The Montana Conservationist, March 26

Greetings, TMC readers. I hope this finds you safe, healthy, and snuggled into the comfort and/or chaos of your home offices. The world is a strange place at the moment, but one thing that’s bringing me solace is taking a walk down to the Kootenai river and remembering that it’s been here far, far longer than we have, and it will still be here when this crisis is over. The work of conserving our land and water is as important now as it has ever been, and I hope that this time of crisis will inspire your work and spark newfound creativity about the ways that we go about that work. With that in mind, today’s TMC starts with three stories about the good work being done around the state:

• Trout Unlimited awards Partners of the Year, including SWCDM / Sage Grouse Initiative employee Martin Townsend.
• The Lower Clark Fork Watershed Group recently completed a project that involved replacing a power pole that was impeding the floodplain of Crow Creek.
• And Lincoln Conservation District has completed restoration of a mile of the Tobacco River.

Next, because we can’t not talk about it, some ways that COVID-19 is changing the conservation world:

• From VICE: Fire season is coming, and the Corona Virus is disrupting preparations, because fire camps are the opposite of social distancing.
• Successful Farming reports on the COVID-19 and the US food supply chain, as people hoard groceries
• High Country News writes about ways to get outside, without spreading the infection. Today is a day to avoid everyone’s favorite hiking trails and instead the secret neighborhood spots closest to you.
• As farmer’s markets around the country close, Modern Farmer writes about the disruptions for small, niche producers who rely on direct to consumer sales, and some creative ways to continue getting food to consumers and revenue to the farm.

Finally, our Opportunities section is sparse on events, but long on grants. Now’s a great time to plan the work you’ll do once we’ve been freed from our couches. Read the Montana Conservationist here: TMC 2020-03-26