"As the world's first international peace park, Waterton-Glacier is more than just a national park," said Will Hammerquist, Glacier Program Manager for the nonprofit National Parks Conservation Association. "It is an icon of international cooperation, peace between nations, and the special relationship between Canada and the United States.

Competitors during the Olympics, but partners on sustaining the health of Glacier National Park and Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park.

Last week, Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer and British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell signed an historic agreement in Vancouver, British Columbia that promises to protect the Transboundary Flathead River Valley from all types of mining and oil and gas extraction--FOREVER.

The wild, unsettled Canadian Flathead valley is just upstream from Glacier National Park and provides critical habitat for Glacier's wildlife - including grizzly bears, wolverines, elk, and mountain goats.  Potential mining also proposed a threat to the ecological health of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site straddling the Alberta-Montana border that became the world's first International Peace Park in 1932.  So it's a win-win for conservation and sustainability for two of the prettiest parks in the world (and two of our favorite places). 

As reported by the Environmental News Service, "Today's announcement marks an important step forward to protect the last undeveloped low-elevation valley in southern Canada, where grizzly bears, lynx and wolverines still roam beside pure waters that nurture rare native trout," said Tim Preso, staff attorney for the public interest law firm Earthjustice.

Read more about this great news HERE. 

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