The accompanying map (Appendix I) displays the lands affected by the proposal. The 

 project's exterior boundary is irregularly shaped and is 12 miles in length. Eight different 

 private landowners own 10 parcels of land that border the project. One neighbor has an 

 easement across one mile of the property which is used for accessing one parcel of their 

 land. One county road runs into the center of the property about 2 miles where it dead 

 ends at the headquarter buildings. There are no state or federal lands associated with, or 

 connected to, this property. 



IV. PURPOSE AND NEED FOR THE PROJECT 



The proposed property is river breaks habitat, consisting of 3 major vegetative types. A 

 ponderosa pine / Douglas fir-juniper type occurs on the more moist ridges and coulees; a 

 sagebrush-grassland type occurs on the drier benches, sidehills, and terraces; and a 

 Cottonwood / willow riparian type occurs on the flood plain. Some of the grassland 

 terraces on the river bottom have been cultivated into alfalfa or tame grass hay fields. 



Because the proposed property has steep terrain with diverse aspects these vegetative 

 types produce a diversity of plant species that are high quality deer forage through all 

 seasons on most years. Consequently, the property is year-round habitat for as many as 

 80 mule deer and 40 white-tailed deer (and almost twice that number during early spring 

 and late summers when deer are drawn to the irrigated hay fields from adjacent 

 properties.) Ring-necked pheasants are also common in the river bottom. Though less 

 common, sharp-tailed grouse, Merriam's turkey, antelope, mountain lion, bobcat, coyote, 

 fox, badger, and skunk use the property, as do a diverse group of small mammals and 

 birds. A list of wildlife species potentially using this area is contained in Appendix II. 



Every year, all across central and eastern Montana, finding places to hunt becomes more 

 difficult. A poor agricultural economy induces some landowners to charge fees, outfit, or 

 lease the hunting rights to others. Many ranches are being purchased by people from out 

 of the area who are less receptive to public hunting. And many ranches, with similar 

 wildlife resources and scenery, are being subdivided. 



In the immediate area around Denton, Montana, there is little public land available to the 

 public for recreation. Excluding the occasional tract of Montana Department of Natural 

 Resources and Conservation land that's located on a public road, the closest legally 

 accessible public land for deer hunting is at least 40 miles away. Public lands available 

 for upland bird hunting, or other recreational activities, are also very scarce. The proposal 

 property does have good public access via a county road that dead ends in the center of 

 the property. And even though deer and upland bird populations are currently below the 

 long-term average, acquiring this property would immediately and significantly improve 

 recreational opportunities in central Montana. 



3ea 



