Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks was awarded nearly $5 million by the U.S. Department of the Interior and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
The money will expand existing programs aimed at reducing conflicts between grizzly bears and landowners. Programs like electric fencing, carcass removals, bear-resistant containers and the use of range riders — people on horseback who closely follow livestock herds to deter bears.
These programs are all part of collaborative partnership between state and federal agencies, nonprofits and landowner groups to better address growing grizzly populations and their impacts on rural communities.
This funding will be pooled with another federal grant, for a total of $12 million to support cost-sharing for landowners interested in using these non-lethal techniques.
FWP is partnering with the Heart of the Rockies Initiative nonprofit to host community workshops across western Montana this winter and spring to connect landowners with this money.
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Five grizzly bear deaths have been confirmed in Montana so far this year. Montana ranchers may qualify for meat processing settlement funds. Deer ticks, carriers of Lyme disease, detected in eastern Montana -
Grizzly bears in the Northern Rockies could soon be managed as a single population if a proposed federal rule is finalized. That could make it harder to remove federal protections for bears in the future. The public comment period, which ends May 16, has generated a lot of input. -
Gov. Greg Gianforte Tuesday signed into law a bill banning production and sale of lab-grown meat in Montana. A fishing access site located along the upper Yellowstone River has been temporarily closed due to increased grizzly bear activity.
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The collaborative group of state and federal agencies that manages grizzly bear recovery across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem met this week. The group discussed bear conflicts, population numbers and how to manage a growing bear population with a smaller team. -
A federal judge has ordered the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Forest Service to reexamine how a cattle grazing plan for areas north of Yellowstone National Park could impact grizzly bears.
