HELENA, Mont. – Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks has opened public comment on a proposed administrative rule related to grizzly bears in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem (NCDE).
The rule would create population objectives for grizzly bears that live along the Rocky Mountain Front and in national forests that make up the Bob Marshall Wilderness complex and surrounding areas. The goal is to maintain a population of approximately 1,000 bears in the region. It is part of state efforts to be prepared for bear management, should the Endangered Species Act protections be removed.
The rule will provide a regulatory framework for the NCDE population objectives outlined in the conservation strategy recently completed by the NCDE subcommittee of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee and found here.
Comments are due by October 26th. Comments can be submitted in writing, via email, or at the following public hearings:
- September 18 – Great Falls, Great Falls College-MSU, 2100 16th Avenue S., 6:30 p.m.
- September 19 – Conrad, High School, 308 S. Illinois St., 6:30 p.m.
- September 26 – Missoula, Holiday Inn Downtown, 600 S. Pattee St., 6:30 p.m.
- September 27 – Kalispell, Flathead Valley Community College, Arts and Technology Building, 6:30 p.m.
Comments can also be submitted by mail to Grizzly Bear ARM, Wildlife Division, Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, P.O. Box 200701, Helena, Montana, 59620-0701; or via e-mail at fwpgrizzlybeararm@mt.gov, and must be received no later than October 26.
Comments can also be submitted online here.
