State Beat

Montana

In October, the Federal District Court in Missoula upheld the Swan Valley Grizzly Bear Conservation Agreement.

The landmark agreement governs timber harvest and road management activities by Plum Creek Timber Company, Montana's Flathead National Forest, and the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) over 369,000 acres of intermingled lands. It also designates "linkage zones" -- travel corridors that facilitate the long-term movement of bears between the Mission Mountain Wilderness and the Bob Marshall Wilderness.

The Agreement, signed in 1995 by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Flathead Forest, the DNRC and Plum Creek, allowed each of the three major landowners in the Swan Valley to address fundamental land management goals and legal responsibilities while managing the land in a way that would best meet the grizzly bears' needs.

The agreement had been challenged by a group of environmental organizations including the Alliance for the Wild Rockies and the Friends of the Wild Swan, on both substantive and procedural grounds. The judge's decision denied all allegations made by the environmental groups. An update is expected.

New Mexico

The Santa Fe National Forest and the Southwest Region of the U.S. Forest Service, in conjunction with the Conservation Fund and the northern New Mexico Stockmen's Association, are working to establish a "grass bank" that will allow ranchers a temporary pasture to graze their cattle while their own rangeland "rests."

The encroachment of woody shrubs and bushes into the grasslands can be remedied by burning: fire suppresses the woody seedlings while leaving intact the mature trees which are more widely spaced. But the grass must be left ungrazed long enough to produce fuel for an effective fire that will allow the healthier new growth the following season.

The Conservation Trust has bought a 240-acre ranch on Rowe Mesa, south of Pecos, and along with it comes a 36,000-acre grazing allotment from the U.S. Forest Service. The Conservation Trust intends to offer temporary pasture for northern New Mexico ranchers who need to let their own pastures regenerate.

Oregon

The National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA) honored Marcella Easly of the Oregon Division of State Lands at their 1997 annual meeting with its first "Leadership Award," acknowledging her eight years of leadership, service and vision with NAUPA.

At the same time, the Holder Liaison Council, a national organization of unclaimed property holders, recognized Easly as "Administrator of the Year" for her cooperation, understanding and expertise. Mike Graybill, manager of Oregon's South Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve, an asset of the Common School Fund, is the 1997 recipient of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Walter Jones Memorial Award for Excellence in the Management of Estuarine Research Reserves. The award recognizes achievement, dedica-tion, and contributions to the innovative management of coastal and ocean resources.

Texas

The fourth United States-Mexico Border Energy Forum, sponsored by the Texas General Land Office, was a hit in its first venture to New Mexico (October 21-22, 1997). About 200 people attended, with representation evenly split between the United States and Mexico.

Originally called the Texas-Mexico Border Energy Forum, growing interest from New Mexico, Arizona and California resulted in the name change in 1996.

Utah

An auction by the Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration last October resulted in a total sale of 2,160 acres of land for $830,600, an average of $383 per acre. Three unsold parcels totaling about 600 acres will be offered again at a future auction. The Trust Lands Administration is an independent state agency which manages 3.7 million acres of Utah trust lands exclusively for the benefit of Utah's schools and other public institutions.