Agency plans to lease wildlife area for farming

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks has issued a decision on a proposal to lease 359 acres of the 429-acre North Shore Wildlife Management Area for five years.

The lease will allow agricultural harvesting of some of the crop, with a minimum of 15 percent of the crop left behind to increase wildlife cover and forage.

The draft was out for a three-week public review through June 19. After reviewing the environmental effects, public comments and other relevant information, the state wildlife agency recommended that the Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission approve the lease.

Copies of the decision notice are available at the Fish, Wildlife and Parks regional office in Kalispell, 490 N. Meridian Road, local libraries and online at fwp.mt.gov/news/publicNotices/decisionNotices.