Open House to Focus on Flathead National Forest Assessment

The Flathead National Forest is hosting an open house on Thursday, October 3, 2013, at the Supervisor’s Office (650 Wolfpack Way, Kalispell, MT) from 5 PM to 8 PM. The event will provide an opportunity for the public to meet with Forest Service specialists working on an assessment of the Flathead National Forest, the first phase of forest plan revision.

The Flathead National Forest is embarking on a multi-year process to update its forest plan, the document that guides management of your public lands. The forest plan provides direction for managing resources and activities such as recreation, fish and wildlife habitat, vegetation and timber production. Forest plan revision is achieved in a three-phase process: assessment, revision, and monitoring. The assessment evaluates existing information about relevant ecological, economic, and social conditions and trends. It also looks at the land management plan within the context of the broader landscape. The 2012 National Forest System land management planning rule calls for an enhanced commitment to collaboration and public engagement throughout the revision process.

As part of the assessment phase, the forest has been hosting a series of public field trips focusing on subject matter important to the forest plan revision effort. The final trip is scheduled for September 26, 2013, and will look at inventoried roadless areas, recommended wilderness, and wild and scenic rivers. The trip will take participants up the North Fork Road on the Glacier View Ranger District. Transportation is provided for the field trips. A bus will depart the Flathead County Fairgrounds at 8:00 AM near the entrance at the North Meridian and Two Mile intersection with a second pick-up at 8:30 AM at the north-west corner of the Columbia Falls Super 1 parking lot off of Highway 2. We will have people back to Super 1 around 4:00 PM and to the Flathead County Fairgrounds at 4:30 PM. We’ll have a lunch stop at the Polebridge Mercantile. They have limited lunch items so you may want to bring your own food.

The information shared and the feedback received during the field trip and open house will be used to develop and finalize the assessment, determine needs for change, and to draft a proposed plan. There will be additional opportunities to engage in the collaborative process as the plan is developed over the next few years.

The Supervisor’s Office is located at 650 Wolfpack Way in Kalispell. Please RSVP to Wade Muehlhof (ewmuehlhof@fs.fed.us or 406-758-5252) if you plan to attend either the open house or the field trip. For additional details please visit the Flathead National Forest Plan Revision web page.


Jeff
Hiking in Glacier.com