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Libby Montana

Feds Decline To Intervene In BNSF Asbestos Case Alleging Clinic Fraud

By • Feb 23, 2021
iStock

The federal government has declined to intervene in a lawsuit about a Libby asbestos clinic. The lawsuit alleges that the clinic committed fraud by accessing federal funding for unnecessary health screenings and treatments.

First 'Good Neighbor' Timber Sale Begins On Kootenai National Forest

By • Feb 4, 2021
SkiDale Timber Sale harvest area map, July 22, 2020.
Montana DNRC

Earlier this week, Gov. Greg Gianforte announced one of the first timber sales to go through a state-federal partnership this year. The amount of timber cut through the Good Neighbor Authority this year is expected to nearly double compared to 2020.

White Nationalist Based In Libby Fined Nearly $10 Million For Robo-calls

By • Jan 27, 2021

A self-described white nationalist content creator living in Libby has been fined nearly $10 million for hundreds of illegal robo-calls. The Federal Communications Commission announced the fine earlier this month.

Montana's Rural Hospitals Look Out Of State As COVID-19 Strains Local Resources

By • Oct 22, 2020
Hospital monitor.
Josh Burnham / Montana Public Radio

Montana’s rural critical access hospitals are struggling as COVID-19 patients fill beds and strain staffing resources. Larger hospitals are at times unable to take patients.

COVID-19 Stalks A Montana Town Already Grappling With Asbestos Disease

By editor • Oct 11, 2020

Frank Fahland has spent most days since the pandemic began at the site of his dream house, working to finish a 15-year labor of love while keeping away from town and the people closest to him.

Like thousands of people from Libby and Lincoln County, in the far northwestern corner of Montana, the 61-year-old Fahland has lungs already scarred by years of breathing in the asbestos fibers that have contaminated the area's dust and soil. The asbestos is a legacy of a now-defunct plant in the area that made vermiculite, a mineral used in insulation and gardening.

'Not A Big Deal'

By editor • Oct 5, 2020

This story is republished with permission from Montana Free Press.

LIBBY — Donald Trump fans in the northwestern corner of Montana were unfazed on Oct. 2 by the news that the president and first lady have tested positive for the coronavirus.

“It doesn’t bother me,” Morgan Mallory said. “It’s not a big deal.”

Proposal Puts BNSF In Charge Of Asbestos-Contaminated Railroad

By • Sep 1, 2020
Libby Superfund map.
US Environmental Protection Agency

A proposed agreement charging BNSF Railway Company with the operation and maintenance of the Libby Asbestos Superfund unit running along its tracks was announced Tuesday by federal and state officials.

Easement Proposed For More Former Weyerhaueser Land In NW Montana

By • Jul 16, 2020
The view southeast over the McKillop Creek Road near Libby, Montana. The land is part of the private timber lands in northwest Montana belonging to Southern Pine Plantations.
Chris Boyer / Kestrelaerial.com

Last week, federal officials announced a proposal maintaining public access on 100,000 acres of private timber lands in northwest Montana belonging to Southern Pine Plantations. On Wednesday, a joint statement by state officials and a nonprofit said the two are working together on an another, even-larger easement.

Proposed Easement Preserves Access, Logging On Former Weyerhaeuser Land

By Aaron Bolton • Jul 14, 2020
Map showing the proposed Lost Trail Conservation Area
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Federal officials are proposing 100,000 acres of conservation easements in Northwest Montana to maintain public access on recently sold private timber lands.

Some Small Montana Schools Reopen As State Phases-Out COVID-19 Closures

By • May 7, 2020
A hallway in Willow Creek Elementary School.
courtesy

Some small public schools reopened their doors to students Thursday, although with new guidelines. Montana is still in the first phase of its reopening plans as the number of confirmed active cases of COVID-19 declines in the state.

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