U.S. Forest Service

Growing up on the Mescalero Apache Indian reservation in New Mexico, Arthur "Butch" Blazer hunted and fished and spent all his time outdoors. He translated that love of the outdoors into a career, as a natural resources manager with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, then as the first Native American appointed state forester for New Mexico, and now as the Deputy Undersecretary for Natural Resources and Environment for the U.S. Department of Agriculture - where he oversees the U.S. Forest Service.

Federal agencies will be spending $865,000 dollars to help restore Helena’s primary watershed. 

The Ten-Mile watershed lies just southwest of the Capitol city and provides 80 percent of the community’s drinking water. 

The restoration is one of 13 projects across the country announced this week by the US Department of Agriculture, in conjunction with the U.S. Forest Service.

USDA Under Secretary for Natural Resources and the Environment Robert Bonnie unveiled the $30 million dollar partnership in Helena.

Americans love their national forests.

Montana’s Congressman Steve Daines is touting a bill he is cosponsoring which would increase logging on national forest lands.

The Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities Act passed the U.S. House last Friday.

Supporters say the bill would boost local economies near forest land and help lower the risk of catastrophic wildfires like those seen near Yosemite National Park this summer.

But, the bill faces some stiff opposition, including from the Obama Administration.

An award-winning television episode takes a look at the U-S Forest Service in Western Montana.

Various agencies are teaming-up to research recreation patterns on the Blackfoot and Bitterroot Rivers.
     The study will be conducted by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, the Bureau of Land Management, the Forest Service and the University of Montana.
     The point of the survey is to find out what river users like about our waterways and where they'd like to see some improvements made.

In this feature interview, F-W-P's Fishing Access Site Manager, Chet Crowser, says one thing is clear; people love our rivers and more of us are using them.

Several gardens at Flathead Valley schools are bringing the outdoor classroom a little bit closer to the indoor one. $16,000 in grant money received by Flathead National Forest in partnership with the Flathead Audubon Society is paying the way for native plant gardens at four area schools.

The grant comes through the US Forest Service “More Kids in the Woods” program.