Our Watershed and Wildland Fire Restoration Program gets our organization and volunteers involved with on-the-ground restoration
and/or community fuel reduction projects in the Northern Rockies. At the
WildWest Institute we believe the sooner that we can help move bona-fide,
ecologically beneficial restoration and/or community fuel reduction work
forward, the better off our forests, wildlife, watersheds and communities
will be. We are currently involved in a number of collaborative
efforts in the region to help build some trust and find solutions. Our
goal is to work together with diverse interests to help be a catalyst
for the establishment of a new, sustainable restoration economy in our
region for the 21st Century and beyond.
For more information, contact Jake Kreilick, WildWest Institute's Restoration
Coordinator at 406.544.4962 or jkreilick@wildrockies.org.
Examples of WildWest Institute's Solutions
at Work
Forest Restoration
Principles and Criteria (Pdf)
These national Restoration Principles were the result of a 4-year bridge building
effort between conservation groups and restoration practitioners to develop
agreement on a common sense, scientifically-based framework for restoring
our nation's forests. WildWest was deeply involved with writing these Restoration Principles, and they still guide our focus on bona-fide restoration today.
Montana
Restoration Principles
The WildWest Institute was a key participant in the development of a set
of thirteen restoration principles for national forests in Montana. As
stated in the preamble, "Through restoration principles we seek to
articulate a collective vision of ecologically appropriate, scientifically
supported forest restoration."
WildWest
helps establish FireSafe Montana
After several years of planning and coordination by the WildWest Institute
and our partners, efforts to establish a statewide FireSafe organization
in Montana became a reality in 2007. FireSafe Montana will offer a very
important service for the citizens of Montana – statewide coordination
of efforts supporting FireSafe programs and firewise activities.
Upper Lolo
Watershed Restoration (Pdf)
- Letter of support
from Missoula County Commissioners (Pdf)
The WildWest Institute worked with the Lolo National Forest,
the community-based Lolo Watershed Group, and fellow conservation groups
on a road removal and watershed restoration project for the Upper Lolo
Creek watershed west of Lolo, MT. Click
here for an article about a public field tour of this project that
WildWest sponsored with organized labor and the Forest Service.
Working Together to Keep a Community
Safe from Wildfire (Pdf)
In 2006 and 2007, WildWest teamed up with the West End Volunteer
Fire Department to create defensible space on private land around the
DeBorgia, MT community through education, action and fellowship. Click
here for scenes from our 2006 work
weekend and here for scenes from
our 2007 work week.
Ecologically-Based Fuel Reduction
Pilot Project (Pdf)
WildWest demonstrated the effectiveness of an ecologically-based
approach to community fuel reduction on a small pilot project on the Lolo
National Forest.
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