Bull River Partnership

COOPERATIVE CONSERVATION CASE STUDY

Public-Private Partnership Protects Significant Wildlife Corridor in Northwestern Montana

Location: Northeastern/Mid-Atlantic

Project Summary: The public-private partnership permanently protected more than 1,800 acres of key wildlife habitat along the Bull River in northwestern Montana.

The forested slopes of the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness will continue to provide a haven for wildlife and outdoor enthusiasts alike (Hugh Imhof, Avista).

Resource Challenge

The Bull River flows 18 miles from its sources high in the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness Area to its junction with the Clark Fork River in northwestern Montana. Identified by state and federal agencies as one of the most important tributaries for fisheries in the Lower Clark Fork River system, the Bull River provides critical habitat for the recovery of the threatened bull trout and sustains winter range and wildlife migration corridors linking the East and West Cabinet Mountains that are especially important for big game, waterfowl, furbearers and grizzly bears. The property also provides habitat for bald eagle, lynx and gray wolf.

The same lands and waters that provide valuable habitat for fish and wildlife also help to provide energy across the Northwest. Each year the Clark Fork Hydroelectric Project, operated by Avista Corporation, generates enough power to meet the annual energy needs of 235,000 households. Despite their value for both people and wildlife, the lands and waters of surrounding the Lower Clark Fork and the Bull River are threatened by forestland sales, water diversion and encroaching development.

Examples of Key Partners

The Conservation Fund, Avista, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, Plum Creek Timber Company, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Results and Accomplishments

The Bull River Watershed Protection Project, launched in 2001, is one of many projects that are being undertaken within the lower Clark Fork watershed to satisfy Avista’s Clark Fort Settlement Agreement – developed as part of Avista’s relicensing of the Noxon and Cabinet Gorge dams. The agreement included representatives from 39 groups, and resulted in the development and implementation of 26 environmental protection, mitigation, and enhancement measures to address water quality, wetlands, fisheries, wildlife and other watershed resources.

In 2005 the Partnership permanently protected more than 1,800 acres of key wildlife habitat to establish the new Bull River Wildlife Management Area. The deal, negotiated by The Conservation Fund, leverages protection, mitigation, and enhancement funding from Avista’s Clark Fork Settlement Agreement with a $4.6 million Habitat Conservation Plan grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The lands will be protected in perpetuity by the state Fish, Wildlife & Parks with conservation easements and are under conservation and recreation management by FWP and Avista. This deal represents one of the most effective examples of the Habitat Conservation Plan to date.

Innovation/Highlight

This public-private partnership is advancing a voluntary approach to mitigation that protects important natural resources for fish and wildlife, improves public recreation opportunities and helps provide energy to a growing population.

Project Contact

Mark W. Elsbree
Vice President
The Conservation Fund, Northwest Region
P.O. Box 1524
Sun Valley, ID 83353
(208) 726-4419
melsbree@mindspring.com

Website: http://www.conservationfund.org

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