Montana's vast, working forests are vital to our state's economy, our wildlife and our way of life.

Montanans use, enjoy and manage their forests. Working forests provide jobs in the woods and mills, provide clean water and are critical to hunting, fishing and the Montana way of life. Yet the bounty of healthy forests - timber and wood products, clean water, wildlife, outdoor recreation - is being gradually chipped away as more and more land gets developed and locked away.

The Montana Working Forests Project offers all of us the opportunity to keep our western forests intact and preserve what is best about Montana. Through this project, the State of Montana has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to purchase and conserve 111,000 acres of former Plum Creek Timber Company lands. These lands could be owned and managed through the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation for the benefit of all Montanans.

This project would consolidate ownership and management of these lands in a way that meets community needs by preserving the working forests they depend on for recreation, tourism and logging. It would:

• Preserve vital wildlife habitat and water resources
• Conserve traditional public access for hunting, fishing, snowmobiling, hiking and other outdoor recreation
• Keep Montanans working in the woods and timber in local mills

Community leaders today are facing difficult choices, such as how to deal with the growth that is inevitable in our state. Their decisions will affect the character of our communities for decades to come. The Montana Working Forests Project is an effort to provide communities with an opportunity to balance growth and maintain the Montana way of life that we all cherish.