The Madison Valley Ranchlands Group Weed Committee was formed in the fall of 1999 to administer privately raised funds and to provide the private landowners with information, equipment, education, and support to carry out the eradication of weeds in the Madison Valley. The committee will focus specifically on the elimination of noxious weeds on both private and public lands. To achieve a noxious weed free environment, the committee will work closely with local, county, state, and national weed control organizations. The committee will accomplish noxious weed-free lands by utilizing a plan based on the integration of proactive planning, identification, control, and public education.
Currently, the MVRG Weed Committee has several projects in place. They will be collaborating with the MT Fish, Wildlife & Parks Service to use integrated control measures from Quake Lake to Three Dollar Bridge in the upper Madison Valley. Sheep will be used to graze the islands and river corridor along with the use of herbicide and insectories where applicable. Other cooperators in this project include the MT Sheep Institute, the Forest Service, Anglers Against Weeds, Trout Unlimited, Women's Fly Fishing Federation, and many private landowners within the project area. Another key project is thye Madison Valley Intern Project in collaboration with the Nature Conservancy. This is a three-year project where two interns will be placed in the Valley to educate and inform landowners and land managers on noxious weed issues, on the cost-share options available to them and to work with them on creating their own weed management plans. It is the hopes of the Weed Committee to have 85% compliance of all landowners to be controlling and preventing noxious weeds on their property within the Madison Valley Watershed. The Committee has received over $80,000 in cost-share money through grants for landowners within the watershed this year, with more funding anticipated.
Please visit our Weed Center to help learn more about combating weeds yourself. Inside you will find information on identifying the main weed invaders of the Madison Valley and guidelines and tips for fighting back.
Here is an update on the Weed Committee and its fundraising efforts:
The MVRG, Madison Valley Ranchlands Group, Weed Committee has been a progressive and active committee under the MVRG since 1998. This committee was originally formed to administer funds raised to buy equipment for landowners to spray noxious weeds in the Madison Valley. The first fundraiser held for this purpose was in 1998 at Roger Lang’s Sun Ranch and raised approximately $14,000. This fundraiser has been progressively growing since, and last year’s fundraiser brought in around $30,000. This year’s event will take place at Ted Gildred's Sun West Ranch on Saturday, August 2, 2003.
These fundraiser events have generated funds for two 100 gallon sprayers, an extensive mapping program, and this year, a weed coordinator. In addition to our main fundraiser, grants have been given to our organization to help in the war against weeds. In 2001, the MVRG Weed Committee received over $89,000 in grant money. We have received grants from various agencies and private donors, and we continue to apply for grant funding to expand our program and services. A yearly calendar with fabulous photos of the Madison Valley has also been in production since 2001.
The MVRG Weed Committee works in the Madison Valley from Hebgen Lake to Black’s Ford. Funding from grants has allowed the committee to hire mappers for the past two years to locate and record through GPS noxious weed infestations in the valley. Phase two is to coordinate with landowners to provide cost-share funding and education to eradicate weeds on their properties. Both efforts will continue into the future with the end goal of all landowners in the Madison Valley on board with fighting noxious weeds.
With the new project coordinator, Becky Kington, the MVRG is looking towards a very bright future. This committee is establishing itself to be a prototype for related organizations in the future and is well on its way to success. Our concerns with weed management on Federal and State public lands are uppermost in our agenda to fight noxious weeds. As we see landowners expending a great deal of money to fight weeds on their properties, it seems only fair that the public lands be managed properly as well. We have a long ways to go to eradicate weeds in the Madison, but we are well on our way towards achieving a weed-free horizon.
The MVRG Weed Committee is dependent upon money we can raise. If you are interested in helping us, please call (406) 682-3295 or visit our Donation Information page.