GREAT NEWS!!! The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has withdrawn a controversial water-diversion pipeline aimed at changing natural conditions in the Red Rock Lakes Wilderness in southwestern Montana. The agency’s decision was a direct result of a lawsuit by Wilderness Watch, Alliance for the Wild Rockies, Gallatin Wildlife Association, and Yellowstone to Uintas Connection, and subsequent preliminary injunction granted by a federal district court judge in August 2023. In the email announcing the withdrawal of the project, Red Rock Lakes Wildlife Refuge manager Mike Bryant wrote: “The Service considered its options and has decided to withdraw its decision to implement the project. Instead, the Service will focus on alternative conservation measures for Arctic grayling that are consistent with stewardship of the Red Rock Lakes Wilderness. Further action will be subject to additional analysis, and appropriate public review and input. The Service remains committed to working with partners to gather additional information and consider additional recommendations for conservation of Arctic grayling, consistent with applicable laws and policies.” The Fish and Wildlife Service’s project would have involved digging a six-foot deep, mile-long trench and installing a 14-inch pipeline to connect Upper Red Rock Lake to a manmade pond just outside the Wilderness boundary. Then, the agency would have added oxygenated water to the lake during the wintertime in an attempt to artificially manufacture better Arctic grayling habitat. We are pleased that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decided to withdraw this wrong-headed habitat modifying project and instead focus on efforts to conserve Arctic grayling that don't undermine the Wilderness Act or compromise Wilderness character within the Red Rock Lakes Wilderness. We look forward to working with the agency to pursue a wilderness-compatible approach to grayling conservation at Red Rock Lakes Wilderness. A huge thank you to our partners in this lawsuit and also to YOU—our members and supporters—who submitted thousands of comments urging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to pursue Wilderness-compatible alternatives. Our collective voices and actions protected the Red Rock Lakes Wilderness! You can help support our efforts to protect the integrity of the Red Rock Lakes Wilderness—and America’s entire National Wilderness Preservation System—by making a contribution today. Remember, if you’re a first-time donor, your gift will automatically be DOUBLED by one of our generous members. Thanks for your support. Together, we’ll Keep Wilderness Wild! George Nickas
Executive Director, Wilderness Watch | 
