Our Plan
Fires, insects, and disease don't stop at fence lines. Neither should our management.
The Montana Forest Action Plan convened key statewide stakeholders and tribal nations to reassess statewide forest conditions, identify priority areas for treatment, and develop a cross-boundary plan to accomplish landscape-scale forest restoration.
The plan consists of three main parts.
Montana Forest Action Plan
The Montana Forest Action Plan provides recommended goals and strategies to help promote cross-boundary, landscape scale forest restoration and management.
The Priority Areas
The Priority Areas for Focused Attention show the places in Montana that would benefit most from cross-boundary work.
The Assessment
The Statewide Assessment of Forest Conditions provides an updated analysis of forest conditions and trends.
DNRC Forestry and Fuels Project Activity Tracker
The Forestry and Fuels Project Activity Tracker details ongoing projects the agency has across Montana to reduce wildfire risk and improve forest health including on state trust lands, collaborative efforts on federal lands through the Good Neighbor Authority (GNA), private partnerships through the Forest Stewardship Program, and wildfire protection efforts.
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Glossary of Terms
Listed below are some commonly used terms and definitions relating to forest management and wildfire mitigation at DNRC.
Commercial Activity: Any forestry treatment that results in wood products that are harvested and sold.
CWPP: A Community Wildfire Protection Plan is a collaborative, community-based plan developed to reduce wildfire risk in areas where communities and wildlands meet. Learn more from the Community Wildfire Protection Plan Guidebook.
Equipment: Equipment and supplies that enhance the capability and effectiveness of firefighters and wildfire response efforts in Montana.
Forest Health: Any forestry treatment that leads to increased tree vigor, regeneration, and resilience.
Fuel Reduction: A forestry treatment that leads to reduced fire severity and increased opportunities for suppression success.
MFAP: The Montana Forest Action Plan provides recommended goals and strategies to help promote cross-boundary, landscape-scale forest restoration and management. Read the 2020 Montana Forest Action Plan.
Readiness: Actions and investments to better respond to wildfire incidents, including the availability of trained personnel, higher-functioning equipment, and modernized technology.
WUI: The Wildland Urban Interface consists of the area where human development meets and overlaps with the natural environment.
News and Project Success Stories
Implementing the Forest Action Plan
Good Neighbor Authority Jackknife Project
Flathead National Forest - Tally Lake Ranger District west of Olney
The GNA partnership between Montana DNRC and the U.S. Forest Service allows our agencies to plan and implement forest management and restoration projects together - increasing our capacity to complete important project work in our communities. The purpose of the Jackknife project is to reduce the risk of intense wildfires within the communities near USFS lands by reducing tree densities and accumulated combustible vegetation. This type of forest management also improves the diversity and resilience of the forest.
Our Focus
The Montana Forest Action Plan serves as the all hands, all lands plan for addressing forest health and wildfire risk issues across all forested lands in the state of Montana.
Forest Management at a Glance:
Forest conditions and the consequences of those conditions affect all Montanans regardless of land ownership. By working to align the efforts of diverse partners across the state, we can advance a common mission of strengthening our shared stewardship of Montana's forests. This approach is called cross-boundary forest restoration and management.
Taking Action
Through collaborative, science-focused, cross-boundary and shared landscape management strategies, we can benefit the social, cultural, economic, and biophysical forested landscapes of Montana.
Collaborative Partnerships
Cross-boundary forest restoration and management prioritizes and amplifies collaborative efforts that bring together stakeholders representing diverse perspectives, interests, and expertise.
Supporting Local Economies and Communities
Montanans have been making their living off the land for generations, whether its working forests or outdoor recreation. Cross-boundary forest restoration and management works to make sure that remains a possibility for generations to come.
Healthy, Sustainable Forests
At the end of the day, we all have one goal in common: keep Montana's forests healthy and resilient. Cross-boundary forest restoration and management treats our forests as forests, regardless of property boundaries.
Part of Montana's legacy is built on our forests.
The Montana Forest Action Plan will work to make sure that legacy continues by keeping Montana's forests healthy and sustainable for generations to come through cross-boundary forest restoration and management.