Severe drought and frustrations with Montana’s Drought Management

Photo Courtesy: NCAT

Plan led to the formation of the Blackfoot Drought and Water Conservation Committee in 2000. The Committee sought to find ways that water users in the valley could reduce or alter their water use to minimize adverse impacts of fisheries resources and to aid in the equitable distribution of water resources during low flow periods. The result was the development of the Blackfoot Drought Response Plan.

Drought management is truly a watershed-wide issue that requires a collaborative approach. The Committee recognized that water users junior to the Murphy Right could not solve the watershed’s low flow problems alone and that participation by senior water users in drought response efforts would be critical to success. The Committee went a step further and included action by anglers and outfitters in the plan and the concept of "shared sacrifice" was born".

The cornerstone of the Blackfoot Drought Response is voluntary, self-defined, water conservation. Participants decide how to reduce their specific water consumption and impacts on water resources. No mandatory actions are dictated by this plan, except for any calls for junior water or special angling restrictions triggered by conditions and Committee recommendations. The Committee realizes that everyone's use and reliance on his or her water use is different so no one solution will work for everyone.

Recognizing that drought may now be the norm, the Committee and the partnership will be putting more energy and emphasis on long-term water conservation. In 2008, the Committee will begin work on an irrigation efficiency program. This program will include working with landowners to conduct pivot maintenance and energy evaluations and improving and expanding the soil moisture monitoring program. By working with our partners to identify potential water conservation project throughout the watershed, we are moving toward our goal of conserving water for the long-term benefit of agriculture, fisheries, water quality, and habitat.

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