It's time for Congress to pass the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act

For over 15 years, we’ve shared this goal: Congress passing the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act (BCSA). Thanks to the continued support of Senator Tester, we are back on track to reach this goal, with hopes that this is the year when all of our tireless work in Seeley Lake, Ovando, and beyond will pay off.

Support from our entire delegation would make our goal easier to attain and it’s our fervent hope that Senator Daines and Representative Rosendale can join Senator Tester and work together to pass this legislation for the benefit of all Montanans.

Seventy-five percent of Montanans support the bill, according to the 2020 University of Montana Public Lands Survey.

That’s because the bill was made by Montanans for Montanans. It was crafted around kitchen tables in Seeley Lake and Ovando and around the conference room table at Pyramid Mountain Lumber with the intention of benefiting as many Montanans as possible.

Portions of the forest restoration work that came about as a result of the BCSA are already underway with the Southwest Crown Collaborative, which has created or maintained 138 local timber jobs in Seeley Lake and injected $33 million into the local economy. The collaborative has not only supported local jobs, indications are that thousands of acres of completed forest restoration activities near Seeley Lake are helping protect our communities from wildfire, an increasing concern across the Rocky Mountains.

Timber is just one component to the BCSA. The BCSA also enhances recreational opportunity through increased snowmobile access in the Otatsy area, opening up high elevation, north-facing slopes, which bring in snowmobilers from across the country each winter and early spring.

Mountain bikers also benefit with riding opportunities on backcountry trails of Spread Mountain, buying gas, food, and gear at local businesses along the way. The BCSA also directs the US Forest Service to perform an additional recreation study to identify other opportunities for trails and access.

Outdoor recreation pumps $7.1 billion in consumer spending into our state’s economy each year, supporting small, local businesses up and down Main Street, Montana. Through the proposed additions to the Scapegoat, Mission Mountain and Bob Marshall Wilderness Areas, the iconic Blackfoot River’s tributaries and headwaters streams will be permanently protected, ensuring guides, outfitters, fly shops, local restaurants, hotels and more can continue to support their families.

The BCSA has been a connector for us locals. We show up to meetings and find commonality with those which we might not normally see eye to eye. We’ve been good neighbors to each other and want to be equally good stewards of this land we are so fortunate to call home.

Now is the time for the BCSA to pass through Congress and become law. We’ve done our work on the ground and we look to our delegation to cooperate across the aisle and get this done for Montanans. It’s time.

Connie Long, co-owner of Bob Marshall Wilderness Outfitters, Charlo, Montana; Jack Rich, owner of Rich’s Montana Guest Ranch, Seeley Lake, Montana; Jim Stone, owner of the Rolling Stone Ranch, Ovando, Montana and Gordy Sanders, Resource Manager for Pyramid Mountain Lumber, Missoula, Montana