Gianforte talks wildfire management at last stop on 56 county tour

Gov. Greg Gianforte joined officials from the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation and the City of Helena to talk about active forest management to reduce the risk of wildfires.

The press conference comes in the wake of recent of multiple recent fires in the wildland-urban interface in Helena and served as the last stop on Gianforte’s 56-county tour this year.

“When a forest is managed, we have less severe wildfires, more recreational opportunities, more habitat for wildlife, and more jobs in our communities,” Gianforte said in a press release. “The work done here in Helena is a real testament to that, and my hat’s off to our local partners for proactively managing this area to reduce vulnerability to wildfire.”

The Mount Helena Fire and Grizzly Gulch Fires in Helena burned around 50 acres combined.

Working with partners to increase the number of forested acres treated in Montana has been a top priority for the governor. In 2021, DNRC more than doubled the number of acres treated in Montana, placing a collective 25,000 acres under management, according to the release.

At the press conference Monday, DNRC Director Amanda Kaster announced an expansion to the Good Neighbor Authority agreement between DNRC, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest.

Good Neighbor Authority agreements allow the USDA Forest Service to enter into agreements with state forestry agencies to do critical management work to keep forests healthy and productive.

“Under the expansion, $238,000 in funding will treat up to 1,270 acres of Forest Service ownership in the Ten Mile-South Helena and Middleman areas,” Kaster said in the press release. “Additionally, $15,000 dollars is provided for weed treatment on 250-plus acres on the Helena Ranger District.”

Gianforte also praised DNRC for effectively employing a strategy of an aggressive attack on wildfire this season. Of the 267 fires this year under DNRC’s direct protection, a total of 525 acres have been burned for an average of fewer than two acres per fire, the news release said.

 “It’s our work with our partners – the U.S. Forest Service and the Montana DRNC – that’s allowed us to increase the intensity of management within the [Mount Helena] park and accelerate our pace,” said Brad Langsather, open lands manager for the City of Helena, in a statement. “The positive outcome that we saw a few weeks ago proves that this type of work has its merits.”