MISSOULA – The University of Montana was recently selected by the National Science Foundation to lead one of the first regional Innovation Engine Awards. UM’s project aims to advance precision forestry and rangeland technologies.
Like the 43 other honorees selected across the country, UM will initially receive $1 million over a two-year period. This will support and develop a team that is preparing an implantation proposal that could result in up to $160 million in additional regional economic investment over a 10-year period.
UM has 18 partners in the project, all active in forest and pasture management. These include regional research universities and tribal colleges, national non-profit organizations, federal and state agencies, industry associations, and venture capital firms.
“This engine of innovation is designed to create a new economic engine for rural states in the Upper Missouri River Basin,” said Scott Whittenburg, UM vice president of research and creative science, who is the project’s principal investigator. “The expertise developed by our team will provide environmental and economic solutions for other regions of the country and the world where forest and rangeland management—along with fire, drought and flooding—are major regional issues.”
He said the regional project aims to become a national model for the use of precise forestry and rangeland management. The timber industry is an important partner in the management of these areas.
Julia Altemus, director of the Montana Wood Products Association, said a plan developed by the Montana Forest Action Advisory Council identified this 3.4 million acres in the wildland-city interface are identified as priority acres for rehabilitation.
“As such, we are at a critical juncture for forest health,” Altemus said. “This project will continue to evolve a national model for employing precision forestry and rangeland management to maximize the economic benefits of federal, tribal, and private forests and rangelands while minimizing ecological impacts such as fires and floods. We look forward to working with the University of Montana and its partners on this important project.”
Each regional innovation engine had to define a service region. The area for the UM-led project is the Northern Region of the US Forest Service, which manages 25 million acres of public lands in five states. The region’s 12 national forests span northern Idaho, Montana and part of northeast Washington. The four national grasslands lie in North Dakota and South Dakota.
Whittenburg said the region’s economy depends in part on natural resources. The forest and rangeland sector is an important economic engine for these states.
Another important project partner is The Nature Conservancy, the works in partnership with communities Restoring and improving management of workspaces And supports the leadership of indigenous peoples.
Tourism is also an important economic factor for this region and the devastation caused by wildfires and floods can have a significant negative impact on this industry. Whittenburg said ensuring the economic importance of these industries requires better monitoring and forecasting, as well as solutions that integrate this data into decisions that support both social and environmental systems.
The Innovation Engine project partners are UM, the American Indian Higher Education Consortium, the Cobell Institute of Land and Culture, the Aaniiih College Nic?-Mni Center, the Rocky Mountain Research Station, the US Forest Service Northern Region, the Montana/ Dakota’s Bureau of Land Management, Montana Innovation Alliance, The Nature Conservancy, South Dakota State University, South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, Boise State University, Idaho State University, University of Wyoming, North Dakota State University, NRNP Mesonet /State Climate Offices , the UM FireCenter, the Montana Wood Products Association and Next Frontier Capital.
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Contact: Scott Whittenburg, UM Vice President for Research and Creative Science, 406-243-6670, vpr@umontana.edu.
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