36.11.432    GRIZZLY BEAR MANAGEMENT ON BLOCKED STILLWATER UNIT LANDS

(1) To minimize adverse impacts to grizzly bears when conducting forest management activities within the 90,517 acres of land area known as the Stillwater Block, as referenced in the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation Forested State Trust Lands Habitat Conservation Plan (DNRC HCP) the department shall:

(a) establish seven security zones totaling 22,007 acres;

(b) comply with the following restrictions within the established seven security zones:

(i) prohibit motorized activities, including public, administrative, or commercial forest management, during the grizzly bear "non-denning period" each year (see ARM 36.11.403(46) for "non-denning" definition);

(ii) permit motorized activities during the grizzly bear "denning period" each year (see ARM 36.11.403(22) for "denning" definition);

(iii) allow commercial forest management activities below 6,300 feet elevation during the denning period of each year;

(iv) prohibit any permanent road construction;

(v) construct and reclaim any temporary roads and/or skid trails in a manner preventing future use by motorized vehicles, including off-road vehicles, during the non-denning period;

(vi) minimize the duration of air- and ground-based harvest activities to the extent practicable when conducting commercial forest management activities near identified security zones during the non-denning period, particularly in known areas of seasonal importance for bears;

(vii) minimize the duration of administrative activities near security zones to the extent practicable;

(viii) make efforts to design helicopter flight routes in a manner that avoids and/or minimizes flight time across security zones during the non-denning period, and/or known seasonally secure areas;

(ix) where practicable, design flight paths to occur greater than one mile from potentially affected security zones during the non-denning period, or areas of known seasonal importance;

(x) permit short-term disturbance, subject to (vi) and (vii), in any security zone at any time and for the necessary duration to address road sedimentation issues required by the Aquatic Conservation Strategies in the DNRC HCP and ARM 36.11.421; and

(c) comply with the following measures on the remaining 68,510 acres of blocked lands outside of security zones:

(i) implement access management and seasonal restrictions, and road construction requirements according to the DNRC HCP Transportation Plan measures that apply to Class B Lands as defined in the DNRC HCP; and

(ii) allow motorized public activities, commercial forest management activities, and administrative activities during the denning and non-denning periods, as allowed by the DNRC HCP Transportation Plan.

History: 77-1-202, 77-1-209, 77-5-201, 77-5-204, MCA; IMP, 77-5-116, 77-5-204, 77-5-206, 77-5-207, MCA; NEW, 2003 MAR p. 397, Eff. 3/14/03; AMD, 2016 MAR p. 589, Eff. 4/9/16.