MONTANA'S MOST
ENDANGERED PLACES 2007

Great Falls Portage National Historic Landmark

The view of the Highwood Mountains from this farm property near Great Falls is nearly the same as it was 200 years ago when Lewis & Clark traveled across this land in their journey around the Great Falls of the Missouri.

The site of Lewis and Clark’s 18-mile, 31-day portage at Great Falls — one of the most difficult ordeals of their exploration — is threatened by the proposed construction of a large power plant. The Southern Montana Electric Generation and Transmission Cooperative, Inc. (SME) intends to build a large coal-fired power plant within the NHL that includes a 400-foot smoke stack and four 262-foot tall wind turbines. This massive intrusion to one of our country’s most important Lewis & Clark heritage sites would be a devastating loss for all Americans, but especially for the many groups dedicated to stewardship of the site. In 2004, the National Park Service awarded a Certificate of Appreciation to state & federal agencies, non-profits, and private foundations for their united effort to establish conservation easements that help protect this NHL. During 2006, MPA, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, MT SHPO, the Great Falls-Cascade Co Preservation Program, the NHL and NPS programs, and Lewis & Clark Trail Heritage Foundation all participated in consultation regarding cultural resources. Despite valid concerns and calls for an alternative site by the National Park Service and other consulting parties, the Rural Utilities Services issued their Record of Decision that the project could go forward for a loan from their program. The campaign to save the site will continue.