[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 160 (Thursday, September 27, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S6354]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                          TRIBUTE TO MARK BIEL

 Mr. DAINES. Mr. President, this week I have the honor of 
recognizing Mark Biel of Flathead County, natural resources program 
manager at Glacier National Park, for his outstanding work bringing new 
programs and research to the Crown of the Continent.
  Growing up hiking and camping, Mark fostered a love of the outdoors, 
particularly national parks and public lands. He has had a long and 
distinguished career with the National Park Service and served at 
multiple national parks across the West. Mark has been at Glacier 
National Park for the last 8 years, where he has been recognized for 
his research on mountain goats and helped the park achieve designation 
as an International Transboundary Dark Sky Park.
  He has also pioneered a wildlife shepherding program with his dog 
Gracie. Gracie, known as the bark ranger, has been trained to move 
bighorn sheep and mountain goats out of areas of high visitor traffic, 
such as visitor centers and parking lots. The program has helped make 
the park safer for both humans and animals while also providing an 
excellent tool for educating park visitors on the importance of 
avoiding human-wildlife conflicts.
  Earlier this month, in recognition of his work at Glacier, Mark won 
the National Park Service Director's Award for Professional Excellence 
in Natural Resource Stewardship. He was selected over six other 
nominees, one from each National Park Service region.
  I congratulate Mark on such a tremendous achievement and thank him 
for his dedicated service to Glacier National Park and our entire 
National Park System.

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