Great Falls, MT — The U.S. Forest Service’s recent decision to cut at least 360 positions in Montana has left a significant impact on wilderness management efforts across the state. Among the organizations affected is the Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation (BMWF), which partners with the Forest Service to maintain and preserve the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, one of the largest and most pristine wilderness areas in the United States.
The Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, which encompasses more than 1.5 million acres across three national forests—Flathead, Helena-Lewis and Clark, and Lolo—is managed by five ranger districts: Spotted Bear, Hungry Horse, Lincoln, Rocky Mountain, and Seeley Lake. This vast wilderness area is home to diverse ecosystems and rugged terrain, and it has long been the focus of conservation and restoration efforts led by the BMWF in collaboration with the USFS.
For years, the BMWF has organized volunteer work in the wilderness to assist the Forest Service with tasks such as trail maintenance, campsite restoration, and habitat rehabilitation. These volunteer efforts have been instrumental in maintaining the wilderness, particularly as the complex’s remote location and extensive trail systems require ongoing attention.
However, the recent layoffs, which have especially affected the USFS trail maintenance crews, have left the BMWF facing an uncertain future. According to Clifford Kipp, a representative from the foundation, these layoffs could limit the organization’s ability to scale up its volunteer efforts as originally planned.
“We need folks at the district level to help us guide our work. And so, depending on the positions that are lost, we may or may not be able to scale up as much as we would like to,” Kipp said. “Volunteers will never fill the gap for the skilled professional trail workers or land stewards that were employed by the agency.”
With the absence of key USFS staff, the foundation is forced to rethink its approach. Kipp indicated that the BMWF may need to refocus efforts on mainline trails that require more volunteer attention, as the smaller, more specialized trail crews may no longer be available to maintain them.
The shift in priorities comes with its own set of challenges. Kipp explained that organizing volunteer trips is not a simple task, and that significant funding is needed to ensure these efforts are effective. “There’s a misconception that volunteer work in the wilderness is free. It’s not,” Kipp said. “There’s a cost to hire crew leaders, train them, and equip them to work in the field.”
To make matters worse, over half of the BMWF’s anticipated funding has been frozen, further complicating the foundation’s ability to mobilize volunteers and manage projects. As a result, the organization has postponed the release of its summer volunteer schedule and is holding off on roughly 40 planned volunteer projects until it can reassess its priorities.
Although the full extent of the impact on the Bob Marshall Wilderness remains unclear, the BMWF is committed to continuing its work, despite the challenges. “We would not be pursuing our mission if we didn’t do everything we could to put some amount of volunteers on the ground,” Kipp said.
In an effort to raise funds and support their ongoing projects, the Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation is hosting the Mountainfilm on Tour event next month. All proceeds from the event will benefit the foundation’s trail maintenance and habitat restoration projects. For more information about the event and how to contribute, visit the BMWF’s website.
As the USFS continues to grapple with budget constraints and staff reductions, the BMWF and other organizations working with the Forest Service will likely face an uphill battle in their efforts to preserve and maintain Montana’s wilderness areas. The cuts underscore the ongoing struggle to balance conservation priorities with the realities of federal budget limitations.
