By Mario Carr EBS CONTRIBUTOR
On Monday, June 17, the Gallatin River Task Force hosted a public meeting to inform the community of the progress and future goals of the Big Sky Sustainable Watershed Stewardship Plan, which was created in 2018.
Speakers included Scott Bosse, Northern Rockies regional director with American Rivers, Kristin Gardner, chief executive and science officer for GRTF since 2007, Johnny O’Connor, general manager of the Big Sky County Water and Sewer District, Connor Parish, Gallatin River project manager with Trout Unlimited and Mike Richter, who has lived along the Gallatin for more than 25 years and currently works for the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology.
Over 25 different organizations invested in the Big Sky community have come together to focus on the future of Big Sky’s water resources, and Bosse says that the vision goes beyond the borders of Big Sky.
“I would not be involved, and American Rivers would not be involved in this effort if we weren’t creating a model that could be replicated in other places… If you look at all the mountain communities across the West, none of them are doing what we are doing here. They’re discharging treated wastewater—that’s being treated at a lower level than it’s being treated here—directly into surface waters, ” he said.
Bosse hopes these other communities will learn from Big Sky, and said he is proud that “Big Sky is Montana’s largest zero-discharge community.” The water and sewer district’s new, $50 million Wastewater Resource Recovery Facility treats wastewater to high standards—virtually potable, with potable reuse as a future possibility—and plays a crucial role in the stewardship of the water in Big Sky.
“I would expect this water to become sought after in the future,” Mike Richter said. He explained that this water can now be used for snowmaking and irrigation, which could help bolster stream flow and increase groundwater supply. For snowmaking using reclaimed wastewater, Johnny O’Connor explained that this water is already treated to an extremely high standard, and then the process of that water being turned to snow, and melting down into streams and aquifers in fact treats the water even further.
The use of reclaimed water for snowmaking was a major focus of the discussion—it means much more than providing a few good groomers to ski on in December.
Bosse explained that this was a major win, and that he, along with other conservationists, had to convince the Governor and the Montana Department of Environmental Quality to change their laws so that this water could be used in snowmaking.
“Because the Governor was receptive to our idea at the time, the DEQ actually changed its rules… that didn’t just happen,” Bosse said. He added that he expects to see more of this throughout Montana, and that Bridger Bowl Ski Area may also be interested in replicating the process.
There was also discussion regarding the connection of the Gallatin Canyon County Water and Sewer District to the WRRF, which O’Connor says the new WRRF is prepared to handle.
Protecting the groundwater
Connectivity is a major focus of GRTF’s Water Plan, and Richter had a lot to say about it.
“Groundwater and surface water are connected. This has been a known concept for a long time, but it truly is the reality here in Big Sky,” he said. He explained that the streams above the meadow feed our aquifers, and that the streams below are fed by our aquifers.
“What happens to the stream ends up in the aquifer, and then what happens to the aquifer ends up back in the streams,” he said.
Parish discussed the health of streams, and restoration of the natural environment that is not only great for trout, but for the ecosystem as a whole. A tenet of these restorations is to “make it messy,” by preserving trees and other vegetation in and around our streams, which are essential to life in the water, and the preservation of that water as well.
“Historically our streams have been a lot messier than they are now… The messier we can make the streams, the more it slows it down and spreads that water out and gives it a chance to recharge aquifers and stay on the landscape longer,” Parish said.
The meeting ended with GRTF encouraging everyone to consider the role they play in preserving the quantity and quality of water in Big Sky, by doing things like landscaping with native vegetation, and controlling water use.
This was the first meeting of this sort in which O’Connor’s predecessor—former water and sewer district GM Ron Edwards—was not in the front of the room. Edwards said that he enjoyed the view from the back and that he believes Big Sky’s water is in good hands.
