The Elk Creek Conservation Area is a square-mile parcel of land at the confluence of Elk Creek and the Swan River, owned by Swan Ecosystem Center (SEC) and the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. The land was acquired from Plum Creek Timber Company to protect vital fish and wildlife habitat, forest resources and public access. Elk Creek is one of the most important bull trout streams in Montana. SEC wants to ensure the entire stream is protected.

Protecting Elk Creek
Elk Creek begins high in the Mission Mountains Wilderness. In the early 1990s, 2.5 sections in the upper reaches of Elk Creek, outside of the Wilderness, were protected through a land exchange between the Flathead National Forest and Plum Creek.

Section 35
SEC and the Tribes acquired Section 35 on Elk Creek in 2006 with funding provided by Bonneville Power Administration (BPA). The Trust for Public Land, a national nonprofit land trust organization, facilitated the acquisition. BPA holds a conservation easement on the land.

A joint management plan was completed in September 2007. A five person committee, made up of two Swan Valley residents, two Tribal representatives, and one representative of Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, oversees management of the Elk Creek Conservation Area.

Read the Elk Creek Management Plan or download the Elk Creek 2009 Brochure (PDF).

Section 9
In 2009 The Nature Conservancy and The Trust for Public Land acquired Section 9 on Elk Creek for later transfer to the Flathead National Forest, preventing subdivision development of the land's vital fish and wildlife habitat.

Section 3
SEC is raising funds to acquire Section 3 and complete the protection of Elk Creek. Section 3 will be added to the Elk Creek Conservation Area and a management plan will be developed.