Goats and dust

This is the story of two scientific studies regarding Glacier National Park and how Park officials reacted to them.

New Park superintendent Jeff Mow was recently quoted as saying that the “information gathered from this” — $150,000 three-year study concerning goats at Logan Pass being conducted by the same University of Montana scientist who killed the first two goats he tried to collar a few years ago — “will play a valuable role in future management decisions.”

At a private meeting that I had with him earlier this year about my concerns about the lack of air and water quality monitoring on the west side of the Park — in particular whether dust from the North Fork Road was negatively impacting the air, the water and the glaciers — I informed him that a group I was associated with had hired a scientist from the same University that he puts such faith in to do a study about the dust being generated from travel on the North Fork Road.

He asked whether he could get a copy of that report and promised that he would have his staff “look into it.”

After having it awhile, the only response to the person that delivered it was from his PR spokesperson, who wrote “thanks for sharing.” How condescending.

Playing PR defense, Park officials now say that they want an air quality monitoring station on the west side, but priorities and budget limitations means that it will not happen in the future.

My take is that their goat study will be used to force people who want to visit Logan Pass onto the Park’s no-longer-ree shuttle buses.

As for learning whether the dust being generated by the ever increasing traffic on the North Fork Road is harmful — they apparently don’t want to know as it doesn’t fit their political agenda of making this a wilderness, whatever the cost is to the glaciers.

Joe Novak

Polebridge