Project Profile: Sun River Watershed—People Pulling Together

Covering 1.4 million ac. of land, including Forest Service wilderness, wildlife winter range, rangeland, irrigated cropland, and several small communities in west-central Montana, the Sun River Watershed encompasses every conceivable kind of water quality and erosion scenario. Controversy among the stakeholders had gone on for more than 30 years until the Muddy Creek Task Force convinced folks that a team approach was the right way to address one of the worst nonpoint-source pollution problems in Montana.

The education and outreach program surrounding the Sun River Watershed Project was exceptional. Public forums, monthly organizational meetings of the various boards, quarterly newsletters, articles in newspapers, slide presentations at local road shows, and spots on TV all kept the public informed and involved. Alan Rollo, coordinator of the project, says, “The technical and financial support has been overwhelming coming from the many players involved in this effort.” The project receives federal, state, local government, industry, as well as in-kind service from every group that wants to see their contribution make a difference. “We’ve got irrigation districts that volunteer equipment and manpower, landowners and entities who also participate and supply equipment, and volunteer labor provided by the local military base and the Boy Scouts. I know there are thousands of dollars of voluntary participation involved in this that, in no real way, can be accounted for on a balance sheet,” Rollo states.

A work plan was established early on in the project to help set the priorities and define the needs. The main task has been prioritizing the key erosion problem sites and finding the best means to reduce the erosion. Processes to improve overall water quality and quantity were developed hand-in-hand with the irrigators and the landowners, and projects to assist people in finding ways to improve rangeland and fisheries as well as their bottom line have been forthcoming. To ensure that all this effort really is working and progress is being made, the project is monitored by US Geological Survey gauging stations, water-quality monitoring sites, photo points, and public-opinion polls. All have demonstrated positive trends.

Some of the achievements include:

• Stabilizing 20 mi. of a 40-mi. stream that was considered the worse nonpoint-source pollution problem in Montana; reducing the sediment load by 75% from 200,000 tons a year to 50,000 tons.
• Stabilizing 4 mi. of key fisheries and spawning habitat on tributaries of the Sun River.
• Range management on 50,000 ac.
• Noxious weed control through the distribution of thousands of bugs as an alternative to chemical controls.
• Water management and efficiency through Agrimet (irrigation weather stations) to reduce water use.
• Lining 800 ft. of irrigation canals.
• Automating several canal gates to improve efficiency.
• Provide an Environmental Quality Incentives Program for priority areas to help meet local needs.

With every issue and problem, a variety of alternatives were looked at. Erosion control ideas include range management, fencing tree revetments, willow mattings, barbs, and root wads. Livestock waters include water gaps, pumping, and timing. In essence, the group has made a constant effort to be open-minded while ensuring that the bigger picture of their actions was part of the resolutions agreed upon.

This effort is unique in its comprehensive approach to watershed health, and recently it was awarded a Conservation Fund Industries National Watershed award. Initially the project leaders reached out to the public to identify the primary concerns, then those concerns were used to establish goals, directions, and needs. Individuals, groups, and agencies have provided creative ideas as well as resources.

Rollo points out, “As long as people see a positive outcome and see that their views are taken into consideration-that their concerns are part of the long-term solution in a collaborative effort-they will continue to participate. If people feel they’re being ignored, they’ll eventually walk away.” For the time being, the level of interest and participation in every project in the Sun River Watershed is high and still growing. Rollo notes that ongoing assessments are a major part of the effort. “Success stories in this basin range from big to small. Incremental steps are taken so that the players can see changes in their own lifetime. People like to see projects like this in small-enough steps toward resolving the bigger problems so that they can feel they are part of the solution. With such a large watershed, not everyone will agree on every step or understand it, but by keeping the big picture in view, more and more groups are willing to actively participate.”