Miles City Field Office
| Contacts: | Contact Mark Jacobsen 406-233-2831 |
Hopper Treatment Planned for Areas in Eastern Montana
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal Plant Health Inspection Service in cooperation with the BLM's Miles City Field Office will be treating grasshoppers in portions of eastern Montana.
Treatment could begin as early as June 17 and will conclude by early-mid July.
Areas currently targeted include Prairie, eastern Custer, southern Bighorn and Powder River counties; western and northwestern Garfield County and southwestern McCone County.
All chemical will be applied aerially and target areas will be treated utilizing the Reduced Agent-Area Treatment (RAATs) methodology. This method of treatment provides for the application of the insecticide in strips; with coverage of no more than 60 percent of the targeted treatment area.
The chemical of choice is Dimilin 2L –an insect growth inhibitor– which is toxic to a small array of insects but is not toxic to humans, livestock or wildlife.
Treatment of grasshoppers is authorized within BLM Wilderness Study Areas. No treatments will be allowed within 500 feet of dwellings, recreation sites, domestic bee colonies, perennial and intermittent streams, rivers, lakes and reservoirs.
For more information, contact Dale Tribby in the BLM's Miles City Field Office at 406.233.2812 or Shayne Galford with the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service at (406) 657-6282.
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.
Miles City Field Office 111 Garryowen Road Miles City, MT 59301