GREAT FALLS — Montana Senate Joint Resolution 14 has ignited apprehension among members of the Blackfeet Reservation regarding its potential impact on the Badger-Two Medicine area — a region of profound cultural importance to the Blackfeet Nation.
The first hearing for SJ 14 was held in Helena on Tuesday.
Areas under the Wilderness Study Act of 1977 and the Roadless Area Conservation Rule would be opened up for other forms of land use and development under the proposal.
Watch the full story:
Proponents of the resolution included mainly agricultural and motorized use interests while opponents of the bill brought up land preservation concerns.
Several areas in the Badger-Two Medicine area would be affected by Joint Resolution 14.
The Badger-Two Medicine area encompasses approximately 130,000 acres adjacent to Glacier National Park, the Bob Marshall Wilderness, and the Blackfeet Reservation.
“So our concerns, of course, is that if this protection was taken away, we'd see an erosion about the cultural and ecological integrity of the Badger to noticing that so many people have worked for so many years to try to protect," Glacier Two Medicine Alliance Executive Director Peter Metcalf told MTN.
SJ 14 will continue to move through the legislative process with the preservation of Montana’s lands at the forefront in conversation.
