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The latest management plan for the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest is the result of years of public input, discussion and compromise.

The window for that years-long discussion officially closed yesterday, but Rep. Denny Rehberg is trying to pry it back open. Last week he sent a last-minute letter to Gail Kimbell, chief of the U.S. Forest Service, seeking to extend the public comment period on the management plan by another two to three months.

“While I understand this has been a lengthy process, it is imperative Montanans have ample time to properly respond to the 503-page plan that not only determines forest management but also decides areas of motorized and non-motorized recreation,” Rehberg wrote in his letter. “Substantive changes have been made since the plan's 2005 draft and Montanans deserve time to fully read through, understand and make comments on a plan that will be implemented on 3.3 million acres and be in effect for the next two decades.”

The newest version of the proposed Beaverhead-Deerlodge management plan outlines future timber-thinning and restoration projects, designated wilderness areas, and motorized and non-motorized recreation areas within the sprawling national forest in southwestern Montana, among other things. Much of it is based on the recommendations of a groundbreaking coalition of three conservation groups and five timber interests, called the Beaverhead-Deerlodge Partnership.

The partnership formed in 2006 over general unhappiness with the previous management plan put forward by the Forest Service in 2005, and emphasizes the role of stewardship contracts in balancing timber and conservation interests.

However, not everyone is happy with the details of this newest plan. A number of people feel they were excluded from the partnership's planning process specifically, and from the forest planning process in general. The public comment period is their opportunity to weigh in before the plan is, for all intents and purposes, set in stone.

In a news release announcing his request, Rehberg said that: “Montanans should have a chance to provide meaningful input as to how our lands are managed. Here in Montana, we like to make sure we're being treated fairly before we shake hands on a deal. This extension would give local residents time to do that.”

The new management plan has been in the works for such a long time, we doubt the addition of a couple more months is going to make much of a difference. But if it gives more people the chance to make their wishes and concerns known, we're all for it.

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