In brief

Nominations open for Montana Outdoor Hall of Fame

A group of Montana state agencies and conservation organizations is seeking nominations for the second round of inductees to the Montana Outdoor Hall of Fame.

The MOHOF honors individuals who have contributed to the restoration and conservation of Montana’s fish, wildlife, and other outdoor amenities.

“Montana’s Outdoor Hall of Fame recognizes Montana’s historical and contemporary conservation leaders,” said Montana Governor Steve Bullock. “We need to capture and share the important stories of the men and women who’ve championed Montana’s outdoor heritage.”

Nominees can include people from all walks of life who reflect Montana’s diverse tradition of resource conservation and stewardship.

Participants in the effort include Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, the Montana Historical Society, Montana’s Outdoor Legacy Foundation, the Montana Wildlife Federation, the Montana Wilderness Association, Montana Trout Unlimited, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and the Cinnabar Foundation.

Fish, Wildlife & Parks prepares for antlerless elk seasons

In anticipation of strong interest in upcoming antlerless elk “shoulder seasons”  in five central Montana hunting districts, state wildlife officials are contacting landowners and working out details for hunters interested in participating in the post-season hunts.

The shoulder-season hunts, aimed at reducing elk populations in some areas, are pilot projects approved earlier this month by the Montana Fish & Wildlife Commission for hunting districts on the north and east sides of the Big Belts, the Castle Mountains, and in the Missouri River Breaks.

The elk shoulder-seasons in hunting districts 445, 446, 449, and 452 will begin on Nov. 30, 2015 and end on Feb. 15, 2016. The shoulder-season in hunting district 410 will begin Jan. 1, 2016 and end Feb. 15, 2016. All hunts are for antlerless elk only.

The new shoulder seasons are in response to concerns from Governor Steve Bullock, lawmakers, hunters, landowners and others about overabundant elk in some hunting districts. In all, 80 of Montana’s 138 elk management units are over objective to some degree. Shoulder seasons can occur before and after the general archery and rifle seasons.

Libby Dam flow changes

As of Monday, Nov. 23, outflow from Libby Dam increased to 11 kcfs over three hours starting at 6 a.m. and then decreased to 9 kcfs over two hours starting at 10 p.m. The current plan is to continue load shaping (variable discharge) at the beginning of next week and reduce flows over Thanksgiving and the following weekend, targeting an end-of-November reservoir elevation of 2,437 feet.

The Northwest River Forecast Center creates daily forecasts for short term projections throughout the Kootenai and Columbia River Basins.  These forecasts can be updated multiple times in a day and can be updated at anytime as conditions change.

Fuel prices to hit record lows

Americans hitting the road for Thanksgiving could experience the cheapest gasoline prices since March 2009. The low prices are showing up just in time for millions of motorists that are heading out, saving them $1.5 billion over the five days that GasBuddy’s recent survey found most motorists will be travelling.

GasBuddy projects that by Thanksgiving Day the national average will be $1.99 per gallon, nearly 80 cents per gallon cheaper than last year and $1.29 per gallon cheaper than 2013. As prices at the pump have plunged, the number of states seeing average prices under $2 per gallon has more than tripled in the last two weeks, rising to 19 states, with nearly 60 percent of all U.S. gas stations now selling below $2 per gallon.

Lower gas prices could be a reason why more people will be spending more time on the road this holiday weekend. According to GasBuddy’s 2015 Thanksgiving Travel Survey (with more than 100,000 surveyed nationwide), 25 percent of travelers say their travel will begin on Thanksgiving Day; while nearly 30 percent say travel begins the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and another 23 percent say they’ll hit the road 2 to 3 days ahead. That’s an 11 percent decrease in the number of people who say they’re heading out on Thanksgiving Day. In 2014, 36 percent said they’d travel on Thanksgiving Day; 30 percent said they’d travel the day before; and only 18 percent said they’d hit the road 2 to 3 days earlier.

Montana to conduct Veterans Affairs pilot program

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has selected Montana to conduct a pilot program that is intended to speed the processing of veterans’ claims for benefits. The program, known as Digits to Digits or D2D, will allow selected Veteran’s Services Organizations to submit electronic claims directly to the VA.

An agreement between the VA and the Montana Veterans Affairs Division (MVAD) will allow MVAD to submit veteran benefit claim products directly into the VA’s claims processing system.  This will result in more rapidly processed claim products, meaning that veterans will typically receive their benefits more quickly than with existing processes. 

“Montana was selected for this pilot program due to the MVAD’s recognized superior level of production and competence,” said Joe Foster, MVAD Administrator. “Our veterans service officers are highly trained and we have the requisite IT infrastructure to make this transition.”

Free kids carnival Dec. 5

Roxanne Escudero of Good News Christian Books and Music and Allen Olsen of Antler Tree Nursery are hosting a free kids carnival Dec. 5 from 5:30 p.m. until 8:30 p.m.

The carnival will feature cookie decorating, a dart toss, bobbing for apples, pine cone decorating, train sets and many other activities for the kids, including photos with Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus. The organizers are asking for local business people to adopt a kid and help offset the $9.99 per photo cost.

For more information call Allen at 291-4894 or Roxanne at 293-4622.

EPA Info Center closed for holiday

The EPA Information Center will be closed for the Thanksgiving weekend, Thursday and Friday.

Chamber reminds locals to shop small Nov. 28

Last year for Small Business Saturday, 88 million people came out to Shop Small and made it a day to remember across the country. This year, we want to make an even bigger impact by showing our love for the businesses that put their hearts into everything they do. So get up, get out, and Shop Small on Nov 28.