State Land Board Approves the Purchase of a Conservation Easement on Owen Sowerwine

The Montana Land Board granted unanimous approval for a purchased conservation easement on over 400 acres of pristine riverine habitat along the Flathead River near Kalispell on Monday. The purchase of a conservation easement on the State School Trust Land east of Kalispell, known as Owen Sowerwine, will sustain the state’s management of the property as natural habitat for birds, fish and wildlife, and generate long-term funding for Montana’s K-12 schools. It will also secure public access for outdoor pursuits such as trail walking, birdwatching, hunting, fishing, and conservation education, ensuring that these activities continue to thrive for generations to come.

Designated as an Important Bird Area by Montana Audubon, Owen Sowerwine is an ecological stronghold lying in the heart of one of the most complex sections of the Flathead River, a braided area including islands, sloughs, wetlands, and gravel bars. It is an integral component of an over 13,000-acre conservation network of privately and publicly protected land along 50 miles of the Flathead River and north shore of Flathead Lake, providing habitat for federally listed grizzly bear and bull trout and many other species, while safeguarding water quality in the Stillwater and Flathead Rivers and Flathead Lake.

Seeking permanent protection of Owen Sowerwine has been a passion of many organizations and individuals for decades. Born of a desire to protect the site as a natural area under the Natural Areas Act of 1974, an effort was led by Owen Sowerwine, an avid outdoorsman, dedicated conservationist, and community leader, for whom the area is named. The Flathead County Parks Board, Flathead Audubon Society, and Montana Audubon held short-term leases and licenses on the land over the years, which served as temporary fixes while collaborative partners sought a permanent solution for protection. More recently, the Flathead Lakers, Flathead Audubon and Flathead Land Trust have worked collectively toward purchasing a conservation easement on Owen Sowerwine as this permanent solution.

The conservation easement will be purchased for its appraised value of $970,000. Project partners obtained the funding to purchase the conservation easement from multiple large grants, as well as smaller foundations and organizations, and donations from hundreds of community members. Local philanthropists Jim and Lisa Stack’s generous $50,000 donation through Whitefish Community Foundation recently closed the final funding gap. The project is now fully funded and ready to move forward.

Approval from the Land Board was required to complete the conservation easement. The Montana State Board of Land Commissioners holds the legal authority to determine how State School Trust lands are managed. The Board is comprised of the state’s five highest elected officials — Gov. Greg Gianforte, Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen, Attorney General Austin Knudsen, Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen, and Commissioner of Securities and Insurance Troy Downing.

“We’re very excited to have received approval from the Land Board to complete the purchased conservation easement to permanently protect Owen Sowerwine. This is an important step forward for the project and we are grateful. We can now move forward to close on this incredible project and hope to do so early in 2024,” said Flathead Land Trust Executive Director Paul Travis.