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Over 19,000 Public Comments Submitted for Forest Plan Revision

Flathead forest officials sorting through reams of public input on proposed management strategy

By Dillon Tabish

The Flathead National Forest received over 19,000 public comment submissions for its proposed revision of the forest plan, according to the agency.

Forest officials are still sorting through reams of emails and letters following the May 15 deadline for public comment.

Joe Krueger, project leader and forest planner for the Flathead National Forest, said his team continues to count the number of submissions that were filed and some that were postmarked by last Friday may still be arriving.

In early March, the Forest Service began collecting input on the makeover of its broad management strategy for the Flathead National Forest, which spans 2.4 million acres across Northwest Montana. The deadline for public comment was extended by 10 days to May 15.

Krueger said a vast majority of the input — roughly 18,600 comments — was generated from form letters, meaning an organization provided a template for individuals to comment. Roughly 400 comments were specifically composed by individuals, Krueger said.

The volume of input is considerable, reflecting the heightened interest in the Flathead National Forest, which is home to vast wildlife populations, recreational opportunities and timber resources.

The Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest Plan revision proposal garnered roughly 12,000 public comments during its scoping period last summer.

Krueger said his team will begin organizing the public input and identifying issues and trends. From there, the group will develop alternative strategies for a draft environmental impact statement that will be opened for a 90-day public comment period.

Krueger said the goal is to release the draft EIS by January 2016.

“That’s pretty ambitious but it’s a very structure process to get there,” he said. “We want to make sure we’re carefully considering all the issues that were brought to our attention during the public comment period.”

The agency on March 5 released its proposed revision of the Flathead National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan, or forest plan. The agency’s current plan has not been revised since 1986 and this latest edition will guide management decisions for 15 years after it is formally adopted.