the rule. "It ensures that the BLM can carry out its multiple-use and sustained-yield mission now...
HELENA – Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is accepting applications from landowners who are interested in participating in the 2024 Block Management Program. Application deadline is June 1. Through the Block Management Program, landowners and FWP work together to help manage wildlife and public hunting activities on enrolled lands. Landowners and FWP enter into voluntary agreements that determine how hunting will be conducted on the landowner's property. Items such as...
More than 100 years ago, my grandparents made a life for our family on a homesteaded plot of land outside of Big Sandy that we still farm to this day. I've been blessed to call Montana home my entire life and to always have a place to rest my head after a hard day's work. Unfortunately, finding an affordable place to live has become a challenge for far too many Montanans. As I travel across Montana, I hear about how housing challenges are hurting working families. From...
I recently announced that I'm in the process of appointing a new committee of the State Legislature. The Senate Select Committee on Judicial Oversight and Reform is a bipartisan committee that will be made up of state senators, representatives, and members of the public. It will be charged with addressing violations of the state's constitutional separation of powers by the Montana Supreme Court and certain district court judges. A series of troubling judicial rulings at the...
The Upper Blackfoot Valley, specifically the community of Lincoln, is not just where I live, it is also where I serve. As a native Montanan, I moved to Lincoln 20 years ago and found my place. I was surrounded by country where I could fish, hunt, and enjoy the backcountry whether on a snowmobile or a mule. I first served as a volunteer firefighter, and now serve as the Lincoln Fire Chief and as a member of the Upper Blackfoot Valley Community Council. Almost ten years ago, I...
Dear Montanans, This is a hopeful time for so many of our students. The future is bright as graduation nears and families beam with pride, anticipating their child walking across that stage. As a legislator, a former classroom teacher and the mom of a high school student, though, I must admit I worry. Are we doing enough to make sure all our students have the opportunities they deserve? That is why I'm running to be your next State Superintendent of Schools. We've essentially...
Disagree Better. That's the name of an interesting initiative at the National Governors Association this year, spearheaded by the organization's current chair, Utah Republican Gov. Spencer Cox. The idea, in a nutshell, is to "reduce partisan animosity and foster healthy debate by modeling a more positive and optimistic way of working through policy problems," as the NGA puts it. It would be easy to scoff, of course. In this era of bitter political hostility, as we head into a...
Let me first introduce myself. My name is Todd Devlin and I am 4th generation farmer/rancher in eastern Montana. I have been a Prairie County Commissioner since 1995. I was President of the Montana Association of Counties (MACo) in 2016 - 2017. I have been very involved in public land and natural resource issues both at the state and national level for over 30 years and currently am the Chair of the National Association of Counties Public Lands Steering Committee. And,...
Our beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, surrounded by family, passed away peacefully in her home Feb. 20, 2024 at the age of 88. Charlotte was born on March 20, 1935 in Cadiz, Ohio to Dennis and Mable Mizer. She was the oldest of four siblings. After graduating from Cadiz High School, she attended White Cross Nursing School in Columbus, Ohio graduating with an RN degree. She married Roland "Ron" Barger Oct. 9, 1955. With Ron's Forest Service career, they... Full story
Billie Ann Shafford, age 57 of Helena, passed away April 3, 2024. Services are pending at this time and will be announced when they're... Full story
AA Tradition One if you need to talk, call Jay at 406-750-1238 or Dawn at 406-362-4697 Alcoholics Anonymous, Lincoln Chapter 6-7 p.m., Lambkins restaurant back room. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. American Legion, Post 9 7 p.m., Third Wednesday of the month, Lincoln Community Hall Blackfoot Community Conservation Area Council Meeting 7 p.m., First Thursday of the month, Ovando Fire Hall Cal 406-739-3900 to confirm Blackfoot Challenge Board... Full story
Lincoln Community United Methodist Church Worship, 10:30 a.m. First and Third Sunday of the month, Pastor Terry Turner. For Food Bank information, please contact Diane Ironi at the Senior Ctr. Blackfoot Valley Bible Church Sunday Worship 11 a.m. Adult Sunday Bible Study, 9:45 a.m.; Ladies Bible Class, 2:45 p.m. Tuesday at the church; Men’s Breakfast and Bible Study, Friday 7 a.m.; Sunday evening Prayer Meeting, 6 p.m. Pastor Art McCafferty, 362-4714. Community Bible Church of Lincoln Sunday Worship Service, 11:00 a.m. at... Full story
