ARLEE - An enthusiastic group of more than 50 people showed up to the Arlee High School cafeteria last Wednesday to learn more about efforts to implement a comprehensive trail system in the Jocko Valley area.

Members of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, the Jocko Valley Trails Committee and a representative from the National Park Service were on hand to detail prospective improvements to the trail network in the Arlee area.

Gary Decker spoke first on behalf of the JVTC. He outlined four prospective grants the committee and other area groups, including the school district, have applied for.

The first is through the National Parks Service Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program. This grant has already been obtained, but it isn't for money. Rather, an NPS representative helps the town create a viable plan to work with.

"Essentially it is a grant of his time and expertise," Decker said of the representative, Gary Weiner, who attended the meeting.

Weiner presented as well, and noted that his job is to "work with communities to achieve their outdoor recreation and conservation goals." He said that non-motorized trails have many benefits for small communities, and that grants and other funding sources are widely available.

"Road systems have gotten us addicted to driving everywhere," Weiner said, noting that trails possess social aspects, health and educational benefits and even economic benefits. "Over the last few years, people have been rebelling against that and are wanting paths that are safe and can help kids get to school."

Decker continued to discuss the different grants, moving on to a grant written by the Arlee School District to obtain money for trails through the Safe Routes to School program. Many other local communities have received money through the program, and Decker said it could potentially build large patches of trail. The district had asked for money to build a trail from Oxford Road to the schools, and then from the elementary school to Powwow Road and up to the Tribal Health and Fitness Building.

"The key is that trails shouldn't be something to drive to, but rather they should be incorporated into the community," Weiner said.

The committee had applied for a Challenge Cost-Share Grant through the National Park Service, but was told that the program is currently out of money.

"They told us we were the best application they got," Decker said after the presentation. "Hopefully Congress will allow for additional funds to be released."

The fourth grant has already allocated money to help build trails. The Lake County Commissioners awarded $150,000 in Community Enhancement Transportation Program money to build what Decker hopes to be a mile or so of trails along U.S Highway 93.

"We want to let you folks know what we are doing, and we'd like some feedback about it," Decker concluded.

Next up was Les Evarts, the CSKT Fisheries Manager. Evarts discussed the trail building program in relation to the watershed restoration project taking place on the Jocko River in the Arlee area. With the project, the Tribes hope to reestablish the natural processes that existed before the watershed was disturbed. The project hopes to refurbish more than 800 acres of wetland and riparian areas in the next 10 years. Money for the project comes from 1998, when the Atlantic Richfield Company agreed to pay $18.3 million for damages done to the waterway as a result of mining in the area.

CSKT Information and Education Specialist Germaine White said $100,000 has been set aside to build a bridge over the river, and the Tribes hope to create signs and educational bases along the new trails.

A short question and answer session took place after the presentations, and community members were encouraged to look at various maps depicting the location of new trails.

While Decker is excited about the progress his group has made and the successes they have already had, he cautioned that the process could take a long time.

"We've tapped the easiest sources, the ones that are most obvious," Decker said. "We figure this is a pretty long term process, and could possibly be 10 years before it's all said and done."