Montana Outdoors – Landowner Appreciation

As you drive over bridges this time of year, take a moment to look down at the streams and rivers and appreciate just how much water is flowing down there.

I know: Late summer is when water levels in streams and rivers are at their lowest. By now, crops have been irrigated for several months, snowpack is gone, and it seems like a long time since we last saw a decent rain.

But Montana’s water flows could be a lot worse.

Here at FWP, we talk a lot about the contributions that agriculture makes to wildlife habitat—rotational grazing that keeps grasslands healthy, wetlands protected from unnecessary drainage, prairie lands left unplowed, and residual grain and alfalfa that help sustain wildlife through the winter.

But landowners do a lot to conserve fish habitat, too. Many river systems in this mostly parched state would have a lot less water if not for conservation-minded farmers and ranchers.

Read the Full Article at Montana Outdoors – Our Point of View