A recent water quality study by researchers at Brigham Young University–Idaho found that streams near the Kilgore Gold Exploration site are highly sensitive to acid pollution, underscoring the risks that a potential open-pit, heap-leach cyanide gold mine could bring in this area.

Beaver dams slow water, create wetlands that store rain and snowmelt, recharge groundwater, filter out sediment, and provide critical habitat for Greater Yellowstone’s wildlife. In short, beaver activity makes landscapes more resilient to a changing climate—benefits Montana needs now more than ever. 

What we’ve learned over the last four decades, and even more acutely understood in just the last few years, is that conserving a place as big as Greater Yellowstone starts small. Conservation of this beloved region begins first in conversations with friends, stakeholders, and neighbors. It’s working together with all people to build home-grown solutions that protect iconic wildlife, our public lands, and the cold, clean waters that are the lifeblood of Greater Yellowstone. And it turns out that when we work together, we’re greater.

Rivers look and act differently following a wildfire. The impacts of fire to rivers are significant and last for years to decades, until vegetation can recover and key physical processes begin to normalize. Federal and state agencies are teaming up with partners like GYC to work on projects that help degraded streams recover faster from the increasing risks posed by wildfire. Check out our restoration work on Sheridan Creek!

U.S. Congressman Ryan Zinke of Montana on Tuesday announced the Greater Yellowstone Recreation Enhancement and Tourism Act, legislation that aims to protect nearly 100 miles of the Madison and Gallatin rivers, as well as key tributaries, with Wild and Scenic designations.

On June 28, 2025, Utah Senator Mike Lee withdrew his American public land sell-off plan, which would have sold and privatized millions of acres of public land across 11 western states.

Montanans are folks of all kinds – ranchers, farmers, business owners, outdoorspeople, conservationists, and everyone in between. The Montana Legislature is a place where we all come together to make decisions about our home, and whether we agree or not, I see Montanans as folks who can disagree and remain friends. This attitude embodies the Legislature. We wrap up a lively session with a number of critical wins for Montana's lands and wildlife. 

Idaho’s passage of Senate Bill 1170 weakens cyanide mining safeguards by transferring oversight from environmental experts to lawmakers, allowing mining companies to operate with fewer safety rules despite cyanide’s well-known risks. This shift endangers Idaho’s clean water, wildlife, and outdoor heritage—resources GYC is working to protect in Kilgore, where a foreign, financially unstable company is exploring for gold. Without action, an open-pit, heap-leach cyanide mine could transform this unspoiled corner of the Centennial Mountains. 

GYC is has been named a recipient of the Norm Winn Memorial Conservation Grant from the Keta Legacy Fund. This generous grant will help sponsor a project to identify priority areas to install low-tech process-based stream restoration (LTPBR) structures. 

We recap our 2024 favorite conservation moments and wins in Greater Yellowstone.

On November 19, 2024, the Montana Headwaters Legacy Act passed the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee for the first time in its legislative history. This brings the made-in-Montana legislation one step closer to becoming law.

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.