FLBS AIS Specialist Phil Matson Receives 2024 Flathead Lakers Stewardship Award

We are proud to announce that FLBS Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Specialist Phil Matson was awarded the prestigious Flathead Lakers Stewardship Award during the Flathead Lakers Annual Meeting last night in Polson, MT. The Flathead Lakers Stewardship Award is given in recognition of those who demonstrate extraordinary achievements in their work to protect Flathead Lake and its watershed.

Matson oversees the FLBS AIS monitoring efforts, and is the Geographic Information System database manager for the Crown Managers Partnership (CMP). He is also involved in the CMP Large Landscape Conservation Design project, maintains a network of long-term environmental sensors on the Middle Fork Flathead River and on Flathead Lake; assists in the long-term Flathead Lake Monitoring Project; and engages in various education outreach programs to local schools, student groups, and the general public.

Matson is also a voting member on the Western Montana Conservation Commission in Montana’s sustained push to protect its water.

Formed in 1958, the Flathead Lakers is a nonprofit organization composed of Flathead-area residents who work to keep the lake clean and the local ecosystems healthy, as well as ensure a sustainable quality of life in the Flathead watershed. They provide leadership and support for the protection and improvement of water quality through advocacy, education and stewardship programs.

Please join us in congratulating Phil Matson for this wonderful recognition, and many thanks to the Flathead Lakers for hosting another fantastic annual meeting and for all the important and impactful Flathead Lakers achievements that will keep our waters clean and blue for generations to come.