Interior’s Montana Land Management Plan Upheld by Federal Court

The Interior Department was successful in its bid for a quick win against conservation groups that challenged the agency’s management plan for a small summit of hills used for recreation in Montana.

The Bureau of Land Management has made “a sufficient showing” that it complied with the National Environmental Policy Act because it “assessed the environmental impacts and recreational usage” within the area when developing the management plan, Judge Brian Morris of the US District Court for the District of Montana said Monday.

The Alliance for the Wild Rockies and Native Ecosystems Council claimed BLM violated NEPA, the Federal Land ...