Private Lands
Our goal is to ensure that human development patterns and use are compatible with fish and wildlife habitat needs, preserve open space and scenic vistas, and enhance the quality of life for residents and visitors.
We are working to…
- Insure the adoption of a county growth policy by 2004 that preserves open space, scenery and important habitat.
- Insure that subdivision regulations, developed by 2005 pursuant to the growth policy, preserve open space, scenic vistas and important habitat.
- Identify and prioritize critical private lands in the county, and advocate for easement acquisition and /or purchase where appropriate.
- Reduce or eliminate the possibility of coal bed methane development in Park County; insure at a minimum, the implementation of environmentally sensitive coal bed methane policies. Areas of Special Concern
Park County Growth Policy Plan - Park County is currently in the process of transforming its Comprehensive Plan into a Growth Policy Plan that would have regulatory effect with regard to the development standards it sets. PCEC participated in the development of the original Comprehensive Plan and is seeking to engage our members and other county residents to become involved in this process by attending public hearings to advocate for land-use planning and the preservation of natural resources in Park County. We held a series of informal meetings in our members’ homes to inform residents about the process of developing a new Growth Policy Plan as well as its potential impacts. Currently, we are planning a series of educational forums featuring expert speakers on growth and development issues that will be held at public meeting spaces throughout the county.
East Interchange Lawsuit - In an effort to preserve Park County’s rural character and agricultural open space, while preventing further strip-development along Interstate 90 that detracts from the viability of Livingston’s downtown business community, PCEC recently settled a lawsuit challenging an agricultural-to-commercial county zoning change made in violation of a city-county development agreement. As a result, part of the zoning change was rescinded and a one-year moratorium has been placed upon development on the remainder of the land. A new city and county task force has been created to help develop a neighborhood plan that will guide growth in the “donut” area surrounding Livingston. This plan will eventually be incorporated into the new county Growth Policy Plan.
Coal Bed Methane Development - In response to the groundwater threat posed by potential Coal Bed Methane (CBM) development in Park and Gallatin counties, PCEC has taken a series of actions: · As part of the Park-Gallatin Alliance, PCEC is participating in a lawsuit to protect Gallatin County from incurring damages for their refusal to issue CBM test-well permits to the J.M. Huber Corporation. · We hosted a well-attended public forum on CBM development and have worked to inform residents about and rally opposition to this threat. · PCEC lobbied successfully for a public hearing on the CBM draft EIS to be held in Bozeman so that the opinions of local residents could be recorded for consideration.
Burlington Northern Pollution Cleanup
PCEC was awarded an EPA Technical Assistance Grant that we administer as part of our ongoing effort to oversee the cleanup of a polluted aquifer beneath the Burlington Northern Rail Yard, which lies adjacent to the Yellowstone River in Livingston.
Volatile organic compounds, heavy metals, and petroleum by-products have contaminated the soil and groundwater at this site (which has been designated as a Superfund Site). PCEC’s technical consultant monitors the activities of BNSF and the Montana Department of Environmental Quality to insure that they are adhering to cleanup protocols and notifies us of violations so that we can alert the public as well as the agencies involved.
Information from the EPA: EPA- BN Cleanup in Livingston, MT
Railyard Pollution Maps
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