Dillon Field Office
| Contacts: | Contact David Abrams 406-533-7617 |
Volunteers Needed To Help Clean Madison River
Do you enjoy the fishing and floating opportunities along the Madison River and want to see it remain one of the nation’s most pristine trout streams? Then get ready to roll up your sleeves and pitch in to haul out trash along the river corridor.
On Aug. 28, as part of the National Public Lands Day, the Bureau of Land Management, along with Madison-Gallatin Trout Unlimited, Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks, and Floaters Shuttle Service will conduct the 4th annual Lower Madison Cleanup.
Volunteers will meet at 8 a.m. at the BLM’s Warm Springs Recreation Area parking lot at the base of Bear Trap Canyon and should be dressed for the weather with long sleeves, gloves and sunscreen. Volunteers will be broken into groups to clean sections of the river by boat and along the shore.
“We’d love to get as many people out along the Madison on Saturday as we can,” said Matt Blocker of the BLM’s Dillon Field Office. “This is a great way to show support for your public lands, make the river a cleaner place to recreate, and to meet new people in the community.”
Blocker said volunteers can stay for the whole morning; or, if they’ve already got other weekend plans, they can come help for just an hour or two.
After the cleanup, volunteers will be treated to a free barbecue at Grey Cliff Campground.
To volunteer or for more information, contact Travis Morris at 406-599-3356 or mgtroutunlimited@gmail.com; or Matt Blocker at 406-682-4082 or mblocker@blm.gov.
National Public Lands Day began in 1994 with three federal agencies and 700 volunteers. This year marks the 17th annual National Public Lands Day, an event that brings together thousands of volunteers from coast to coast to improve and restore the lands and facilities that Americans use for recreation, education, and enjoyment. Last year, more than 150,000 Americans participated at sites in all 50 states. Through their efforts, they removed an estimated 900,000 pounds of trash, collected an estimated 20,000 pounds of invasive plants, built and maintained an estimated 1,320 miles of trails, and planted an estimated 100,000 trees, shrubs and other native plants.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs. The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends. In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
Dillon Field Office 1005 Selway Dillon, MT 59725