In 1997, the Montana Legislature charged the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) with restoring the water quality of streams and lakes that do not support their intended beneficial uses; or provide drinking water, stockwater and wildlife habitat.  They also asked the DEQ to work closely with locally-based conservation and watershed organizations on the effort.  As a result, the Habitat Water Quality and Restoration Committee formed in 2000 to help develop water quality restoration plans, or TMDLs, for the Blackfoot watershed.

TMDL stands for Total Maximum Daily Load and refers to the amount of pollutants (metals, sediment, etc.) that can enter a water body without exceeding water quality standards.  The TMDL concept originated with the Clean Water Act of 1972 and requires each state to develop plans to maintain, improve, or restore water quality conditions in impaired streams in order to meet that state’s water quality standards.  Every two years, impaired waters are listed on Montana’s 303(d) list.

Using the 303(d) list, TMDL plans are developed, and when completed identify water quality problems and causes, provide an implementation plan for habitat and water quality restoration with numeric targets for success, and contain a monitoring plan to evaluate restoration targets. 

The Blackfoot Challenge is taking a leadership role in this effort because we believe that a locally led process will produce a more successful plan. The Habitat and Water Quality Restoration Committee is overseeing the planning process in the Blackfoot, and has expanded to include restoration project planning & funding, the development of a restoration action plan, restoration monitoring, and basin-wide water quality monitoring. 

Photo Courtesy: Brian McDonald

 

Photo Courtesy: Brian McDonald