OUTDOORS REPORT PUBLIC ACCESS
1876 The year the use of explosives for harvesting fish was outlawed in Montana Territory.
No new mussels When scientists detected zebra mussels at two Montana reservoirs in late 2016, Governor Steve Bullock and the Montana Legislature called on FWP to pull out all the stops to keep the invasive mussels from spreading elsewhere. It did. Highlights from the FWP Aquatic Invasive Species Bureau’s 2017 season: 71,000 watercraft inspected; 16 out-of-state vessels containing mussels intercepted and decontaminated before they could enter Montana waters; 1,150 plankton samples collected for analysis; no mussels detected; 80 citations issued by FWP game wardens for invasive species law violations. “Thanks to our fantastic inspection crews and great cooperation by boaters, tribes, communities, ag and hydropower interests, and others, we were able to contain, so far, the spread of mussels in Montana,” says Tom Woolf, AIS Bureau chief. n
Sniffing out invasive mussels
There’s no lack of places in Montana to hunt, fish, conflicts in New Mexico, says he received a crash course in Montana access issues from FWP game hike, or float. But can you get to them? FWP has made public access a top priority. The wardens, regional fishing access site coordinators, department owns and manages 332 fishing access and program leaders. “They gave me a warm sites and 70 wildlife management areas. Its Block welcome and helped me get up to speed,” he says. Jason Kool, FWP Hunting Access Bureau chief, Management Program employs full-time and seasonal staff who work with landowners to enroll, says Weiss is providing much-needed assistance manage, and coordinate hunting access on more in finding ways for recreationists to reach public than seven million acres of private and isolated lands. “One of his biggest contributions so far has been as a liaison among the different entities public land statewide. Still, one of the biggest public access challenges working on access issues,” Kool says. Also applauding Weiss’s arrival is Bernie Lea, in Montana is opening up landlocked public lands. For instance, school trust and state forest lands, managed by the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC), are open to hunting, hiking, and several other types of outdoor recreation. But tens of thousands of acres are unmarked, completely surrounded by private property, or otherwise blocked off from public use. Federal lands are even more inaccessible. According to the Center for Western Priorities, Montana has more landlocked public property—nearly two million acres—than any state. To help open more land to public use, in 2016 Governor DNRC’s new public access specialist is helping increase access for Steve Bullock created a new state hunting, hiking, and other public use on public lands across Montana. position of public access specialist at DNRC. The new specialist, Ryan Weiss, has president of the Public Land and Water Access driven across Montana meeting with hunters, Association. His group often goes to court over landowners, and staff of DNRC, FWP, the Bureau disputed roads that, it alleges, are public and of Land Management, and the U.S. Forest Service. should allow access through private property to “My idea for meeting with people isn’t to pop in and state and federal lands. Lea says he’s encouraged say I have the solution, but to start a dialogue about by Weiss’s plans to create a state public route inventory. “That would be a good start to helping what a solution might look like,” Weiss says. Topping the list of problems: a chronic lack of clarify public access,” Lea says. Recently, DNRC launched the MT-PLAN signs indicating state and federal land ownership, public lands surrounded by private property off program, which solicits donations to purchase limits to hunting, and illegally closed roads lead- public easements through private property to state ing to public property. Often these properties are and federal lands. DNRC will administer the embroiled in lawsuits filed by public land advo- donations, Weiss says, and then award grants to cates. Even before Weiss arrived, DNRC had been eligible groups to buy access easements. “Donaincreasing state land access by posting more signs tions can be as little as one dollar,” he says, “but at section corners. The agency also won’t accept we’re hoping for larger contributions, too, so we land in swaps or other transactions that has no can use MT-PLAN to unlock key lands for hiking, public access. “That’s no longer negotiable,” hunting, mountain biking, and other recreation.” For more information, call or e-mail Weiss at Weiss says. Weiss, who was hired after working on property (406) 444-5576 or ryanweiss@mt.gov. n
8 NOVEMBER–DECEMBER 2017 FWP.MT.GOV/MTOUTDOORS
CARTOON ILLUSTRATION BY MIKE MORAN; PHOTOS LEFT TO RIGHT: ALBERTA ENVIRONMENT AND SUSTAINABLE RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT; ED COYLE; SHUTTERSTOCK
DNRC, FWP team up to increase public access
