THE BIG FORGOTTEN RESOURCE 

 by Pete Jackson 



Montana is blessed with a big and 

 wonderful resource; it is the base for 

 some of our most important industries, 

 but only a few people recognize its im- 

 portance. 



What am I referring to? Well It's 

 so common and so much a part of us, that 

 we never think to give it any credit; 

 it's our GRASSLANDS or RANGE RESOURCES. 



Montana is a range land state, 70% 

 of it is covered with grass. This area 

 is the primary base, for our largest 

 source of income, the $250,000,000 

 live stock industry. It is also capable 

 of producing $160,000,000 in recreational 

 income. 



Why has this resource been forgotten? 

 Well it really hasn't. Many individuals 

 and agencies are working hard to improve 

 and rejuvenate our ranges. But too many 

 others are unaware or are indifferent to 

 Montana's largest renewable resource. 



The situation today is that the range 

 lands are being given many additional res- 

 ponsibilities: Examples are : water 

 production, pollution control, errosion 

 control, wildlife habitat, recreational 

 areas, and the space for future urban 

 and industrial expansion. This demands 

 much more than fragmented management. 



The Soil and Water Conservation Dis- 

 tricts, and the State Conservation Com- 

 mittee have by law a responsibility, as 



MONTANA ASSOCIATION OF SOIL & WATER 



CONSERVATION DISTRICTS 

 412 Mitchell Building - Helena , Montana 



^ 



Treasire 



have some other resource agencies, of ^^ 

 protecting, developing and promoting the 

 use of our renewable natural resources. 



With this in mind, and upon the re- 

 quest of one of the SWCDs the State Com- 

 mittee has undertaken the task of getting 

 a more complete and modern program of 

 Range Management in Montana. This is a 

 very difficult Job, but your Committee 

 has already made several important steps 

 toward the first outline of a program plan. 



A rough outline of a possible range 

 land resource plan is being worked up by 

 a steering committee. This plan is de- 

 signed to develop some means of coordinat- 

 ing the many research, educational and 

 applicational programs being applied 

 to the grass lands at the present time. 



A set of goals, and responsibilities 

 have been developed in this first outline 

 whereby all affected persons have a com- 

 mon direction and destination. 



A great number of meetings and lon^^B 

 working sessions are still to come. But 

 everyone is confident that the program 

 will be a success and one of the large 

 gaps in Montana's resource plan will 

 be filled. 



This Is not a State Committee nro- 

 gram alone, the help of all District 

 Supervisors and others is urgently need- 

 ed to assist the steering and working com- 

 mittees in their efforts. 



Non-Prcfit Org. 

 U.y.Postarre PD. 

 Permit No. 171 

 Butte, Montana 



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