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
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… Stream Restoration Water Management Adequate Flow Climate Change Ecosystem Health Vulnerable Wildlife Recreation 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… 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
Exempt Wells Loophole In 1973, the Montana Legislature passed the Water Use Act, which created a process for permitting new water rights. To reduce permitting burdens on small, individual users, it exempted groundwater use for “domestic, agricultural, or livestock purposes.” This meant applicants did not have to prove that the water was physically… Advocacy Adequate Flow Ecosystem Health Growth and Sprawl Upper Clark Fork Bitterroot Middle Clark Fork Blackfoot Flathead Lower Clark Fork
Cabinet Mountain Mines and Bad Actors The Cabinet Mountains Wilderness provides refuge for native fish and wildlife and its streams flow with some of the purest waters in the lower 48. It also contains one of the largest copper/silver deposits in the world. We work with our partners Earthworks, Earthjustice, Rock Creek Alliance, and Montana Environmental… Advocacy Ecosystem Health Pollution Lower Clark Fork
Thermal Mapping of the Upper Clark Professor Raja Nagisetty and environmental engineering graduate student Meggie Olsen at Montana Tech, along with several other collaborators, completed a series of drone flights on the upper Clark Fork River to study thermal refugia habitat. Professor Raja and his team documented an unremediated… Superfund Vigilance Education Research Climate Change Ecosystem Health Pollution Upper Clark Fork
Stonewall Creek We permanently acquired 5 cfs of water rights that reconnect Stonewall Creek to the Blackfoot River year round. The creek supports native westslope cutthroat and brown trout. Water Management Water Monitoring Wildlife Coexistence Adequate Flow Climate Change Flood and Drought Ecosystem Health Vulnerable Wildlife Blackfoot
