Sager Lane Pin & Plank Diversion Removal Restoring Flow and Fish Passage at Sager Lane In September 2024, we began work to remove a century-old “pin and plank” irrigation… Stream Restoration Water Management Adequate Flow Ecosystem Health Vulnerable Wildlife Recreation Upper Clark Fork
Mike Horse Mine Cleanup In the 1940s, miners used metals-laced tailings to build the Mike Horse Dam at the origins of the Blackfoot River on Beartrap Creek near the Continental Divide. In 1975, the tailings dam blew out, dumping deadly levels of lead, copper and zinc into the Blackfoot. The mine’s corporate owner, ASARCO, rebuilt… Advocacy Pollution Ecosystem Health Blackfoot
Protecting Selenium Standards in Lake Koocanusa When the Montana Board of Environmental Review (BER) chose to void Montana DEQ’s protective water quality standard for selenium in Lake Koocanusa, it put the interests of a foreign mining company over the interests of Montana. The review board’s decision seems solely to benefit Teck Coal, the Canadian mining company that is… Advocacy Pollution Ecosystem Health
Dry Cottonwood Creek Ranch Cattle and Clean Water at Dry Cottonwood Creek Ranch From 2005 to 2021, Clark Fork Coalition and partners ran Dry Cottonwood Creek Ranch (DCCR), a 2,300-acre working cattle ranch in Montana’s Deer Lodge Valley, to be a living classroom for the largest river repair job in the West, located in… Stream Restoration Superfund Vigilance Water Management Research Education Pollution Ecosystem Health Upper Clark Fork
Cottonwood-Baggs Fish Passage In the late fall of 2019, the Coalition finished a stream reconnection project on Baggs Creek and Cottonwood Creek in the upper Clark Fork. Eight miles of stream was opened to fish passage for the first time in many decades. Cottonwood Creek also benefited from a large… Stream Restoration Water Management Wildlife Coexistence Adequate Flow Ecosystem Health Vulnerable Wildlife Upper Clark Fork
Valiton Ditch Split Season Lease In summer 2024, after years of work toward a diversion reduction agreement and a 20-year split-season water lease agreement with local landowners, we successfully decommissioned the Valiton Ditch and legally protected 13 cfs of new instream flow water in the Clark Fork River which would have been previously diverted into… Water Management Water Monitoring Adequate Flow Flood and Drought Climate Change Ecosystem Health Vulnerable Wildlife Upper Clark Fork
Broken Circle Diversion Upgrade Historically, Broken Circle Ranch rebuilt their irrigation diversion every summer using broken concrete and streambed material, which resulted in passage issues for fish and recreationists. In 2023, the ranch worked with the Coalition to install an innovative floating fish screen and river pump that requires minimal structure in the river… Stream Restoration Water Management Adequate Flow Climate Change Ecosystem Health Vulnerable Wildlife Recreation Upper Clark Fork
Helen-Johnson Ditch Project The Helen Johnson project reduced irrigation withdrawals from the mainstem of the Upper Clark Fork by over 15 cfs on three ranches. It removed a… Stream Restoration Water Management Adequate Flow Ecosystem Health Upper Clark Fork
Community Science Monitoring Miller Creek On Miller Creek, community science volunteers assessed habitat, noxious weeds, and riparian vegetation species diversity pre- and post stream restoration at two sites. Community science is scientific work undertaken by members of the public in collaboration with professional scientists and scientific institutions. When community members and scientists work together, scientists are… Community Programs Stream Restoration Ecosystem Health Vulnerable Wildlife Growth and Sprawl Bitterroot
Grant Creek Restoration Grant Creek Watershed Restoration Plan As part of our 2024 efforts, we conducted two demonstration shoreline plantings at the Highlander Brewing and Hilton Hotel, showcasing best practices for riparian restoration. The Clark Fork Coalition, with assistance from the Missoula Conservation District and River Design Group, developed… Advocacy Stream Restoration Water Monitoring Adequate Flow Ecosystem Health Growth and Sprawl Middle Clark Fork
River Ambassadors During the summer, Missoula River Ambassadors can be spotted at busy river access sites and community events, on popular day-float stretches, and immersed in conservation and restoration projects dotting Missoula’s urban river corridor. This team of community ambassadors guides the ever-growing river-recreation culture toward stewardship. During peak river season from… Community Programs Research Ecosystem Health Recreation Middle Clark Fork
Clean Smurfit Now The Smurfit-Stone pulp mill operated on the banks of the Clark Fork River near Frenchtown from 1957 to 2010, discharging enormous amounts of wastewater into the river. More than a decade after the mill closed, the 3,200-acre industrial site is still leaching harmful chemicals into the river and our aquifer. Advocacy Superfund Vigilance Research Education Community Programs Pollution Flood and Drought Ecosystem Health Middle Clark Fork
