Coalition's voice on exploration heard

It was a last-minute decision, and I’m glad I made the right choice. I got a call from Will Hammerquist mid-afternoon on Monday. He asked if either Chris Peterson, Heidi Desch or I would be coming to the Flathead Coalition open house that evening.

The event was more than an open house at the Bohemian Grange Hall south of Whitefish. It was an opportunity for people concerned about the proposed Cline coal mine and coal bed methane (CBM) exploration in the headwaters of the Flathead River north of Glacier National Park to get an update on what the thoughts were — north of the border. Chris was off Monday and Heidi was covering the city council meeting. I had a 7 o’clock meeting on my schedule, but I told Will that I would stop in for an hour or so and meet some of the primary players in the effort to halt the exploration plans. I’m glad I did.

As people there for the open house socialized with some good conversation and food — thanks to the Northern Lights Saloon and Polebridge Mercantile — the ground floor at the Grange Hall filled. Long-time Coalition member John Frederick hauled a big pot of chili from Polebridge, some of it left on the floor of his vehicle due to a couple of bumps in the road en route to the Grange Hall. Everyone appeared to be in a jovial mood. Part of that was the grub, but the basic reason is the impact being made by resistance to potential coal bed methane mining and the dumping of phosphates in Flathead water.

Coalition chairman Dave Hadden herded everyone upstairs just after 6 p.m. There was a scramble to set up more chairs to accommodate the overflow crowd. After all, it’s a hot issue in the Flathead, especially south of the Canadian-U.S. border.

What was most impressive to me is that everyone there — at least those who spoke — saw the damage that coal bed mining by British Petroleum (BP) in the Canadian Flathead would do to the Flathead River and Glacier National Park in general.

After Coalition secretary Rachel Potter thanked area legislators in attendance for water quality money from the last session, Hadden gave an overview of recent developments in the wake of potential drilling in 500 square kilometers of land. “What happens in the Canadian Flathead is extremely important to us,” he gold the gathering. “We’re here because of the threat to the Flathead.” Hadden said that BP is expected to file for an exploration permit as early as January. The cause for the preservation of the Flathead would like to put a halt to that filing.

Virginia Sloan of Sen. Jon Tester’s office and Kirby Campbell-Rierson, representing Sen. Max Baucus, read messages from the legislators pertaining to the issue, showing their support of Coalition activities.

A diverse group of people who have done their homework on the issue had an opportunity to give their views on CBM exploration in the area in question. They included Casey Brennan of Fernie, B.C., representing Wildsight, a Canadian wildlife protection advocate; Chloe O’Loughlin of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS); and Richard Paisley, a law professor at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.

Brennan commended the Coalition for the pressure that the organization, legislators and others are bringing upon Canadian government to draw the line on exploration. You see, many Canadians do not want the CBM drilling, either. O’Loughlin said, “We believe it’s a mess that we [the Canadian powers that be] need to start fixing.” That statement was a joy to everyone’s ears. Later, Brennan gave a wildlife presentation via a slide show.

Paisley also gave reassurance that the Coalition and other supporters of preventing CBM mining in the Canadian Flathead are making substantial progress. “You’re fighting on the side of the angels,” Paisley said. “You’ve got international law on your side, a body of law that has ‘grown up.’” He said the right thing to do is to utilize the resources of both sides of the Flathead River.

Area legislators who voiced support for the exploration suppression at the briefing were State Sens. Dan Weinberg and Greg Barkus, and State Reps. Mike Jopek and Craig Witte.

It certainly is refreshing to see a group of people get behind a cause, especially in an issue that can have such a negative effect on Montana’s natural resources.

Joe Sova is the managing editor for the Hungry Horse News.