Montana News

The Mineral County Sheriff’s Office has issued an evacuation order for residents of Sunrise and Quartz Flats due to the 2,700 acre Sunrise Fire . Authorities ask that people leave the area immediately and in an orderly fashion. Residents in Quartz Creek remain under a stage two evacuation warning. These residents should to be ready to leave at a moment's notice

The latest sampling results testing Flathead Lake for invasive quagga and zebra mussels are in, "and I'm happy to tell you that we have no detections," says Jim Elser, director of the University of Montana’s Flathead Lake Biological Station . Elser announced his lab’s latest data from samples taken in April.

Montana’s senators on Tuesday took opposite votes on whether to begin debate on repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act.

Lake County is updating its growth policy plan this summer. Tuesday, county planners hosted the last of five public meetings to hear what local residents think should be addressed in the plan due later this fall. The county hosted a slew of open houses over the past two weeks to hear what local residents think about development, land use and protecting natural and cultural resources as Lake County continues to grow.

While Native Americans may be underrepresented in the "hard sciences," Jade Johnson would argue that now, more than ever, Native scientists are needed to make sure environmental issues don’t get swept under the rug or forgotten. Johnson, a member of Navajo Nation, is an undergraduate chemistry student at San Diego State University. This summer, she’s doing research at the University of Montana. It’s not the first time she’s done something like this.

This summer one tiny-shelled invertebrate has dominated the conversation about keeping non-native species out of Montana. Since zebra and quagga mussel larvae were detected in Tiber Reservoir last summer, local, state, tribal and federal agencies have scrambled to enact programs and policies to keep the mussels out of Montana’s waterways.

Updated 4:10 pm In Lolo tonight, there’s a public meeting at Lolo Elementary at 7 p.m. about the Lolo Peak fire. Another meeting on the fire is scheduled for the same time Tuesday at Stevensville High School.

On Sunday, Governor Steve Bullock declared a state of emergency in Montana because of wildfires. MTPR's Eric Whitney spoke to him Monday afternoon about what that means on the ground.

The Garfield County Sheriff is lifting the evacuations for property owners in the Lodgepole Complex Fire area. That’s thanks to more favorable weather conditions that have allowed firefighters from 34 states to make some progress on trying to contain the massive 390 square mile fire.

Montana’s Office of Public Instruction is unsure if its new draft plan to raise student achievement will comply with federal law. State education leaders are required to submit a plan to the U.S. Department of Education in September, as part of the 2015 Every Student Succeeds Act , or ESSA, which is the federal replacement for No Child Left Behind.