The Montana Conservationist June 14

Greetings, readers! Have you been missing The Montana Conservationist? I thought perhaps you might. Here’s what’s happening this week:

• The MACD and SWCDM board of directors just wrapped up our Spring Board meeting in Helena. It was super productive (kudos board members for efficient meetings) and always good to see our people in person.
• The first two days of talks to renegotiate the Columbia River Treaty have just wrapped up. The 50 year old accord between the US and Canada is important for managing water storage, hydropower, and much more in the Columbia Basin.
• Citizens of Butte have finally gotten to see the plans to cleanup their Superfund site, though the EPA is reminding everyone that it is just a draft.
• A recent study suggests that if you’re trying to *effectively* combat herbicide resistant weeds, you just might have to coordinate with your neighbor. Sharing is caring.
• NRCS has released a starter guide for a few simple techniques and structures to restore degraded sagebrush meadows.
• The Senate has a marked up draft of the 2018 Farm Bill, and NACD has a response letter.
• The Interior Department and the Blackfeet Nation have signed an agreement to implement the recently ratified Water Compact.
• Richland County CD recently held their annual Ladies Day on the Range, and it sounds like it was a blast. Also, probably educational. (Nice work Julie!)
• Ninemile Creek is getting a makeover, or perhaps we should call it an un-makeover, as conservationists work to undo the damage done by mining in the creek.

All of that and a June full of events in this week’s edition of The Montana Conservationist: TMC 2018-06-14