89–010 

Calendar No. 602 

111TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 2d Session 111–316 

NORTH FORK WATERSHED PROTECTION ACT 

SEPTEMBER 27, 2010.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. BINGAMAN, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 3075] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the bill (S. 3075) to withdraw certain Federal land and interests in that land from location, entry, and patent under the mining laws and disposition under the mineral and geothermal leasing 

laws, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon with 

an amendment and recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass. 

The amendment is as follows: 

Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu thereof 

the following: 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘North Fork Watershed Protection Act of 2010’’. 

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

In this Act: 

(1) ELIGIBLE FEDERAL LAND.—The term ‘‘eligible Federal land’’ means— 

(A) any federally owned land or interest in land depicted on the Map as 

within the North Fork Federal Lands Withdrawal Area; or 

(B) any land or interest in land located within the North Fork Federal 

Lands Withdrawal Area that is acquired by the Federal Government after 

the date of enactment of this Act. 

(2) MAP.—The term ‘‘Map’’ means the Bureau of Land Management map entitled ‘‘North Fork Federal Lands Withdrawal Area’’ and dated June 9, 2010. 

SEC. 3. WITHDRAWAL. 

(a) WITHDRAWAL.—Subject to valid existing rights, the eligible Federal land is 

withdrawn from— 

(1) all forms of location, entry, and patent under the mining laws; and 

(2) disposition under all laws relating to mineral leasing and geothermal leasing. 

(b) AVAILABILITY OF MAP.—Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of 

this Act, the Map shall be made available to the public at each appropriate office 

of the Bureau of Land Management. 


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PURPOSE

The purpose of S. 3075, as ordered reported, is to withdraw approximately 382,800 acres of Federal land located along the Flathead River in northwestern Montana from the mining laws and 

mineral and geothermal leasing laws. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED

The North Fork of the Flathead River extends approximately 90 

miles from its headwaters in southern British Columbia south into 

Montana, where it forms the western boundary of Glacier National 

Park. The Flathead River was designated as a component of the 

National Wild and Scenic Rivers System in 1976. 

Although the North Fork itself is protected under the Wild and 

Scenic Rivers Act, the Canadian portion of the river and the river’s 

watershed are not protected. There have been several mining or oil 

and gas development projects over the years which have raised concerns about the potential impact on the river’s water quality. 

In February 2010, the Province of British Columbia and the 

State of Montana signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) 

to preclude mining, oil and gas development, and coalbed methane 

extraction in the Flathead. Under the agreement, mining, oil and 

gas, coalbed methane, and coal development would be prohibited 

within the basin. However, much of the North Fork’s watershed in 

Montana is Federal land. 

S. 3075 would withdraw the Federal acreage designated on the 

June 9, 2010 map referenced in the bill from all forms of location, 

entry, and patent under the mining laws of the United States; and 

disposition under all laws relating to mineral leasing and geothermal leasing. This action will prevent future mining, oil and 

gas, coal bed methane, coal, and geothermal development, as well 

as any other activities governed by these statutes. 

In 1982 the Department of the Interior issued several oil and gas 

leases on national forest lands within the North Fork watershed. 

Those leases were later suspended in 1988 when the Ninth Circuit 

Court of Appeals ruled that the agency had failed to comply with 

applicable environmental laws prior to issuing the leases. The Federal agencies were enjoined from allowing any activity on the 

issued leases. Since that decision, no action has been taken on 

these leases, and there is presently no oil and gas development on 

federal land within the area proposed to be withdrawn by S. 3075. 

Since the introduction of S. 3075, several lease holders have voluntarily relinquished oil and gas leases covering approximately 

200,000 acres of lands within the area withdrawn under S. 3075, 

although a significant number of outstanding leases remain. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

S. 3075 was introduced by Senators Baucus and Tester on March 

4, 2010. The subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests held a 

hearing on S. 3075 on April 28, 2010. 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources considered the 

bill at its business meeting on July 21, 2010, and by a vote of 13– 

10 adopted an amendment in the nature of a substitute. At its 

business meeting on August 5, 2010, the Committee ordered 

S. 3075 favorably reported, as amended. 


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COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open busi- ness session on August 5, 2010, by a voice vote of a quorum 

present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 3075, if amended as 

described herein. 

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT

During its consideration of S. 3075, the Committee adopted an amendment in the nature of a substitute. The amendment provides 

an updated map reference reflecting new acreage in the withdrawal 

area. As introduced, S. 3075 also withdrew lands within Glacier 

National Park. The amendment deleted that provision since the 

lands within the park are already withdrawn. The amendment is 

explained in detail in the section-by-section analysis below. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 contains the short title, the ‘‘North Fork Watershed 

Protection Act of 2010’’. 

Section 2 defines key terms used in the bill. 

Section 3 withdraws, subject to valid existing rights, the lands depicted on the map from all forms of location, entry, and patent 

under the mining laws and disposition under laws relating to mineral and geothermal leasing. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of costs of this measure has been provided by the Congressional Budget Office. 

S. 3075—North Fork Watershed Protection Act of 2010 

S. 3075 would withdraw about 300,000 acres of National Forest 

System lands in Montana from disposal, mining, and mineral leasing activities. The affected lands are jointly managed by the Forest 

Service and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Based on information from those agencies, CBO estimates that implementing 

the legislation would have no significant impact on the federal 

budget. In 1985, a federal court ordered BLM to suspend all mineral 

leases on the affected lands. Based on information from the Forest 

Service and BLM, CBO expects that the suspension will remain in 

place over the next 10 years. Further, based on information from 

those agencies, CBO expects that those lands will not be sold or 

generate any receipts from mining activities over that period. Thus, 

CBO estimates that enacting S. 3075 would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. S. 3075 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Assistant Director for 

Budget Analysis. 

REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following evaluation 


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of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out 

S. 3075. 

The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of imposing 

Government-established standards or significant economic responsibilities on private individuals and businesses. 

No personal information would be collected in administering the 

program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal privacy. 

Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the enactment of S. 3075, as ordered reported. 

CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

S. 3075, as ordered reported, does not contain any congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff 

benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the Standing Rules of the Senate. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The testimony provided by the Department of Agriculture and 

the Department of the Interior at the April 28, 2010 Subcommittee 

hearing on S. 3075 follows. 

STATEMENT OF FAYE KRUEGER, ACTING ASSOCIATE DEPUTY

CHIEF, NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM, FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Barrasso and members 

of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to provide the views of the Department of Agriculture on S. 

3075, the ‘‘North Fork Watershed Protection Act of 2010.’’ 

S. 3075 would, subject to valid existing rights, withdraw 

National Forest System (NFS) lands located in the North 

Fork of Flathead River watershed in Montana which are 

managed as part of the Flathead National Forest from location, entry, and patent under the mining laws and from 

disposition under the mineral and geothermal leasing 

laws. The Department supports S. 3075, however, I would 

like to clarify that although the Department has surface 

management authority concerning mineral operations, the 

management of the federal mineral estate falls within the 

jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Interior. We defer to the 

Department of the Interior on all issues related to the status of the existing claims and leases. 

BACKGROUND

The Forest Service administers surface resources on 

nearly 193 million acres of NFS lands located in forty-two 

states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The Forest 

Plan for the Flathead National Forest blends areas of multiple uses in the North Fork with areas of specific or limited uses elsewhere on the Forest. Under current law, NFS 

lands reserved from the public domain pursuant to the 

Creative Act of 1891, including those in S. 3075, are open 

to location, entry and patent under the United States Mining Laws unless those lands have subsequently been withdrawn from the application of the mining laws. This bill 


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would withdraw approximately 291,000 acres of the Flathead NF from the operation of the locatable and leasable 

mineral laws subject to valid existing rights. 

The North Fork of the Flathead has low to moderate potential for the occurrence of locatable and leasable minerals. Much of the North Fork was leased for oil and gas 

in the early 1980s. Subsequently, the Bureau of Land 

Management (BLM) and Forest Service were sued and 

BLM suspended the leases in 1985 to comply with a District Court ruling (Conner v. Burford, 605 F. Supp. 107 

(D.Mont.1985)). Presently, there are no active locatable or 

leasable operations, including oil and gas, in the North 

Fork. There are 115 leases that have been suspended by 

the Secretary of the Interior since 1985. 

COMMENTS ON S. 3075

We recognize the bill would not affect the existing oil 

and gas leases because they would constitute valid existing 

rights. We also recognize the bill would not change the 

court’s order in Conner v. Burford requiring the BLM and 

Forest Service to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) under the National Environmental Policy Act 

before authorizing any surface disturbing activities on the 

affected leases. 

We are pleased that this bill would not preclude the removal and use of mineral materials found on the NFS 

lands that would be subject to the bill. The Flathead National Forest and Flathead County rely on the close proximity of local sources of aggregate to maintain roads economically and as a source of building materials. Commensurate with the goal of S. 3075 to protect the North Fork 

watershed, the ability to continue using those mineral materials would allow us to adequately maintain local roads 

and reduce erosion related impacts to streams and lakes in 

the North Fork. 

We appreciate Senators Baucus and Tester’s strong commitment to protecting Montana’s natural resources. 

I would be happy to answer any questions from the committee. Thank you. 

STATEMENT OF MARCILYNN A. BURKE, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, 

BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE

INTERIOR

Thank you for the invitation to testify on S. 3075, the 

North Fork Watershed Protection Act of 2010. The Department of the Interior supports S. 3075, which would withdraw Federal lands within the North Fork watershed of 

Montana’s Flathead River from all forms of location, entry, 

and patent under the mining laws and from disposition 

under all laws related to mineral or geothermal leasing. 

Enactment of S. 3075 would mark an important milestone 

in the work occurring across multiple jurisdictions to help 

preserve the remarkable resources in the Crown of the 

Continent ecosystem. 


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BACKGROUND

The Flathead River Basin, a key portion of an area 

known as the Crown of the Continent ecosystem, spans the 

boundaries of the United States and Canada. It includes 

part of the United States’ Glacier National Park and borders Canada’s Waterton Lakes National Park. These two 

parks comprise the world’s first International Peace Park 

as well as a World Heritage Site. The U.S. Forest Service’s 

Flathead National Forest is also located within the Flathead River watershed. The Bureau of Land Management 

manages the Federal mineral estate underlying the Flathead National Forest. 

Running along the west side of the Continental Divide, 

the North Fork of the Flathead River enters the United 

States at the Canadian border and forms the western border of Glacier National Park until its confluence with the 

Middle Fork of the Flathead River near the southern end 

of Glacier National Park. The North Fork watershed, a 

sub-basin of the Flathead River watershed, includes areas 

currently managed by the National Park Service, the State 

of Montana, the U.S. Forest Service, and some private 

landowners. 

The Flathead River Basin is recognized for its natural 

resource values, including wildlife corridors for large and 

medium-sized carnivores, aquatic habitat, and plant species diversity. The area is rich in cultural heritage resources, with archeological evidence of human habitation 

starting 10,000 years ago. Several Indian tribes, including 

the Blackfeet, the Salish, and the Kootenai, have a wellestablished presence in the area. The area also has celebrated recreational opportunities, including hunting, fishing, and backcountry hiking and camping. 

There has been interest in protecting the Crown of the 

Continent resources for some time. On February 18, 2010, 

the State of Montana and the Province of British Columbia 

executed a Memorandum of Understanding which addresses a myriad of issues related to the Flathead River Basin 

on both sides of the U.S.-Canada border. The intention of 

Part I.A. of that memorandum is to ‘‘[r]emove mining, oil 

and gas, and coal development as permissible land uses in 

the Flathead River Basin.’’ 

The Flathead River Basin contains Federally-owned subsurface mineral estate under National Forest System lands 

that the Federal government has leased for oil and gas development, including 115 oil and gas leases in the North 

Fork watershed that the BLM issued between 1982 and 

1985. The leases, which cover over 225,000 acres, are inactive and under suspension as part of the 1985 court case 

Conner v. Burford. The BLM has not offered any other 

leases in the Flathead National Forest since the Conner v. 

Burford litigation suspended the existing leases in 1985. 

The U.S. Forest Service is responsible for the surface 

management of National Forest System land; however, as 

noted earlier, the Secretary of the Interior and the BLM 


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are responsible for administering the Federal subsurface 

mineral estate under the Mining Law of 1872, the Mineral 

Leasing Act of 1920, and various mineral leasing acts. 

With respect to locatable minerals and oil and gas resources, the Forest Service has authority to regulate the 

effects of mineral operations upon National Forest System 

resources. The BLM only issues mineral leases for 

locatable minerals and oil and gas resources upon concurrence of the surface management agency and always works 

cooperatively with the agency to ensure that management 

goals and objectives for mineral exploration and development activities are achieved, that operations are conducted 

to minimize effects on natural resources, and that the land 

affected by operations is reclaimed. 

S. 3075

S. 3075 withdraws all Federal lands or interest in lands, 

comprised of approximately 291,000 acres of the Flathead 

National Forest, within the North Fork watershed of the 

Flathead River from all forms of location, entry, and patent under the mining laws and from disposition under all 

laws related to mineral or geothermal leasing. We note 

that National Park acreage within the watershed is already unavailable for mineral entry. S. 3075 does not affect valid, existing rights, including the 115 leases in the 

North Fork watershed that are suspended under the 

Conner v. Burford litigation. The Department fully supports S. 3075 as it furthers the goal of preserving the important resources of this region. 

The Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, which 

extends from Canada into the United States, is one of the 

great protected ecosystems on the North American continent. A 2010 World Heritage Center/International Union 

for the Conservation of Nature Report noted that the 

International Peace Park is ‘‘one of the largest, most pristine, intact, and best protected expanses of natural terrain 

in North America. It provides the wide range of non-fragmented habitats and key ecological connections that are 

vital for the survival and security of wildlife and plants in 

the Waterton-Glacier property and the Flathead watershed.’’ Retaining this expanse of natural landscape in the 

Crown of the Continent ecosystem is of vital importance 

for providing ecosystem connectivity, which is essential for 

the growth and survival of plants and animals in the region. S. 3075 will help accomplish this goal. 

The Department of the Interior is also committed to 

maintaining the ecological integrity of Glacier National 

Park, one of the most noteworthy natural and cultural 

treasures of our Nation. 

Preserving the region’s and the park’s water resources is 

also critical. The rich aquatic ecosystems provide breeding 

and feeding habitats for a variety of important species, and 

the Department recognizes the importance of maintaining 

critical habitat corridors when planning for resources uses. 

S. 3075 will help protect and preserve the important reVerDate Mar 15 2010 20:19 Sep 29, 2010 Jkt 089010 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6969 E:\HR\OC\SR316.XXX SR316

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sources of the greater Crown of the Continent ecosystem, 

including those within Glacier National Park. 

CONCLUSION

The Department supports S. 3075 and commends the 

many parties involved in protecting the North Fork of the 

Flathead River and the important resources shared by the 

United States and Canada. We hope that this legislation 

and the efforts of the federal and state/provincial governments add to the important legacy of conservation in the 

Glacier/Waterton Lakes area and Flathead River basin. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no changes in existing law are made by the bill, S. 3075, as ordered reported. 


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