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FWP to address shoreline erosion at Somers Beach State park

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News from MT Fish, Wildlife & Parks

KALISPELL — Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is proposing to construct an erosion control structure along the north shore of Flathead Lake at Somers Beach State Park.

The proposed structure is similar to those installed at other eroding sites along the lakeshore. This structure will be designed to halt erosion and collect sediments, detritus and coarse woody debris without isolating the adjacent wetlands. It is also intended to minimize impacts to the shoreline from recreational use at the new state park. To complete this project, a temporary road constructed of logs and gravel would be built from the agricultural field to the shoreline. Access to the construction site on the west side of the park would be via Burnell Avenue.

The proposal is out for public comment through 5 p.m., Jan. 24, 2022. Details of the proposal are outlined in a draft environmental assessment published online. Copies of the EA are also available for public review at FWP Region 1 headquarters in Kalispell and the Montana State Library in Helena.

Comments can be mailed to: SBSP Erosion Control EA, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, 490 N. Meridian Road, Kalispell, MT 59901, or sent by e-mail to Stevie Burton at Stevie.Burton@mt.gov.

A virtual public information meeting will be held Jan. 18 at 6 p.m. The meeting information will be posted online at https://fwp.mt.gov/aboutfwp/regions/region1.

In October 2021, FWP acquired the 106-acre Somers Beach State Park on the northwest shore of Flathead Lake for inclusion into Montana’s state park system. Lakeshore erosion due to water level fluctuations and wave action is a concern at many locations along the North Shore of Flathead Lake. The structure proposed at Somers Beach is similar to the existing erosion control structure at FWP’s Osprey View Wildlife Habitat Protection Area a few miles to the east of Somers Beach.

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