11 Most Endangered
Flathead Indian Reservation
Year Listed: 1997
Location: Montana
Current Status: Favorable
Threat: Road Construction
The sprawling Flathead Indian Reservation in northwest Montana includes 1.2 million acres of prairies, mountains, lakes and rivers that include endangered species, family farms and ranches, historic small towns and National Register sites. But if the Montana Department of Transportation gets its way, U.S. Highway 93 will be expanded from two lanes into a four- and five-lane undivided highway that will tear through the heart of the reservation and the lives of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes who have lived there for centuries.
Update
The efforts of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and the grassroots Flathead Resource Organization to promote less destructive alternatives were successful. A Memorandum of Agreement between the Tribes and Montana Department of Transportation (MDOT) created a working relationship that prompted collaborative design solutions to avoid impacting sensitive cultural areas. This relationship involves a tribal liaison working in the field directly with MDOT construction crews to ensure construction activities follow agreed upon guidelines. In addition, the Montana State Historic Preservation Office continues to review modifications in plans for other segments without major concern. One ten mile section of the approximately 50-mile project is still in design negotiations and should be finalized by mid-summer 2007. The completion of the expansion project is set for 2009.
