Photo by Rich Addicks This article first appeared in our Every Drop Counts column in Explore Big Sky. It is hard to quantify the extent of the damage that recent federal layoffs will have across the country, and here at home in Montana. The latest count is that...
The work to improve the health of the Gallatin River cannot be done through a solitary lens. Our understanding of the challenges and the available solutions can only be made stronger by paying attention to similarities we see on other rivers around Montana. Findings...
The newest use of reclaimed water is currently making its debut at Big Sky’s Yellowstone Club, where the inaugural season of snowmaking from reclaimed water is finally a go after nearly two decades of planning and pilot projects.
Today, the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System protects 13,396 miles of 226 rivers across the country, including five rivers in Montana. The upper Missouri River and three forks of the Flathead River were protected in 1976, while East Rosebud Creek won protection in 2018. But that represents less than one-half of one percent of the nation’s, and Montana’s rivers that are protected. We can and we must do better.
It is important to understand that how we use community water for our landscaping affects not only our groundwater but also our natural resources and eventually our river and tributaries; learning and understanding this requires a shift in behavior and putting appropriate practices in place.
How we (literally) get to the Gallatin impacts the health and sustainability of riparian areas, streamside habitat, vegetation, and the river in general. Well-worn, and sometimes rogue, access points are prevalent within publicly accessible forest lands along the Gallatin, creating the need for a host of restoration options.
When we talk about sources of pollution to rivers and streams, and more specifically about how different sources of pollution find their way into the Gallatin, we are talking about two distinct and different sources: point source, and nonpoint source (NPS) pollution
An insight into the Big Sky community groundwater study by the MT Bureau of Mines and Geology.
An insight into the relationship between the health of the fishery and the promising health of a river.
Big Sky is one of the few Montana communities that have never – ever – used a discharge permit to dispose of their treated wastewater into a surface water, and gave up their original discharge permit over 15 years ago.
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