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Covering the Bitterroot Valley – “Where Montana Begins!”
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Volume XXXIV, Number 42
Fallen giant
Established 1985 - Locally owned & independent
The Department of Environmental Quality recently issued letters of deficiency to a couple of landowners in the Victor area who have applied for permits to mine gravel in the vicinity of Big Creek. The letters of deficiency, dated April 25, 2019, read pretty much the same for both Todd Townsend and Wade Moudy, citing the need for additional information including additional well data, a dewatering analysis, wash plant settling pond guidelines, a monitoring installation plan, a ground water monitoring plan and a slope stability analysis, among other things. Moudy proposes to bond 13.5 acres of land for his pit, Townsend plans to bond 13.9 acres. The permits cover more land that will be used for storage during the process and the pits will be reclaimed as ponds. DEQ held a public hearing on the permit applications in December 2017. Public comments received at and following the meeting indicated that substantial issues were not adequately
Karen Savory and Van Keele brought this slab taken from a 565 year old Ponderosa Pine to the Hamilton Farmers Market to increase public awareness of the importance of Old Growth forests and to urge people to contact the Forest Service to encourage policies that leave these rare giant trees standing. The living tree was cut down by a Forest Service crew for practice in the Camas Creek area. Victoria Howell photo.
A plea to preserve Old Growth was obviously alive at the time they dropped it. Others had nesting cavities, including one with pileated woodpecker egg shells inside. He took his complaint to the Forest Service but came away dissatisfied when the agency defended the practice as a valuable part of the program’s safety training. Unable to let the issue go, he returned to the area north of Camas Creek with some help and with a crosscut saw sliced a “cookie” off the huge tree. He was going to bring a piece of it home to memorialize the incident. They used an improvised “stretcher” to carry the slab out, then a dolly (with climbing ropes, belaying!) to lower the 150-pound slab to
satisfied by the proposed Plans of Operation and, as a result, DEQ subjected the application to extended review. As a result of that review the agency disapproved the application and provided the applicants a detailed list of the deficiencies that need to be addressed to avoid denial of the applications. One complicating factor in the proposals is the proximity of both permits to Big Creek. As a result, the Department is requiring Townsend to submit a comprehensive “Water Resources Assessment and Protection Plan” for the purpose of characterizing water resources at and near the site, the anticipated influence the proposal would have on these resources, and describing in detail how water resources would be protected and water levels monitored.” They are requiring much the same information and monitoring plans from Moudy. DEQ found, for instance, that the analysis in the applications as presented showed indications of perched water ground water in the area.
“Based on this information, it appears that there are more complexities to the aquifer than that of a simple unconfined aquifer. This could significantly alter the interpretation of the cross section as well as the aquifer test,” wrote DEQ. The agency asks the applicants to provide “a detailed hydrologic assessment that fully addresses the requirements outlined in the above deficiency.” The applicants can either submit revised application material that resolves all the deficiencies in which case the permit will be approved, or they can submit material that does not resolve all the deficiencies and another deficiency letter will be issued. If the applicants fail to respond after a year, they will receive notice that the application has been abandoned and will be voided in 30 days of notification. That decision is also subject to appeal to the Board of Environmental Review. Both the applicants, Moudy and Townsend, declined to comment on the deficiency letter or discuss their intentions.
Celebrating nurses By Michael Howell
the bottom. The large cookie was then prepared for display by soaking it for months in a stabilizing solution. Wil Wilkins created a metal display cart for the piece. The exhibit was on display this past Saturday at the Farmers Market in Hamilton. Keele said that Old Growth pine (minimum 170 years old, 21 inches diameter) is rare on the Bitterroot National Forest. He said only about a third of the historical average of old growth remains. The 2006 Bitterroot Forest Plan document called for increasing Old Growth by 25-75%. “But despite the rarity
As part of National Nurses Week, Marcus Daly Memorial Hospital participated with other regional hospitals and medical employers in a celebration of their nursing staffs by soliciting nominations for Nursing Awards based on letters of nomination submitted by their patients and peers. According to Marcus Daly’s Marketing and Communications Director, Amy James-Linton, the hospital performed extremely well in the awards program, receiving more nominations than any hospital or other medical employers. After collecting nominations, an independent panel of judges chose nine nursing professionals to represent thousands of their colleagues as part of celebrating National Nurses Week.
See OLD GROWTH, page 2
See NURSES, page 3
‘Connecting Classrooms’ and community
Stevensville School District has had an advisory program up and running for a few years called Connecting Classrooms, in which classrooms of different grades are “buddied up” with one another. Once a month, each class “connects” with its buddy class and engages in some project together. Elementary School Principal Jessica Shourd said that the Connecting Classrooms program grew out of the school’s anti-bullying program as a way for students to form bonds and for older students to serve as mentors for the younger ones. “We feel like if kids care enough about one another, with other, older kids as mentors, I think we’ll see a lot of people standing up to bullying,” said Shourd.
Wednesday, May 8, 2019
Applications to mine gravel near Big Creek found deficient
By Michael Howell
When Van Keele first came upon the ancient Ponderosa Pine that had been felled as part of a Forest Service tree-felling training session in the spring of 2018, he was appalled. Counting the tree’s rings, it was estimated to be about 565 years old. That means it started growing around the time Constantinople fell and the Middle Ages were coming to an end. There was evidence that the tree was living when cut and he could not believe it was destroyed for “training purposes.” A few dozen other enormous trees were also felled in the area, according to Keele, but the Camas Pine was the only one that
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SUPERIOR ANTIQUES & SPORTING GOODS
June 28th & 29th!
By Michael Howell
SHORT ON CASH?
Brittany Leatham-Olney, MSN-Ed, Inpatient Nurse and Nurse Educator at Marcus Daly Memorial Hospital, was chosen by votes from friends, family and staff to receive the People’s Choice Award in the regional awards program honoring nurses in the area.
Shourd also felt like it would be a good program to extend out into the community and the idea of joining the annual community clean-up was born. So, not only did the school grounds get cleaned up last week, but the effort spilled over into the community and the whole town got a good clean-up as well. “We want to encourage students to be good stewards of their community but also instill an interest in volunteering because so much gets done in our communities in this fashion,” said Shourd.
Stevensville Elementary School students headed out with student mentors last week recently to clean up litter around the town. Michael Howell photo.
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