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President Biden nominates a CSKT attorney to fill a federal judgeship; Federal regulators enact new air quality standards for coal-fired power plants; Feds finalize a plan to re-establish grizzly bears in the Northern Cascades in Washington.
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Gov. Greg Gianforte said the state will not take over law enforcement services on the Flathead Reservation. That comes after Lake County pulled out of an agreement to provide felony law enforcement oversight on the reservation. It's unclear who will take over the services.
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Federal regulators last week said the Salish Kootenai Dam didn’t draw too much water out of Flathead Lake last summer. Some residents blamed the dam operator for the lake's historically low water levels.
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Montana’s Fish and Wildlife Commission meets this week to pass hunting regulations for big game species and to finalize rule changes in anticipation of a grizzly bear delisting. The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) and the state will receive about $9 million to bolster the number of wildlife crossings.
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The U.S. Forest Service says they will invest nearly $70 million into co-management agreements with tribes. The announcement came out of a tribal summit at the White House last week.
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Lake County commissioners Monday sent a letter to Gov. Greg Gianforte reiterating that the county will no longer oversee felony cases on the Flathead Reservation. Commissioners have long argued that the county doesn’t have the tax base to pay for law enforcement on tribal lands.
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Federal officials from the U.S. and Canada plan to meet with Montana and British Columbia tribes over coal mining pollution. Selenium has for years flowed from B.C. coal mines into the transboundary Lake Koocanusa.
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Montana’s wildlife and public health agencies recommend game meat be tested for Chronic Wasting Disease (CSW). Snowbowl ski area outside of Missoula said it's working to improve safety conditions. CSKT and the U.S. EPA announced Friday that they signed an agreement aiming to bolster job opportunities for Salish Kootenai College students.
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Persistent rainfall in northwest Montana has subdued large wildfires in the area.
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The 13,000 acre Middle Ridge Fire burning west of Ronan is listed at 25% containment. The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes’ (CSKT) Division of Fire said crews continued mop up efforts Thursday. The almost 14,000 acre Niarada Fire west of Elmo continues actively burning in a mix of timber and brush.