A growing number of Idaho hunters, anglers, farmers, ranchers, outdoor recreationists, families, and conservationists have joined the Clean Kilgore Coalition to protect the precious water, land, wildlife, and outdoor heritage that Excellon’s toxic gold mine would threaten.  

Muddy Ridge is an expanse of undeveloped land in the northeast portion of the Wind River Indian Reservation removed from Tribal control in 1920 to create irrigation infrastructure for non-Tribal residents. GYC is working in lockstep with Tribal leadership from both the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes to advocate for the repatriation of Muddy Ridge and resolve this decades-old injustice.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Upper Snake Field Office recently released a plan that defines and manages travel and recreation on its lands in southeast Idaho. The plan –the Upper Snake East Travel Management Plan – is the first of its kind in this corner of Idaho. The GYC team is continuing to evaluate what this plan means for BLM lands in southeast Idaho and the wildlife and natural resources they support.

In June 2024, GYC and the U.S. Forest Service finalized the second phase of the Absaroka-Beartooth Gateway acquisition project, turning several former mining claims in the New World Mining District into protected public lands. Now, the risk of mining on these lands is greatly reduced.

Southwest Montana’s Madison and Gallatin mountain ranges are some of the wildest places left in the continental United States. These wild lands are beloved by those who live here and those who visit, and they are under threat. That’s why the Gallatin Forest Partnership has developed a realistic solution to permanently protect 250,000 acres of public land in the Madison and Gallatin ranges – the Greater Yellowstone Conservation and Recreation Act.

Big win for Wyoming wildlife! The Kelly Parcel is approved for direct sale to the Grand Teton National Park for $100 million with the passage of Wyoming’s biennium budget bill.  

Spring has officially sprung! Migratory antelope, deer, elk, and moose are beginning their journeys from winter refuge throughout public lands across southeastern Idaho to summer habitat, primarily in Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park. And here at the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, our Idaho team is eagerly preparing for the Bureau of Land Management to release the final plan for the Upper Snake East Travel Management Planning Area later this season – a landscape that includes winter wildlife refuges and migratory corridors to summer habitat.

The BLM released the most significant change in the management of BLM lands in 50 years with the final Public Lands Rule, which puts conservation on equal ground with other uses like mining and energy development.

Buckle up! It’s going to be a big year for GYC and the lands, waters, and wildlife of Greater Yellowstone.

Join us for a journey down memory lane and let’s celebrate all we did together for the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

Tucked into the eastern edge of Grand Teton National Park is a 640-acre parcel of state-owned land renowned for its scenic beauty, high quality wildlife habitat, and legacy of public recreation access. Now, the future of the Kelly Parcel is in jeopardy.

The New York Times Monday captured our collective win of protecting Yellowstone National Park from the last viable gold mining threat along the park’s northern border.