PERC

Prescribed fire is one of the best tools we have to reduce #wildfire risk — but a lack of certainty and resources in the regulatory process can discourage landowners from using it. House Bill 84 changes that. We were proud to testify in support of this bill, which establishes a voluntary training program and provides incentives for conservation-minded landowners to use prescribed burns safely and effectively. This means less red tape, healthier forests, and fewer catastrophic wildfires. PERC has been at the Montana Capitol advocating for this bill, and we can’t wait to see it passed.

New from CEO Brian Yablonski in The Wall Street Journal — “How to Save Our National Parks” ?? https://lnkd.in/g9Wty2qJ

We do #conservation creatively around here. Learn more at perc.org.

At PERC, we believe in doing conservation with landowners, not to them. This #NationalAgricultureWeek, we recognize the stewards—ranchers, farmers, and landowners—who care for our natural resources, provide wildlife habitat, and keep working lands working.

“The saga of the Pacific Northwest has been a never-ending dance between the ocean, land, and wildlife and those eking out a living from the ocean, land, and wildlife. First it was the seadogs searching for a Northwest Passage to the Orient, ships swallowed whole at the Columbia River Bar. Then it was the fur traders who found and nearly exterminated the sea otter only to move inland to fall upon the beaver. Later it was the lumbermen and coastal canneries who harvested the tallest trees and fattest fish. And finally, it was the dam builders and irrigators who harnessed swift rivers so that the interior could bloom. The timber wars were simply the next song of this dance. The Great Northwest needs its orcas, sea otters, Roosevelt elk, Chinook salmon, and clownish tufted puffins. But it also needs its farmers, ranchers, fishermen, loggers, longshoremen, hunters, and Indigenous tribes. This will require thoughtfulness and creativity, not simply the force and fight of preceding generations. That’s where the researchers, policy experts, and practitioners at PERC come in.?Last year, in partnership with Vancouver, Washington-based M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, PERC has embarked on a regional project that will spotlight many of our and other partners’ innovative approaches. Whether it is conflicts of scarcity, as with orcas and otters, or conflicts of abundance, in the cases of elk and sea urchins, market-based conservation solutions can smooth out the jagged edges by making cooperation rather than conflict the instrument of good wildlife management.” Excerpt from CEO Brian Yablonski’s “Conservation and Conflict in the Land of Giants”. Read the full report, a love letter to the PNW, at perc.org/pnw. #pacificnorthwest?#pnw?#wildlife?#conservation

Policymakers need information to help drive informed decisions. A new tool from PERC offers insights into #wildfire risk. My latest for C3 Solutions:

?? In honor of #InternationalDayofActionforRivers, we’re looking back at a major 2024 conservation win — the Good Samaritan Remediation Act that passed in December. ?? ?? Abandoned mines are one of the biggest sources of water pollution in the U.S., leaching toxic metals and acidic runoff into #rivers, harming #fish, #wildlife, and drinking water supplies. ??? After decades of advocacy by PERC and other #conservation leaders, including Trout Unlimited, the Good Samaritan Remediation Act passed last year, removing legal barriers that prevented cleanups. This bipartisan victory empowers conservation groups to restore waterways without unnecessary liability—helping to heal rivers and protect ecosystems across the country.

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Golden hour in Paradise Valley. ? Happy Spring Forward from #Montana.

UPDATE: We’re (still) suing the government for obstructing endangered species recovery, and today we formally filed our complaint. PERC and @rmef_official are challenging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s “blanket rule,” which ignores science and undermines habitat restoration. Under the Endangered Species Act, the agency is supposed to design science-based regulations tailored to the needs of each species listed. Instead, the government cited “administrative convenience” to bypass this process, ignoring science and species-specific considerations. Wildlife like the arctic grayling (pictured above) greater sage grouse, grizzly bear, and gray wolf deserve solutions tailored to their unique needs—not a one-size-fits-all approach. Read more: https://lnkd.in/dtUkm-c4